Microsoft PowerPoint - Thieu Nang - Session 9

7/27/2019 Microsoft PowerPoint - Thieu Nang - Session 9

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ENGLISH WRITINGhiu nn

Session 9

Module IInstructor: H L V

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OVERVIEW

Review

Warm-up

Thematic distribution improvement techniques(part 2)

Manner of exemplification

Theme-Rheme re-arrangement

Cohesive devices

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Previously on Thiu Nng

Thematic distribution improvement techniques Linear idea development (part 2)

Application: Vietnamese-English translation

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Previously on Thiu Nng

Is this questionlinear?

Answer: Principle: Tell em what youre going to tell em, tell em, and then

tell em what you told emWhere should you applylinearitythen?

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THEMATIC PROGRESSIONIMPROVEMENT TECHNIQUES

Linear idea development


Theme-Rheme re-arrangement Avoid Vietnamese influence on

usage of marked Themes

reference switching

Theme switching

Employment of cohesive devices as textual Themes

as non-textual-Themes

Linking facilitation linking scope

linking distance

linking explicitness

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MANNER OF EXEMPLIFICATION

Use fewer but more elaborate examples instead of a large number of short,under-developed ones easier to avoid thematic disruption One of my friends unexpectedly made twenty thousand dollars on a real estate deal

several years ago. This would seem to be extremely good luck. But instead of investing themoney or using it wisely, he bought a new luxury car. The insurance for the car was veryexpensive. As a result, every time the car needed repairs, he had to pay a great deal ofmoney. Worse still, he was not comfortable driving it because he was afraid of having a

. ,because he did not respond well to the situation.

vs.

If a student studies hard for good grades and succeeds in his classes, he won't needexcuses to explain why his grades are low. It is better not to start drinking than become an

alcoholic and let the drink ruin one's life, cause damage to one's health, and then to gothrough the pain of changing the way of life and being forced to stay away from drink.Therefore, a person who has good habits will never say that his luck is bad.A frugal mancan prosper because he knows how to invest well and accumulate greater wealth. Ofcourse, the person who saves his money and does not spend extravagantly will never saythat his luck is bad.

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Examples vs. Rationales Family can be considered the first school to children where parents teach them how

to behave and avoid bad habits. If a family provides good guidance, their childrennormally become good people.

For example, if parents lead a healthy life in harmony, the youngsters will definitely

learn good things. By contrast, if parents smoke, drink, and behave badly, they willabsolutely affect their children negatively.


these are NOT specific examples. More like rationales. Elaborate with aspecific account of someone you know.

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Generic rationale-like examples The important factor of a good person, for example, is her beautiful spirit, not her

pretty appearance. Her look will fade away as she gets older, and finally, no oneadmires it anymore. But her precious spirit will still help people around and makethem happy.

In order to make your example more specific and personal instead oftalkin about a eneric, faceless irl, talk about, e. ., a well-known moviestar, who already lost her look when she was past her prime but has

continued to contribute to the society and do charity works. You can alsofollow it up by contrasting her case with one of her peers, who, once her lookhad gone, sank immediately into oblivion.

Possible problem: cant think of anyone specific off the top of your head?make it up

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Generic examples Trial marriage, for example, is a taboo in traditional Vietnamese culture. Despite this

fact, when some of young couples adults do that, they take it as normal andgradually become common in our country.

how to make it more specific?

talk about two friends of yours who decided to move in together without a


someone they know did the same and it seems to work out)

It is important for you to AVOID overly general

examples, or lists of examples without expansion.(an excerpt from GRE Official Guide)

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reference switching

Theme switching



Linking facilitation linking scope

linking distance


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THEME-RHEME REARRANGEMENT

Con ngi phi lm vic nui sng bn thn v gp phn xy dngcuc sng chung ca c cng ng. Khc vi cc sinh vt khc sng davo thc n c sn kim c trong thin nhin, con ngi phi laong sng to, lm ra mi ca ci phc v i sng. Solution 1: nui sng bn thn v gp phn xy dng cuc sng chung

ca c cng ng con ngi phi lm vic. Con ngi, khc vi cc sinh vtkhc sng da vo thc n c sn kim c trong thin nhin, phi lao ngsng to, lm ra mi ca ci phc v i sng.

