SÁNG KIẾN KINH NGHIỆM SO SÁNH, đối CHIẾU câu điều KIỆN TIẾNG ANH và TIẾNG VIỆT

SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO …………………… TRƯỜNG ……………………………… ***** A Contrastive Analysis on Conditional Sentences in English & Vietnamese (SO SÁNH, ĐỐI CHIẾU CÂU ĐIỀU KIỆN TRONG TIẾNG VIỆT VÀ TIẾNG ANH) By: TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Part I: Introduction • Rationale • Limitation of the subject • Method of studying the subject Part II: Development • What is Contrastive Analysis (CA)? • Conditional Sentences • Conditional Sentences in English • Conditional Sentences in Vietnamese 12 • Similarities and Differences 14 • Typical Difficulties for Vietnamese Students 15 Part III: Conclusion 17 Reference 18 Part I: Introduction A Rationale Foreign languages have been introduced and taught in Vietnam for years Especially, English has become a very popular subject to be taught and paid further surveys and studies in all levels: from elementary to secondary schools to, further more, universities across the country Due to various differences between the two countries in such as culture, geography, and race, there surely appear many differences in the languages of these two countries In the past years working as a teacher of English language, I have experienced some difficulties Vietnamese students have been facing with when they lean English such as tenses, pronunciation, questions, etc especially the conditional sentences If students have studied conditional sentences, when they come across them in reading English they generally don't have problems of understanding, although they may still be misled by sentences which don't include if or one of the obvious conditional, conjunctions such as as long as or supposing But the most difficulties for them are including in recognizing conditional sentences, particularly if the order of clauses doesn't match the order in the Vietnamese language Additionally, they find it difficult to produce correct conditional sentences appropriate with what they want to express Vietnamese learners may also be misled by the use of past tenses to refer to present time, and may understand that phrases like if I spoke Russian refer to the past B Limitation of the subject With a view to illustrating several problems that lead to such difficulties by means of using contrastive analysis, this assignment will present the conditional sentences in English and in Vietnamese and then point out some typical difficulties for Vietnamese students so that my study will be useful for my teaching and students’ learning C Method of studying the subject In this assignment, my study is carried out on the principles of macro linguistics There are two main parts The first part focuses on theory on contrastive analysis, which is based on what I have obtained from the course on Contrastive Analysis performed And the second part will deal with Contrastive Analysis on the use of conditional sentences and some difficulties that Vietnamese students often encounter with Also in my assignment, many reference books will be used as well as data collected from newspapers and magazines, etc Part II: Development What is Contrastive Analysis (CA)? “Contrastive Analysis is a linguistic enterprise aimed at producing inverted (i.e contrastive, not comparative), two - valued typologies (a CA is always concerned with a pair of languages), and founded on the assumption that languages can be compared” (Carl James, 1980:3) From the above-mentioned definition, we can recognize that CA is a branch of linguistics that deals with different languages “CA is as interested in the inherent genius of the language under its purview as it is in the comparability of languages Yet, it is not concerned with classification, and, as the term contrastive implies, more interested in differences between languages than in their likenesses.” That is why CA is very important for both teachers and students to have a full and complete grasp of the languages (English and Vietnamese) based on their similarities and differences There is a branch of linguistics called 'Interlanguage Study', which is not concerned with languages in the conventional sense This branch of linguistics is interested in the emergence of these languages rather than in the finished product Now, CA belongs to Interlanguage Study as it is to be viewed as diachronic rather than synchronic in orientation However, the focus of interest is not on learning but on the process of text replacement: The process can be enacted inside a bilingual’s brain according to whether one’s interest is in human translation Also CA is one