On Chinglish in English Writing

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1、AcknowledgementsThis B.A. thesis is accomplished under the inspiration and enlightenment of my respected supervisor Liu Fengming. I am extremely grateful to her for her valuable directions and suggestions.Also, I am grateful to Professors Liu Jiarong, Wen Xu, Sun Tai for their earnest teaching durin

2、g the B.A. course study. Their invaluable lectures are of great help for my understanding of linguistics, and for the accomplishment of this thesis too.AbstractThe teaching of English as a foreign language (EFL) in China has become a nationwide endeavor pursued at all academic levels, from the kinde

3、rgarten to the University. In the past ten years there has been an explosion in the development of public school English programs and private English language schools throughout China. As more and more people begin to learn English and use English, an unsatisfying problem appears, that is Chinglish.

4、 And the causes are numerous and diversified, which include linguistic, cultural, social, economic and so on.In this paper, we will talk about Chinglish in English writing. This is a complex problem, but now more and more people have noticed this. Making clear the forms of Chinglish and why there is

5、 so much Chinglish will help us to solve this problem. Therefore, this paper focuses on the forms of Chinglish, the linguistic factors that lead to Chinglish, and some suggestions. And when this problem has been solved properly, not only the English writing skill but also the quality and the efficie

6、ncy of English teaching and learning will be improved.内容摘要在中国，从幼儿园到大学，英语教学已经成为一种流行趋势。在过去十多年中，无论是在一般学校还是私立学校，英语教学都有了极大的发展。随着越来越多的人学英语，用英语，也产生了一个令人不容乐观的问题，那就是汉语式英语的大量出现。产生这一问题的原因是多种多样的，有语言学方面的，也有文化、社会、经济等方面的原因。在这篇论文中，我们将会谈论英语写作中的汉语式英语。这是一个复杂的问题，好在现在越来越多的人已经注意到了这个问题。弄清汉语式英语的各种不同形式和它产生的缘由将能帮助我们解决这个问题。在这

7、篇论文中将着重介绍英语写作中汉语式英语的不同形式，产生这个问题的语言学方面的原因及一些避免汉语式英语的建议。当汉语式英语得到有效避免的时候，不但英语写作水平会随之提升，而且英语教学和英语学习的质量和效率都会得到提高。On Chinglish in English WritingAcknowledgementAbstract内容摘要1. Introduction1.1 Definition1.2 Background2. Forms of Chinglish2.1 Lexical deficiency2.2 Repetition2.3 Syntactical incompetence3. Lin

8、guistic interference3.1 The loanwords3.2 The verbs4. Some solutions5. ConclusionOn Chinglish in English Writing1. Introduction1.1 DefinitionChinglish means Chinese English. This paper focuses on Chinglish, which is mainly created by the English learners in China who misunderstand the usage of Englis

9、h because of the interference of their mother tongueChinese. According to Wikipedia, Chinglish is any poor or broken English that is of Chinese origin. Chinglish is usually found in written form.1.2 BackgroundFrom the definition, we can see that Chinglish is not a good language. Many people have stu

10、died this problem. Most of them consider Chinglish as a bad language. And it is unacceptable. But some people argue that Chinglish is somehow bearable to our students considering the reality in our English learning environment. This kind of idea is not right. The purpose of learning English is to co

11、mmunicate with foreigners. Although Chinglish reflect some of our nations culture to some extent, it also makes big obstacles in international communication, often it is very ridiculous. The loss outweighs the gain. So getting rid of Chinglish is very important in English learning and teaching.Ching

12、lish is very common in Chinese students writing, because the Chinese students are so familiar with their study habit of writing in Chinese practice that they often put it into practice in English writing. This is a big obstacle for Chinese students to learn English well. When Chinese students who la

13、ck a real English environment learn English, they easily tend to ignore the differences between the two languages. The linguistic interference of ones mother tongue always poses an obstacle to ones successful learning of foreign languages. So, the main cause of Chinglish is linguistic interference f

14、rom mother tongue. And teacher will play a very important role in this battle to get rid of Chinglish. In this paper, I will focus on the different forms of Chinglish, the linguistic interference and some suggestions to avoid it. Forms of Chinglish2.1 Lexical deficiencyIt seems easy to find out that