Solution 2: Khc vi cc sinh vt khc sng da vo thc n c sn kimc trong thin nhin, con ngi phi lao ng sng to. H phi lm victrc ht nui sng bn thn v sau l gp phn xy dng cuc sng chungca c cng ng.

Which text reads more natural in Vietnamese?

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At this period of time, their memorizing ability is really goodso that they are able to remember new words of a foreignlanguage. Adults should motivate their kids to study thissubject at early age because of memorizing ability. At this period of time, their memorizing ability is really good so that


they are able to remember new words of a foreign language. Because ofthis memorizing ability, adults should motivate their kids to study thissubject at early age.

To take advantage of this memorizing ability, adults should motivate

their kids to study this subject at early age. vs. Therefore, adults should motivate their kids to study this subject atearly age.

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However, when the Vedan scandal broke, itwas a wake-upcall for the whole nation. The media constantly reported on thescandal, authorities took necessary punitive actions. broke, itwas a wake-up call for the whole nation. As the scandal

makes headlines in media reports across the country, authoritiestook necessar unitive actions.


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But instead of investing the money or using it wisely, hebought a new luxury car. The insurance for the carwas veryexpensive. But instead of investing the money or using it wisely, he bought a

new luxury car. It cost a lot in insurance.


But instead of investing the money or using it wisely, he bought anew luxury car, which cost a lot in insurance.

When should we or should we NOT switch? When should we keep insurance as the Theme?

The old car vs. new carsituation

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FUN ACTIVITY

Fun activity solution (a follow-up) Context:

Ross and Rachel were lovers. They broke up after a big fight, even thoughthey clearly still have feeling for each other.

Ross then had an one-night-stand with another girl, which leads to Rachelaccusing him of being unfaithful. Ross denied this, saying that they were

on a break., .

Ross brought Bonnie, his new girlfriend. And Rachel got jealous and tried to win Ross back

Watch the video clip and answer the following question: what does itrefer to?

Watch the solution clip Whats the lesson learned? If you cant locate a referent, dont bluff your way through it.

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Vietnamese influences Marked Theme usage

Referent switching

Theme switching


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MARKED THEME USAGE

Vietnamese writers tend to use marked Themes to asignificantly greater extent than American writers Tron g snc mt con mo.

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MARKED THEME USAGE

Compared with English speakers, Vietnamese seem to be less troubled bythematic disruption.

Vietnamese writers usage of marked Theme more often than not disruptsthematic continuity. Sng trong mi trng khng tt m con ngi vn gi c nhn cch trong

sng th cng ging nh hoa sen trn m ly vn ta ngt hng thm. Xungquanh ta c rt nhiu tm gng nh vy.

Ngc li, c nhng ngi mc d hon cnh s ng hon ton thun li, t t pnhng bn thn li chng ra g. Sinh ra trong gia nh giu sang tha thitin bc, danh vng, h khng phi lo lng, bn chi mu sinh.

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MARKED THEME USAGE

If you write by applying the translation method L1 negative transfer First, learning a second language will easily make young children neglect their

mother tongue languages. In Vietnam many young children are taught Englishalphabet whereas their Vietnamese vocabulary is even not good.

Any good reason for using In Vietnam as a marked Theme?

When would you use In Vietnam as a marked Theme?

However, I believe in the case of young children, a foreign language will do moregoo or t em. e a su ect n sc ence requ res a qu te comp cate

manner of thinking, a foreign language merely asks for repetition, or imitation,from children.

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MARKED THEME USAGE

Note: Besides avoiding unjustified use of marked Themes that may causethematic disruption, you may also employ them to maintain thematiccontinuity. But no obstacle should stand in the way of responsible investigation of their

possibilities. To that end, the work should be funded and supervised by thefederal government.

Eventually, one of the new generations of do-not-advertise cases will probably. . , . ,

proponents of a crackdown can brandish powerful quotes from former SupremeCourt justices that...

With Wolfenstein 3-D, however, you see the action from the on-screencharacters point of view.You become the character.