of the three branches of twovalued (two languages are involved) interlingual linguistics They are: Translation Theory, Error Analysis, and CA Another important point that needs to be understood about CA is that it takes both microlinguistic and macrolinguistic approach Microlinguistics has seen as its goal the description of the linguistic code, without making reference to the uses to which the code is put or how messages carried by this code are modified by the contexts in which they occur Whereas, macrolinguistics is concerned with contextual determination of messages and their interpretation It has growing interest in semantics, sociolinguistics, discourse, analysis, speech-act theory and ethno-methodology In microlinguistics approach, CA utilizes parallel description and comparison of types or linguistic code in both languages For example, CA can be carried out on different levels of language such as grammar, phonology, and lexicology or any comparable systems of the two languages concerned On the other hand, in macrolinguistic approach, attention has shifted from the code to a process: the process of communication There is a growing concern for macrolinguistics For in communication, besides the knowledge of, the code the communicating individual needs to have "sensitivity" or understanding of non-codal aspects That is, he must be able to identify the situational constraints to which speech-events are subject and produce utterances, which conform to them These constraints are socio-cultural variables that in part determine the form of successful utterance There are six variables identified by Hymes, namely Setting, Participant, Purpose, Key, Content and Channel These variables can be used to characterize any particular speech event First, setting refers to the time and place of speech that determine its form Second, participants include such participant roles as addressor, speaker, addressee and audience Third, purpose refers to 'the application of communicative functions of language Some obvious purposes of speech acts are persuasion, command, advice, greeting etc Fourth, key is the label for "tone, manner or spirit" in which the speech act is performed For example, the advice can be issued in a friendly, flippant key or in a stern, distant key Fifth, content is the topic that codetermines the language forms selected Lastly, channel in verbal communication includes two primary types: speech and writing Even with the five variables kept constant a written message is likely to have a different form from an equivalent spoken one Those variables can be expressed in a simpler formula that determines a speaker's communicative competence: who says what to whom, where and when, how and why In conclusion, CA is the interlanguage study or two-valued linguistics that provides general principles to contrast the usage as well as the use of a pair languages so that the speakers of such languages can use the language in both formally and functionally in an appropriate way to gain success in communication A Conditional Sentences What are Conditional Sentences? As the definition made by Martin Parrott, (2000), L.G Alexander 1992, and John Eastwood, (1994), a condition is something that has to be fulfilled before something else can happen If, normally meaning 'provided that', is sometimes followed by ‘then’ If ‘then’ is not stated, it is implied If X happens, (then) Y follows: e.g If the rain stops, we'll be able to go for a walk In Vietnamese language, according to Diep Quang Ban and Hoang Trong Phien, conditional complex sentences express the relationship between conditions and results: e.g NÕu mai trời nắng ráo, lai đến nhà cậu ch¬i B Conditional Sentences in English Students are usually taught that conditional sentences in English consist of two clauses: a main conditional clause containing a verb in a form with will or would and a subordinate clause that is introduced by if and that they are usually divided into three basic types referred to as The Zero Conditional, Type 1, Type 2, Type and Mixed Type Each has its own variations I The Zero Conditional As for John & Liz Soars (1996) and John Eastwood (1994), the tense of both If-clause and conditional clause of a conditional sentence is Present Simple The Zero Conditional is used to express conditions that are always true, with automatic or habitual results - Flowers die if you don’t water them (John & Liz Soars 1996) - If you heat iron, it expands (J Eastwood 1994) - If you want to change money on Sundays you have to go to one of the big railway stations (M Parrot 2000) If, in these above cases, means when or whenever II