15、 Chinglish often appears in the form of lexical redundancy, which arises when students fail to understand the exact meaning and usage of an English word. Such as: 书桌（课桌） Chinglish: a book desk (a writing desk) Correct: a desk 舞会 Chinglish: a dance party Correct: a dance(3) 书房 Chinglish: a study room

16、 Correct: a studyMisunderstanding meaning and usage of a word brings about a kind of unbearable Chinglish. Take a look at the following sentences: Chinglish: When I reached my wallet to find my money, I found it invisible.Correct: When I reached my wallet to find my money, I found it missing/gone. C

17、hinglish: As the price for the jacket was too expensive, I decide not to buy it. Correct: As the price for the jacket was too high, I decide not to buy it.(3) Chinglish: I feel very painful in my right hand.Correct: I feel great pain in my right hand.Another kind of Chinglish in the form of redundan

18、cy occurs when students are not aware that Chinese is a verb-abundant language while English is a preposition-and noun-oriented one.(1) Chinglish: He ran out when it was raining hard.Correct: He ran out into a heavy rain.(2) Chinglish: He looked at her and felt surprised.Correct: He looked at her in

19、 surprise.(3) Chinglish: We were shown in by those who wore uniforms.Correct: We were shown in by those in uniforms. 2.2 RepetitionSimilar to redundancy, unnecessary repetition also causes Chinglish. The repetitious sentences are clearly reflecting the negative influence of the native language.(1) C

20、hinglish: Our country is a great country with a long history.Correct: Ours is a great country with a long history.(2) Chinglish: It is essential to strengthen the building of our national defense.Correct: It is essential to strengthen our national defense.(3) Chinglish: He gave a lot of reasons for

21、being late to class, but the reasons he gave didnt convince us.Correct: He gave a lot of reasons for being late to class, but none of them was convincing.2.3 Syntactical incompetence English sentences with inanimate subjects can be very vivid and expressive. Failure to observe this linguistic phenom

22、enon often leads to tasteless, monotonous Chinese-stereotyped English sentences. Compare the following pairs of sentences:(1) Chinglish: She was very miserable and her heart broke.Correct: Misery tore her into pieces.(2) Chinglish: She was so jealous that she became desperate.Correct: Jealousy drove

23、 her to despair.(3) Chinglish: Because the cost of the medicine was reduced, people all over the country were able to use it in treating with many diseases.Correct: The reduced cost made possible the nationwide use of the medicine in treating many diseases. Ignorance or negligence of the correct syn

24、tactic structure and idiomatic collocation or usage in English:(1) Chinglish: His English knowledge is adequate for the job.Correct: His knowledge of English is adequate for the job.(2) Chinglish: Id like to have the newest news on Afghanistan.Correct: Id like to have the latest news on Afghanistan.

25、(3) Chinglish: The bankruptcy of his father has made him impossible to go on studying.Correct: The bankruptcy of his father has made it impossible for him to go on studying. The English causative verb make in its structure make somebody do something is often abused by Chinese students because there

26、is an identical structure in Chinese to express the same idea.(1) Chinglish: Her red face made me see through his mind.Correct: Her red face told me what she was thinking about.(2) Chinglish: The sight of these pictures made me remember my own childhood.Correct: The sight of these pictures reminded

27、me of my own childhood.(3) Chinglish: A sudden shout made him stand up.Correct: A sudden shout brought him to feet. There is no change of perspectives in expressing ideas from Chinese into English.(1) Chinglish: Dont mind other peoples business.Correct: Mind your own business.(2) Chinglish: Do you n

28、eed any help?Correct: May I help you?(3) Chinglish: Dont pay attention to the dog.Correct: Leave the dog alone.3. Linguistic interference Although there are many factors that will cause Chinglish, from the forms of Chinglish above, we can see that linguistic interference is the main cause of Chingli

29、sh. And linguistic interference is mainly the negative influence of the mother tongue. Mother tongue interference is defined as the use of elements from ones native language while learning a second one. Instances of linguistic interference in English learning can be found at the level of pronunciati

30、on, morphology, syntax, vocabulary and meaning. Then Chinglish is found in ones writing. Linguistic interference includes many aspects. Here I will focus on the loanwords and the verbs.3.1 The loanwordsLoanwords here are the words that taken into Chinese from English. We often use loanwords in writi