Despite the lack of evidence,politicians cant resist blaming the media forviolence. They can stake out the moral high ground confident that...

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REFERENT SWITCHING

Referent switchingSome examples from my ESL data Normally, a childlearning foreign language early find it difficult to speak mother

tongue well. Theycan compare mother tongue and foreign language, then theyfindweakness in native language.

Moreover, ifchildren learn a foreign language early, theywill have more time to learnit better. As a child, he does not have to concern about too many things. He onlylearns, plays and eats. And it is very good because children can learn to develop

both theirmother tongue and foreign language.

Family is the most important source of support that would help them gain moreconfidence in ourselves.

My mother had to literally wrestle with me every time she tried to feed me. One timeshe was so mad she put me in myneighbors house.

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Fix the referent switching problem of a passage composed by anESL Vietnamese learner (10 points)

Spending a majority of their time with friends is one of reasons why friendshave most influence on young adults. A young adult use most of his time at

school, where he joins his friends in many activities. Through such activities,a child and his peers connect and learn from each other.

REFERENT SWITCHING

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A Sample solution Spending a majority of their time with friends is one of reasons why friends have

most influence on young adults.A young adultuse most of his time at school, wherehe joins his friends in many activities. Through such activities, a childand his peersconnect and learn from each other.

A reason why friends have the most influence on a young adult is that hes ends most of his time in school, where he oins his friends in man

REFERENT SWITCHING

activities. Through such activities, they connect and learn from each other.

Could that be L1 influence? khng b bin thnh nn nhn ca thi quen xu, mi ngiphi c s rn luyn,

tu dng khng ngng v mt o c, ch. Chng taphi nng cao nhn thc

ca bn thn v bn b v tc hi ca thi h tt xu. Cc bn cn khuyn bo nhaubit kim ch trc nhng th vui khng lnh mnh.

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THEME SWITCHING

Cooking at home means family members can have much more time together andunderstand mutually. For example, while my motherteaches me how to treat thefamily with many tasty dishes, we also talk about many other topics in our daily lifesuch as my studying or my mothers work. Therefore, we have more exposure tobecome ever-increasingly intimate. Furthermore, it is the best way for people to takea good care of their beloved ones. For instance, my elder sisterusually treated me

with my favorite kinds of food which she herself prepares at home. That is absolutely.

why my motherand then my elder sister?

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THEME SWITCHING

As Galilei brought up heliocentrism again, only a fewsupported his idea while themajoritydoubted.

also try to keep RT within a complex sentence for better linearity

As Galilei brought up heliocentrism again, it was supported by only a fewand doubted by the majority.

I proposed a solution, and after discussing with other group members, the Xilinx

FPGA boardI learned in my VLSI course was chosen. propose a so u on, an a er scuss ng w o er group mem ers,

we decided to use the Xilinx FPGA board.


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THEME SWITCHING

The difference was not much, butmy companions were very surprised since itdidnot happen anywhere else theyhad been to in Europe and Asia.

Although the difference was not much, it did surprise my companions whonever had this experience anywhere else in Europe and Asia.

avoid switching Theme midstream within the same idea thread

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(an excerpt taken from Tap Dichs materials) Khichng tiby t mong mun ctm hiu, vit bi, lm phim gii thiu v mn n c ny, ch Nguyn Th Hng-ch qun Hng - cho u tu 171 Trn Hng o, TP H Giang, mt trong s tnhng qun cho u tu TP H Giang - rt r, ngi ngng qun cho bnh thngc g m vit, m quay. Mnh khng ni u, cc anh quay, chp th c thoi mi.

Theme switching: chng ti, ch Hng and qun cho T chi ngh vit bi ca chng ti, ch Hng ch qun t ra ngi ngn v

vic qun cho nh ca ch, nm 171 Trn Hng o v l mt trong s t

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

, gii thiu v mn n m nu ch bin khng ng cch, ngi dngs b ng c,

cng hm, co rtt chiv nu khng cu cha kp thi, khng bit cch cu th chc i gp ng b ng vi.