Type 1: (Real condition at present and future) Type conditional sentences are sometimes called the First or Future conditional Both clauses refer to the future The verb in the if- clause is in a present tense IF - clause Conditional clause If + Present tenses Be Have Simple present Present progressive Present perfect Present perfect progressive Modals: Can, must Conditions to be satisfied If I am better tomorrow If I have a headache If she finishes early if he is standing in the rain if she has arrived at the station If he has been traveling all night If I can afford it, (main clause) 'shall/will' future likely outcome I will get up I will take an aspirin, she will go home he will catch cold she will be here soon he will need a rest I will buy it As L.G Alexander (1992) mentioned: Type Conditionals describe what will or won't happen if we think a future event is probable, to ask/ talk about something that is quite possible: - If the weather clears, we'll go for a walk - What will you if you lose your job? or to express aspects of persuasion such as persuading and negotiating and for giving warnings and making threats (M Parrott 2000) Persuasion: I’ll take the children to the party if you collect them from school Warning: If you try to take a short cut, you'll get lost Threat: If you poke your brother again, I’ll thrash you Besides, other forms can be used in Type Conditionals, such as: If + present, imperative We use an imperative rather than a future form of the verb in the conditional clause, for example to give advice or instructions - If you go to the supermarket bring back a carton of milk please Should Sometimes, should is used before the verb in the if-clause of Type I conditional sentences Often this weakens the possibility, implying by any chance - If you should find yourself at a loose end over the holiday, you'll always be welcome at our house We also sometimes use should in place of if, usually in more formal, written contexts For example, the following is part of an internal memo distributed to staff in a chain of stores: - Should people complain about the quality of any goods, please refer them directly to the customer services department; or - Should you have any more questions, don’t hesitate to contact us III Type (Unreal Condition at present and future): Type conditional sentences are sometimes called the 'second', 'hypothetical' or 'unreal' conditional with the purpose of referring to or speculating about something that is (or that we perceive to be) impossible or 'contrary to fact' They can refer to the present or the future Basic form of Type conditionals be have other verbs could IF - clause Past tenses main clause 'would/should' future conditions to be satisfied → If I was/were taller If he had any money If you took a taxi, If you could see me now likely outcome I would become a policeman he'd leave home you'd get there quicker you'd laugh your head off Type conditionals talk about imaginary situations in the if-clause and speculate about their imaginary consequences in the main clause Though past tenses are used, the reference is not to past time (That is why this use of the past tense after if is often called 'the unreal past'.) By comparison, Type conditionals' talk about things which will possibly happen and consider their real consequences for the future Variations of form are follows: 2.1 If I were you/if I were In your position' (Not *was*) We often use these expressions to give advice: - If I were you/in your position, I'd accept their offer (This means: You should accept their offer.), We can also use these expressions to refer to somebody else: - If I were Jane/ in Jane’s position I'd walk out on him 2.2 'If It were not for/Were It not for (Not *was*) This expression explains why something has or hasn't happened: - If it weren’t for your help, I would still be homeless In formal contexts, If it were not for can be expressed as Were it not for, with the negative in full (Not Weren't): - Were it not for your help, I would still be homeless • If it were not for and Were it not for are often followed by the fact that: - Were it not for the fact that you helped me, I would be homeless IV Type 3: (Unreal conditional in the past) Basic form of Type conditionals be have past perfect past perfect progressive could IF - clause Past tenses main clause 'would/should' future conditions to be satisfied → If I had been taller If he had had any sense If you took a taxi, likely outcome If I had been trying harder If I could have stopped I would have joined the army he'd leave home I would have kept quiet about that I would have succeeded there