31、ng. And loanwords will often cause Chinglish too. Loanwords, at first, may appear to be unimportant items of linguistic code. However, the confusion and ramifications of their usage necessitate their study by EFL students. The previously illustrated methods of loanword assimilation highlight this ne

32、ed. Also, loan terminology occurs differently, and on many varied levels, within each of the nations and languages of Northeast Asia.Foreign loanwords of English and European origin, as Taylor (1995) attests, become entrenched within the Chinese vernacular in one of four ways; sound based, meaning b

33、ased, as a hybrid, or based on both sound and meaning. Let us now detail examples of each.a. Sound-basedThis form of loanword sees the sound sequence of a foreign term brought into Chinese, segmented by syllables that are similar to the sound of Chinese, with no regard placed on meaning. One example

34、 is san-ming-zhi, or sandwich. In Chinese san-ming-zhi can literally be translated into English as three from san, bright from ming, and govern from zhi. Another example is Jia-na-da for Canada, translating to add from jia, take from na, and big from da. This form of meaningless sound representation

35、, according to Taylor, occurs when the meaning of the foreign word is obscure. It is interesting to note that sound-based loanwords in Chinese do not necessarily come to reflect the original pronunciation of the borrowed term.b. Meaning-basedInitially, Chinese transcribed the sounds of loans, but mo

36、re recently, mental concepts rather than foreign words are seeing representation. This borrowing form functions once the understanding of a loan term has occurred, and where selected Chinese morphemes then come to provide meaning. Examples are: dian-hua for telephone, or literally electric speak; di

37、an-nao for computer, or literally electric brain; and zi-xingche bicycle, or literally selfgo-wheel.c. Hybrid formsLoanwords in hybrid form see a part of the translation sound based, and another meaning based. Words that result are jiu-ba for bar, where the Chinese word jiu, or wine, is combined wit

38、h the sound of the English word bar, and pi-jiu for beer, where the Chinese word jiu, or wine, is combined with the initial syllable of the English word beer.d. Sound and meaning formsSelected Chinese syllables can simultaneously reflect both the sound and meaning of foreign terms. A famous example

39、comes from kekou-kele which means Coca-Cola, but literally translates to tasty and enjoyable. A few other examples are ma-ti-ni, for martini, or literally horse kick you, and ai-zi for AIDS, or literally love death.One may expect that loanwords would be adopted to linguistically represent concepts a

40、nd objects that are non-existent within the native language. However, this is not the case since some native words have popularized loan equivalents. In addition to direct borrowing, recent loan terms are also used in hybrid or contracted forms. Perhaps this is to facilitate convenience, speed, or s

41、tyle in conversation. When listening to native discourse in China, modern loan terms may prove to be an additional source of confusion for the native speaker of English because they take on a form of their own, which may mask the original source code of the term. This, combined with the fact that th

42、e use of English loanwords is increasing, poses a problem for EFL students.A summary of the assimilation of loanwords in China can be presented in six points:(1) The majority of recent loanwords in China appear to stem from the English language, and to a lesser degree from other European languages.(

43、2) Shortening, limiting, combining and extending English terms result in the fact that, on most occasions, they are incomprehensible to a native speaker of English.(3) Some loanwords tend only to be used as compound words.(4) Loanwords tend to be nouns in the original language, but are incorporated

44、into Chinese as any cognate form.(5) Loanwords are blended with other loanwords or the native language to coin new terms or pseudo loanwords.(6) Brand names take on semantic meanings.As a result, EFL students can easily confuse loan terms in discourse by misinterpretation or through misuse. Then Chi

45、nglish will appear in their writing.3.2 The verbso:pVerb is a very important part in a sentence. English and Chinese verbs, although similar in many aspects, have some subtle but significant differences in semantic composition, bringing difficulties to Chinese students in learning English verbs. And

46、 in many occasions, the wrong verbs lead to Chinglish.There are many synonyms in English verbs. If we can not distinguish the subtle differences of synonyms, we will write Chinglish naturally. To highlight the subtle differences among synonyms, a componential analysis would be of help. For instance,

