A Comparative Study On The Use Of Pronouns In Compositions By Chinese English Learners And English Native Students

Pronoun is a word which may replace a noun or noun phrase. It is one of the most common and frequently used categories of words in English. Pronoun has interpersonal functions and plays an important role for the cohesion and coherence of English texts. This paper analyzes the use of pronouns in English writings by Chinese English learners and English native students based on the Written English Corpus of Chinese Learners (WECCL) and Louvain Corpus of Native English Essays (LOCNESS).This research mainly examines the frequencies of pronouns, lexical chunks of pronouns and the special use of contraction forms of pronoun+verb to find the similarities and differences between the two corpora. Result of this research is expected to benefit Chinese English learners and second language teaching. The major findings can be concluded as follows:There are indeed significant differences between the use of pronouns by Chinese English learners and English native students. Chinese English learners significantly overuse the first person pronouns and the second person pronouns. English native students employ more frequently the third personal pronoun he and the demonstrative pronoun this. In Chinese English learners’compositions there are more lexical chunks of pronouns combing with modal verbs and more contraction forms of pronouns with verbs than in native students’writings. Some pronominal lexical chunks which Chinese English learners are familiar with seldom or do not appear in English native students’ essays. Results of this research show the oral style features of Chinese English learners’ compositions. Negative transfer and differences in social values also contribute to the differences of use of pronouns.