wouldn’t have been an accident Type conditionals assume something purely imaginary in the if-clause and consider the imagined consequences in the main clause However, Type conditionals refer to consequences which did not and could not (now) ever happen because they refer to something that didn't happen in the past They are 'hypothetical conditions': - If I had worked harder at school I'd have got a better job - If I hadn't been wearing a raincoat I would have got wet 10 (referring to something possible: often expressing regret) - If I had won the pools, life would have been much easier (referring to an imaginary, hoped for situation in the past) - If I had lived In the Stone Age I would have been a hunter (referring to a completely impossible situation) We use Type conditionals to speculate about a range of possibilities, from what might have been reasonably expected to what would have been completely impossible Variations of form are follows: 2.1- 'If I had been you/in your position' We often use these expressions to describe a course of action we would have followed in someone else's position: - If I had been you/in your position, I'd have accepted their offer (This means: You should have accepted their offer.) We can also use these expressions to refer to somebody else: If I had been Jane, I'd have walked out on him years ago 2.2- If It hadn't been for' We often use this expression to explain why something didn't happen in the past: If it hadn't been for the rain, we would have had a good harvest 2.3 If + past perfect + modal - If he had known the facts, he could have told us what to Another modal can replace would in Type conditionals, e.g when we feel that the imagined consequences were less likely, or when we are referring to ability, possibility, etc.: - If he had been here yesterday, he could have told us (ability) - If he had been here yesterday, he might hove told us (possibility) - If he had received a present, he should have thanked her (duty) V Type 4: Mixed conditional sentences Things we did in the past may have present consequences, and equally these past events may be the result of timeless or present facts We often refer both to the present and the 11 past in conditional sentences, and we choose the tense of the main verb in each clause accordingly - one clause may be conditional Type and the other may be conditional Type a Past action: You wasted money last week Present consequence: We can't afford a good holiday If clause (Type 3) Main clause (Type 2) → If you hadn't wasted so much money last week we'd be able to afford a better holiday b Present (general) fact: I am very busy Past consequence: I wasn't able to take off any time last week If clause (Type 2) Main clause (Type 3) If I weren't so busy, I could have taken off a few days last week VI Other uses of “if” and similar conjunctions Negative with 'if not' and 'unless' If not and unless are sometimes interchangeable, but there are occasions when it is impossible to use one in place of the other, - If you don’t change your mind, I won’t be able to help you - Unless you change your mind, I won’t be able to help you Conditionals can also be introduced by the following conjunctions, which not always have the precisely the same meaning as if: as long as, assuming (that), even if, if only, on (the) condition that, provided/ providing (that), so long as, suppose/ supposing (that), - He’ll definitely win, even if he falls over - They will lend us the flat on (the) condition that we look after it - Providing that you clear your desk by today, you can have tomorrow off - Supposing you miss the train, what shall you do? VII Implied conditionals As mentioned by L.G Alexander, (1992) conditional can be implied (i.e not directly introduced by IF) in a variety of ways: - With luck, we will be there tomorrow (= if we are lucky) - Given time, they will probably agree (if we give them time) - But for his pension, he would starve (= if he didn’t have) - Without your help, we couldn’t have done it.