47、 when we intend to express 笑 in English, the most possible word that comes to our Chinese mind is laugh or smile, the most general ones of its kind. Actually, we have a series of synonyms to choose from according to a given context, analyzed below: chuckle: laugh + quietly giggle: laugh + silly + re

48、peatedly + uncontrollably sniggle: laugh + half suppressed grin: laugh + teeth-shown guffaw: laugh + loudly + perhaps rudely The direction of English verbs is also often causing Chinglish. Borrow and lend are mixed up obviously because the Chinese equivalent 借 does not divulge direction. Misled by t

49、he notion that a one-to-one correspondence can be established between English and Chinese, some students may translate 取回 as fetch back without realizing that the direction element has already been incorporated in the head verb. The same error is committed with expressions like still remain, repeat

50、again, connect together, and so on, which are called tautology.Besides, the choice of general or specific verbs is very important in English writing. Of course, the choice of level of specificity varies from situation to situation. For example, if we were describing our experiences in obtaining a dr

51、ivers license, it would be appropriate to say, After having my picture taken, I went upstairs to pay the fee. The general verb go is all that is required if our focus is not on the physical motions but on the process of getting a license. But suppose how I went upstairs has much relevance to the mai

52、n point of our story, we could pack in more information by replacing the general word with more specific ones like saunter or stumble up. The need to refer accurately thus calls for specification in writing. The problem is that specific verbs do not easily come to mind in our writing process. This i

53、s because the degree of transparency plays an important part in language acquisition. For instance, we may find words like ball-pen (圆珠笔) that are semantically transparent easy to memorize, whereas many specific verbs, which contain several motion elements and thus are opaque, have less learnability

54、. As a result, Chinese students tend to use general verbs in their writing and when more information is required, their practice is to work out a lot of modifiers (adverbial, complement, and so on) to qualify the general verb. The following sentence is taken from a composition. Chinglish: A light sh

55、one faintly and unsteadily at the end of the passage. I could hardly see what was going on there.Better: A light glimmered faintly and unsteadily at the end of the passage. I could hardly see what was going on there.Apparently, Faintly and unsteadily are inappropriate to modify shine. Besides, too m

56、any modifiers may sound more like an explanation than a description. Reorganized with a specific verb glimmer, the sentence could be improved. Another striking evidence of Chinglish lies in the use of causative verbs. Referring to causative verbs, we naturally have words like make, let, set, get, ha

57、ve in mind. However, apart from those common causatives, the causative component is incorporated in a lot of specific verbs, especially emotional causatives like surprise, delight, annoy, upset, puzzle, scare, assure, etc. Making an analysis of the translation work of Chinese students, especially th

58、ose newcomers to English, we may discover something strange but almost universal. That is, when the causative mood is requiredin the translation, the word make occurs in a shocking frequency as the exact equivalent to the Chinese causative 使. Example 1: 电视使人们互相交流的机会少了。 Chinglish: TV makes people hav

59、e fewer chances to communicate with each other. Better: TV is depriving people of the chances to communicate with each other.Example 2: 他使我们相信他的工作能力。 Chinglish: He made us trust his ability to work. Better: He convinced us of his ability to work.Following this pattern, students work out translations

60、, grammatically correct, yet marked with apparent Chinese traces. They are not idiomatic English. Similarities exist abundantly between English literal meaning and Chinese in literal usage, but due to the differences between modes of thinking and expression, there are less such similarities in the f

61、igurative meaning. However, those who tend to establish a direct correspondence between the two languages may come up with expressions such as married out to (嫁出-married off to), draw down a design (画一份图样下来-draw up a design).To sum up, incorporation is typical of English verbs, an inadequate knowled

62、ge of which accounts for some errors and Chinglish expressions of the Chinese students. 4. Some solutionsNow that the main cause of Chinglish is linguistic interference, we should avoid this interference. If we think like the native people, then the interference will not exist. So, the most importan

63、t way is cultivating the habit of English thinking. As a Chinese person, Chinese thinking habit could never be removed. But we can compare the two languages and notice the difference to cultivate this habit. In the comparison between native and foreign language lies the key to ease or difficulty in foreign language learning. We can predict and describe the patterns that will cause difficulty in learning by comparing systematically the native language and the targe