Error Analysis Of English Majors’ Non-finite Verbs

Second language acquisition is a complex process, in which learners inevitably maketypes of errors. Due to the differences of the mother tongue and the target language, thestudy of English non-finite verbs has become an insurmountable gap to Chinese Englishlearners. The Chinese language emphasizes parataxis which has no inflections of verbs’morphs. While the English language focuses on hypotaxis, and the inflections of verbsmake the language more colorful. That difference enlarges the acquisition difficulty ofnon-finite verbs.Based on the theories of Error Analysis and Interlanguage, the present study analyzes296copies of writings of37sophomores of English majors in Yan’an University, anddiscusses the errors of non-finite verbs. Through the classification of non-finite verbs’errors and the identification of causes, the author reaches the conclusion with the help ofthe questionnaire.This study tries to solve three questions: The first one, what kind of errors do Englishmajors commit in their learning of non-finite verbs and what is the most obvious type? The second one, what are the main causes of the errors? And the third one, how to solve theproblem confronted by most English majors when learning non-finite verbs, that is, whatstrategies should teachers and students empoly? Through a detailed analysis of subjects’writings, the author settles the three questions. There are11types of non-finite verb errors,and the most obvious one is redundancy of predicates. The error causes include interlingualinterference, intralingual interference, context of learning and communication strategies.Afterwards, the author proposes some typical suggestions to those problems. Teachersshould give students more input of non-finite verb knowledge, and enhance the frequencyof encountering with non-finites. Besides, effective instructional methods should beadopted, and high frequency structures should be strengthened. Students should increasethe awareness of non-finite verbs’ use, and consult the grammar book when confrontinggrammatical problems during the process of non-finite verb learning.Finally, the author points out the limitations of the study and provides some advice forfurther study.