(= if you hadn’t helped) 12 - In different circumstances, I would have said yes (= if circumstances had been different) - Remember to get up early Otherwise, you will be late for school (=if you don’t get up early) C Conditional Sentences in Vietnamese Hoang Trong Phien (1980) clearly mentions that the relationship between the two clauses of conditional sentences is the one of conditions and results The widely used conjunctions are: nếu, mà, hễ, giá, giả sử, miễn là, ngộ nhỡ, trừ phi, ví bằng, etc In Vietnamese language, conditional sentences can be classified as follows: Type 1: True Conditional In this type, the main clause affirms the result (s) based on premise, or conditions mentioned in If-clause - Nếu khơng có đường lối đắn Đảng mác-xít lãnh đạo cách mạng khơng thể thắng lợi (LD) - Nếu khống có nước tưới lúa chết rụi (Báo Khoa học) - Lúa chiêm lấp ló đầu bờ Hễ nghe tiếng sấm phất cờ mà lên (ca dao-tục ngữ Việt nam) In the above examples, the prerequisite conditions are mentioned (đường lối đắn Đảng mác-xít, nước tưới ) The results cannot be fulfilled without these conditions 13 Type 2: Hypothetic Condition In this type of conditional sentences, the facts, situation or results in the main clause must be based on hypothetic conditions which is said in the If-clause Conjunctions for this type are follows: mới, có , giá , - Trừ phi có việc bận vắng mặt buổi tụ tập (báo Văn nghệ) - Em mà giỏi chị em cịn làm nhiều việc (Hồng Trọng Phiến) - Giá có anh đây, em chị kể cho anh nghe Type 3: Condition in Non-Conditions We often see call and respond conjunctions in type such as: bất kỳ, (bất cứ), vô luận, nhược bằng) cũng, (cũng vẫn, ), - Bất kỳ kẻ thù hãn đến đâu, ngoan cố đánh thắng (Báo QĐND) - Bất khó khăn nào, hồn cảnh vượt qua - Bất kỳ trung ương hay địa phương, cán phải nghiêm chỉnh chấp hành Variations: Semantically, conditional sentences in Vietnamese can show various expressive aspects through means of conjuncts a) warning, advice: Nếu thầy mẹ chết, mai sau Các hiểu đâu ngừng a) Regretfulness: Phaỉ chi anh đừng bận việc gia đình anh cịn làm cơng việc có ích b) Anxiety: Tơi tự nghĩ rằng: Từ đây, hai đứa trẻ hỏi đến cha nó, mẹ phải nói nào? c) Wishes: Nếu chim-tơi lồi bồ câu trắng Nếu hoa tơi đố hướng dương (Hy vọng) 14 D SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES I SIMILARITIES Definition: In both English and Vietnamese, conditional sentences express the relations between conditions and its consequences Structure: If-clause and conditional clause (or main clause) and the order of the two parts can be changed English If it rains, we will stay at home We’ll stay at home if its rains Types: Vietnamese Nếu tao chết mày thừa hưởng gia tài Mày thừa hưởng gia tài tao chết Both can be classified into various types based on their meanings English Zero conditional, First or Future Conditional, Unreal condition at present, Unreal condition in the past Mixed conditions Vietnamese True Conditional Hypothetic Condition Condition in Non-Conditions Generally, both English and Vietnamese conditional sentences are used for many communicative purposes, for example, persuasions, warnings, advice, threat, etc English Vietnamese Persuasion I’ll take the children to the party if you Nếu anh khai bọn chúng trốn đâu, collect them from school anh thả tự Warning If you try to take a short cut, you'll get Nếu mày tiếp tục hút thuốc nhiều lost vậy, chẳng chóng chầy chầu Diêm Vương sớm Advice If I were you I would differently Trừ phi tao Chí Phèo tao lấy thần đanh đỏ mỏ làm vợ 15 If you poke your brother again, I’ll thrash you Threat Mày mà đánh ơng tuốt xác mày cho mà xem If you don’t give me the money I’ll kill you Promise If you tell me the secrets I won’t keep it Yên tâm em, với anh hôm confidential mai em có Dylan thơi Polite request Read the report for the audience, if it’s Nếu thực khơng có phải giữ bí mật not confidential anh đọc lên cho cử toạ nghe II DIFFERENCES and typical Difficulties In English, conditional sentences are formed with the variants of words based on the major types of expressions: Truth, Real Condition and Unreal Condition It’s very easy for students to catch the ideas of the Zero Conditionals because of their simple and almost-no-change word formation: Both clauses use simple present tense - If the doorbell rings the dog barks But for Real and especially Unreal conditions (Present & Past and Mixed conditions), changes in the verb forms take place and modal verbs start to be used - If it were raining now we would feel much better - If Peter had taken my advice he would have got the well- paid job - Had he met you at the party last night he would have felt much happier IN COMPREHENSION If students have studied conditional sentences, when they come across them in reading English they generally don't have problems of understanding, although they may still be misled by sentences which don't include if or one of the obvious conditional, conjunctions such as as long as, supposing or inversion - As long as it doesn’t rain we’ll start our journey - Supposing that you fail the entrance exam to the university, will you go abroad for further education? - Were I in your case I wouldn’t come to see him - Had you taken our advice you would feel much better now 16 - Should