Study On Pragmatic Failures Of Chinese Learners Of English In Intercultural Communication

Chinese learners of English encounter various problems when they interact with native speakers of English. This thesis aims to explore one of the main sources that gives rise to intercultural communication breakdown: pragmatic failure.Pragmatic failure frequently occurs in English learners' speech. According to Jenny Thomas, pragmatic failure falls into two categories: pragmalinguistic failure and sociopragmatic failure. However, no matter what they are, these failures can be attributed to a lack of cultural knowledge or cultural awareness in interaction. Native speakers are more likely to forgive non-native speakers' grammatical errors than to tolerate pragmatic failure; in the latter case, they may even mistake the learners for bearing ill will. Thus, intercultural breakdown will certainly follow.This thesis consists of six parts:The first part introduces the background of pragmatic failure studies, as well as the research method used for this thesis—questionnaire.The second part is a theoretical elaboration—an examination of pragmatic failure, including its definition and classification.The third part explains the design, informants, procedure, and results of the questionnaire.The fourth part is an in-depth data analysis.The fifth part explores the causes of pragmatic failures according to the above analysis.The last part summarizes the above discussion, and according to the above analysis, points out the present status of English teaching in China along with some suggestions.