Carving out a Dialogic Space for 'I': A Corpus-Based Study of Novice L2 College Writers' Use of First-Person Pronouns in Argumentative Essays
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| Title: | Carving out a Dialogic Space for 'I': A Corpus-Based Study of Novice L2 College Writers' Use of First-Person Pronouns in Argumentative Essays |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Wang, Zhaozhe |
| Source: | L2 Journal. 2019 11(1):20-34. |
| Availability: | Berkeley Language Center, University of California. B-40 Dwinelle Hall #2640, Berkeley, CA 94720. Web site: http://escholarship.org/uc/uccllt_l2 |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 15 |
| Publication Date: | 2019 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Second Language Learning, Form Classes (Languages), Academic Language, Persuasive Discourse, Essays, Novices, English (Second Language), Introductory Courses, Freshman Composition, College Freshmen, Foreign Students, Writing Teachers, Undergraduate Students, Foreign Countries |
| Geographic Terms: | China |
| DOI: | 10.5070/L20038590 |
| ISSN: | 1945-0222 |
| Abstract: | L2 writers likely perceive "good academic writing" as impersonal (Hyland, 2002; Shen, 1989; Tang & John, 1999). Yet research has shown that every linguistic and rhetorical choice that a writer makes--including, the presence/absence and different forms of self-mention--potentially reveals the writer's authorial identity (Ivanic, 1998). The dialogic nature of academic writing, as manifested in strategic self-mentions, has remained overshadowed in L2 writing pedagogy by other linguistic issues. This article draws attention to this gap in research: specifically, I report on the findings of a corpus-driven descriptive inquiry into authorial identity, operationalized as the use of first-person pronouns in a corpus of 126 argumentative research papers written by students enrolled in first-year L2 composition courses. The study examines how L2 writers practice self-mention, comparing the frequencies of first-person pronouns in the argumentative corpus with both a "parent" corpus, which contains other genres produced by the same group of writers, and published research analyzed by Hyland (2001). I also define and characterize the five qualitatively coded and quantitatively measured rhetorical functions of "I" used in the corpus (i.e., reporter, architect, narrator of personal experiences, conceder, and opinion-holder). L2 writers in this study were found to use self-mention more frequently than published authors. However, L2 writers employed self-reference less frequently in their argumentative essays than for other genres. Their argumentative texts reproduced a narrative tone, as indicated by the lower ratio of the subjective/objective case of the first-person singular pronoun. A comparison of rhetorical functions reveals that nearly 50% of "I"s in the corpus function as a "narrator of personal experiences." In light of the findings, I propose pedagogical suggestions aimed at more effectively socializing college-level L2 composition students into academic discourse communities. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2019 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1211789 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | L2 writers likely perceive "good academic writing" as impersonal (Hyland, 2002; Shen, 1989; Tang & John, 1999). Yet research has shown that every linguistic and rhetorical choice that a writer makes--including, the presence/absence and different forms of self-mention--potentially reveals the writer's authorial identity (Ivanic, 1998). The dialogic nature of academic writing, as manifested in strategic self-mentions, has remained overshadowed in L2 writing pedagogy by other linguistic issues. This article draws attention to this gap in research: specifically, I report on the findings of a corpus-driven descriptive inquiry into authorial identity, operationalized as the use of first-person pronouns in a corpus of 126 argumentative research papers written by students enrolled in first-year L2 composition courses. The study examines how L2 writers practice self-mention, comparing the frequencies of first-person pronouns in the argumentative corpus with both a "parent" corpus, which contains other genres produced by the same group of writers, and published research analyzed by Hyland (2001). I also define and characterize the five qualitatively coded and quantitatively measured rhetorical functions of "I" used in the corpus (i.e., reporter, architect, narrator of personal experiences, conceder, and opinion-holder). L2 writers in this study were found to use self-mention more frequently than published authors. However, L2 writers employed self-reference less frequently in their argumentative essays than for other genres. Their argumentative texts reproduced a narrative tone, as indicated by the lower ratio of the subjective/objective case of the first-person singular pronoun. A comparison of rhetorical functions reveals that nearly 50% of "I"s in the corpus function as a "narrator of personal experiences." In light of the findings, I propose pedagogical suggestions aimed at more effectively socializing college-level L2 composition students into academic discourse communities. |
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| ISSN: | 1945-0222 |
| DOI: | 10.5070/L20038590 |
