Research On The Adaptability Of Code - Switching In Register - Like Perspective

As a consequence of language choice, code-switching refers to the phenomenon of using different linguistic varieties in the same conversation. Qian Zhongshu’s novel Fortress Besieged is praised as one of the greatest Chinese novels in twentieth-century.In this novel, according to my statistics, there are 110 code-switching cases. However,few have studied code-switching from the register perspective though this language phenomenon has been discussed a lot. But based on register theory, studying code-switching is very valuable. The study mainly makes an analysis on the adaptability of the the code-switching in the register variables: field, tenor and mode. Chapter One is literature review, it lists the overview of code-switching abroad and China. At the same time, it concludes the recent researches of Fortress Besieged. Chapter Two is the theoretical framework of the research. It includes Halliday’s Register Theory,Metafunction Theory and the adaptability of language. In Chapter Three, it classifies the code-switchings in Fortress Besieged. In Chapter Four, it studies the adaptability of code-switching in Fortress Besieged from register perspective. And by analyzing the data, I get the conclusion that the code-switching in Fortress Besieged complies with the three register variables: field of discourse, tenor of discourse and mode of discourse.Meanwhile, the three factors limit the use of the code-switching in Fortress Besieged.