Theme switching: mn n and ngi dng gii thiu v mn n m nu ch bin khng ng cch s u c ngi

dng

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reference switching



Linking facilitation

linking scope linking distance


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COHESIVE DEVICE EMPLOYMENT

Use cohesive devices as textual Themes

He may never find out what bad luck is. Napoleon, a historicalfigure, definitely never knew what bad luck was because heconsolidated his power and never let it be divided.

He may never find out what bad luck is.As an example | For instance,, ,

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COHESIVE DEVICE EMPLOYMENT

Warning: do not OVERUSE textual Themes A Vietnamese ESL excerpt

Learning a foreign language is necessary for many people. So, the educatorsgave the foreign language teaching to most schools. So, all children can learnEnglish, Chinese, etc at their early age. Thus, I think it is good for them to learn

a foreign language more effectively with a good preparation.

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COHESIVE DEVICE

Cohesion Cohesion refers to the linguistic links between sentences, which

demonstrate the relationship between the ideas contained in thesesentences.

A paragraph that is made up of sentences that are well-linked is said tobe cohesive.

Cohesion ensures smooth written text flow and allows the reader to.

Underlying coherence vs. surface cohesion Any country-music-lover knows Ring of fire as the most famous hit of

Jonhny Cash s career a count ry m us ic s tar of the 60s. coherent but not cohesive

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COHESIVE DEVICE

Underlying semantic coherence is realized through surfacecohesive markers in different ways by different languages

such differences may affect readers perception of textcoherence

an English essay composed by a Vietnamese speaker mayfellows but not so to native speakers of English.

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COHESIVE DEVICE

Cohesive devices: surface markers of cohesion 5 basic types:

reference substitution

ellipsis con unction lexical cohesion

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COHESIVE DEVICE

1. Reference: established through naming of participants, places, and things most commonly expressed by pronouns and demonstrativesa) presented, or introduced a referent as new or as knownb) endophoric: point to a referent located within text

anaphoric: the referent mentioned at an earlier point . ., .

cataphoric: the referent subsequently provided E.g., Because his drink was cold, David ordered another cup of tea.

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COHESIVE DEVICE

1. Reference:c) exophoric: point to a referent lying outside text in the context of

situation. E.g., the Queen, the VTV3 The writer assumes that readers are aware of the referent

could it be problematic? Fun question: What is the most commonly used exophoric reference in both

Vietnamese and English?

Fun activity Watch a video and answer the following question

Why the wife has problem with the dream?

the dream vs. my dream? Question: it in the previous clip is endophoricor

exophoric?

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COHESIVE DEVICE

2. Substitution: replace an element with another but not by means of a personal

pronoun E.g., Do you have a computer? I used to own one. E.g., You like to write? Ido.

Fun activity United States coins?

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COHESIVE DEVICE

3. Ellipsis: involve deletion of a repeated element E.g., He wrote a letter and[he is deleted] sent it home on the same

day. How about Vietnamese?

Fun activity Why the girls ellipsis gives her female friend a bad fright?

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COHESIVE DEVICE

4. Conjunction: express logical relations betweenparts of a text E.g.,Although they're expensive, they last forever and never go out of style. |

They're expensive, butthey last forever and never go out of style.

our focus in this class

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COHESIVE DEVICE IDENTIFICATION

Watch a clip taken from The Golden Girls show (transcript provided) Character:

Dorothy, a 58 years old high school teacher

Blanche and Rose: Dorothys roommates

Sophia: Dorothys 83 years old mother

Trudy, Dorothys former best friend, and Jack: Trudys husband

Dorothy holds a high school reunion party, and Trudy comes to visit.

Although they were best friends, they were also big rivals back in highschool.

Their best-friend/rival relationship hasn't changed a bit 50 years later.

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COHESIVE DEVICE IDENTIFICATION

Identify cohesive devices of all types used in the conversation. Are there any missing links? Why are they acceptable?

Important differences between spoken and written texts

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HOMEWORK

Cohesive device reconstruction task Each blank represents a single linking word that serves as a cohesive

device. Alexandria OKs use of land to expand sewage plant (by Taryn Luntz,

Examiner). For session 10:

Rsum peer-review

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Watch a clip and identify the referent of it

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Microsoft PowerPoint - Thieu Nang - Session 9

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