Research On Australian Students’ Acquisition Of Chinese "Shenme" Rhetorical Question

The rhetorical question is a very important and unique category of Chinese interrogative question.The "shenme" rhetorical question is a kind of rhetorical question,which is frequently used in the daily lives of the Chinese people.However,when the author worked as a volunteer teacher at the Confucius Institute in Australia,she found that local Chinese learners did not know much about "shenme" rhetorical questions and how to use them.What causes this?Using a survey questionnaire on the use of "shenme"rhetorical questions by Australian Chinese learners,this thesis analyzes the subjective and objective factors that restrict and affect the use of "shenme" rhetorical questions by Australian Chinese learners from the aspects of learners,teachers,textbooks and syllabus compilation.It also puts forward relevant suggestions on the teaching of "what"rhetorical questions.This thesis is divided into five chaptersChapter 1:Introduction.This chapter mainly introduces the reason and significance of the research from the perspective of ontology and teaching Chinese as a foreign language.It summarizes the current state of research on the"shenme" rhetorical question and then explains the research ideas and methods of this paper.Chapter 2:A survey on the learning and use of "shenme" rhetorical questions.By sorting out the rhetorical questions in the television drama "A Little Reunion",this chapter sums up the typical types of "shenme" rhetorical questions and their commonly used pragmatic functions.Based on this,a questionnaire was designed to analyze the problems existing using "shenme" rhetorical questions by Australian Chinese learners.Chapter 3:Analysis of the factors that restrict learners to use"Shenme" rhetorical questions.Firstly,the chapter analyzes the influencing factors from the perspective of students,including the influence of mother tongue,language environment,and so on.Then through the questionnaire,it summarizes the teachers’ influence on learning factors.Finally,a comparative analysis was made on the arrangement of rhetorical questions in"Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards and Grammar Grading Syllabus" and"Universal Curriculum Syllabus for International Chinese Teaching".It was found that the"shenme" rhetorical questions in the syllabus are not completely enumerated and very simple.The types of "shenme" rhetorical questions in the "New Practical Chinese Textbook" do not correspond well with those in the syllabus.Chapter 4:Suggestions on teaching Chinese as a foreign language with "shenme"rhetorical questions.This chapter presents the following suggestions:Students can independently create a suitable language environment,remember the "what" rhetorical questions.Teachers can improve two aspects of clarifying teaching content and enriching teaching methods.The textbook outline can break through the past in presenting content and presenting way.Chapter 5:Conclusion.This chapter summarizes the findings and viewpoints of the thesis and reflects on the limitations.