you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us When facing with such sentences, Vietnamese students often make mistakes in recognizing their structures They think that they are questions or requests In listening, conditional sentences pose much more of a problem In many languages conditional meaning is signaled by adverbs in the conditional clause or by an expression added to the end of the conditional clause There may also be very strict rules about the order of clauses Vietnamese students may have difficulty in recognizing conditional sentences, particularly if the order of clauses doesn't match the order in the first language Also, if and auxiliary verbs which establish the time reference of the sentences are very often pronounced (e.g would; would have) so indistinctly that the students may fail to pick them out Learners may also be misled by the use of past tenses to refer to present time, and may understand that phrases like if I attended the party refer to the past IN SPEAKING AND WRITING Simplifying the grammar For many students, the auxiliary verbs which are used in constructing conditional sentences (e.g If he had seen anything he would have reported it) have no rationale; they are just a string of words or syllables Sometimes, under the pressure of communicating, some or all of these auxiliaries may be left out If you not tell me the news, I not try to contact anyone (in fact the student wanted to say If you hadn't told me about the news, I wouldn't have tried to contact anyone.) Avoidance It is very common for students to find ways of expressing themselves which enable them not to use language they find 'difficult' Often, the conditional Type is particularly daunting, and students may consciously or unconsciously avoid it 17 (*) I didn't see him so I didn't run away (If I'd seen him, I'd have run away.) As a matter of fact, even very advanced students regularly avoid using this conditional Even if students don't actually make mistakes, teachers may need to provide structured opportunities for them to practice the forms of conditional sentences 18 Part III: Conclusion After attending the CA course, I gradually recognize the significance of what I have been taught Not only we take full grasp of theoretical knowledge which we can access by various ways, but also we need to tell the differences and similarities between the two language so that we-both teacher and learners – have a solid foundation for the good command of the languages and avoid avoidable mistakes when producing utterances What I have intended to present in this assignment is to focus on the usage of conditional sentences in English and the counterpart in Vietnamese Also, I really wish to point out their similarities, differences and typical difficulties that Vietnamese students have when they come across with English Consequently, we can recognize the weak points and improve students’ language competence On the other hand, for limited knowledge on linguistic competence, this assignment has surely many shortcomings Your remarks, recommendations and correction will be of our great appreciation 19 References Randolph Quirk, (1987) A University Grammar of English, Longman L.G Alexander, (1992) Longman English Grammar, Longman L.G Alexander, (1994) Longman Advanced Grammar, Longman Martin Parrott, (2000) Grammar for English Language Teachers, Cambridge A.J Thomson & A.V Martinet, (1989) A Practical English Grammar, Oxford Michael Swan, (1986) Practical English Usage, Oxford Collins Cobuild, (1990) English grammar, Collins John Eastwood, (1994) Oxford guide to English Grammar, Oxford John Eastwood, (1992) Oxford Practice Grammar John & Liz Soars, (1996) Headway, Oxford Bernard Hartley & Peter Viney, (1984) Streamline English, Oxford Diệp Quang Ban (2000) Ngữ pháp tiếng Việt, NXB Giáo dục Diệp Quang Ban (2004) Ngữ pháp Việt Nam (Phần câu), NXB Đại học Sư phạm Nguyễn Minh Thuyết (2004) Thành phần câu tiếng Việt, NXB Giáo dục Hoàng Trọng Phiến (1980) Ngữ pháp Việt Nam (câu), NXB Đại học THCN 20 ... (2004) Ngữ pháp Việt Nam (Phần câu) , NXB Đại học Sư phạm Nguyễn Minh Thuyết (2004) Thành phần câu tiếng Việt, NXB Giáo dục Hoàng Trọng Phiến (1980) Ngữ pháp Việt Nam (câu) , NXB Đại học THCN 20 ... Liz Soars, (1996) Headway, Oxford Bernard Hartley & Peter Viney, (1984) Streamline English, Oxford Diệp Quang Ban (2000) Ngữ pháp tiếng Việt, NXB Giáo dục Diệp Quang Ban (2004) Ngữ pháp Việt. .. Regretfulness: Phaỉ chi anh đừng bận việc gia đình anh cịn làm cơng việc có ích b) Anxiety: Tơi tự nghĩ rằng: Từ đây, hai đứa trẻ hỏi đến cha nó, mẹ phải nói nào? c) Wishes: Nếu chim-tơi lồi bồ câu trắng Nếu