Contrastive Study Of Discourse Markers In Native And Non-native English Conversations

Discourse markers are mainly minor grammatical words and phrases that are loosely attached to a larger structure in a stretch of speech. We often use them to indicate pauses, transitions, or other aspects of communication when we are talking. They are widely used in most languages and have been a focus of research in language development. Different approaches have been employed in linguistics to the study of discourse markers since the early 1980's. Levinson (1983) suggests that discourse markers form a cross-linguistically attested category and stresses the need to study on their own merits in pragmatic terms. Levinson's remarks arouse great interests and attention in the pragmatic field. The study of discourse markers has henceforth turned into a growing industry, and theories of discourse markers have been developing very fast.With the development of discourse analysis, more and more linguists and pedagogists have begun to apply the research findings and results in this field to language learning and teaching and so far provided a lot of help. Statistics shows that discourse markers occur frequently, in both formal and informal English speaking and writing. A good command of employing discourse markers can help us not only process our communication smoothly but also can help us to achieve a cohesive force. However, whether it is also true with non-native English speakers in using these markers needs further proof. Thus this dissertation aims to investigate into the applicability of the discourse markers to non-native English speakers. By comparing the numbers of the discourse markers used by native speakers and non-native speakers, the research tries to find out how well non-native speakers can use discourse markers or to what degree they can master them.Through the analysis on both qualitative and quantitative results, the research supports and proves the important position of discourse markers in conversation. It also points out the problems faced by the non-native speakers and suggests some possible ways for both teaching and learning.