An Investigation Of Errors In The Use Of Relative Clauses By Non-english Majors

As a branch of applied linguistics, error analysis is the most important part of second language acquisition. Error Analysis regards learners as the center of the study and aims to discover the process of second language acquisition through analyzing learners? errors. Improvement of foreign language teaching relies on a deep understanding of learners? learning process and Error Analysis just reveals the regularity of the learning process through analyzing learners? language errors.In the process of English learning, the master and usage of subordinate clause are always the difficult points, especially relative clauses. To some extent, the understanding and production of the English relative clause reflect the level of the learners. English relative clause is different from that of Chinese. This difference and the complexity of relative clause itself make the relative clause difficult to learn.The thesis takes the 120 composition samples, test papers samples as corpus and takes error analysis as theoretical foundation, using questionnaire, interviews, and experiment to carry on empirical study. After collecting data, using qualitative and quantitative method, the author finds that students? errors come mainly from such aspects: the error of using relative words, errors of ellipsis of relative words, absence of antecedent, resumptive pronouns, disagreement between subject and the verb of the relative clause, non-adjacency, errors of punctuation, lack predicate in the main clause. The sources of errors are investigated and studied. The results of the investigations and studies show that these errors come mainly from negative transfer of the mother tongue language and incorrect use of learning strategies and communication strategy.On this basis, the thesis puts forward that teachers should strengthen the exercises of students? English basic knowledge, teach grammar systematically and comprehensively, encourage students to use effective learning strategies to learn English, find ways to increase the input and output of English language and train students to think in English. As to the students, they should learn to reflect on themselves, strive to improve their English and correct their learning attitude, and learn to use learning strategies effectively under the help of teachers.