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A multidimensional comparison of discourse organization in E nglish and C hinese university students' argumentative writing
Author(s) -
Liu Xinghua,
Furneaux Clare
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
international journal of applied linguistics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.712
H-Index - 39
eISSN - 1473-4192
pISSN - 0802-6106
DOI - 10.1111/ijal.12013
Subject(s) - argumentative , rhetorical question , linguistics , interpretation (philosophy) , rhetoric , psychology , statement (logic) , focus (optics) , rhetorical modes , sociology , philosophy , optics , physics
Three methodological limitations in E nglish‐ C hinese contrastive rhetoric research have been identified in previous research, namely: the failure to control for the quality of L1 data; an inference approach to interpreting the relationship between L1 and L2 writing; and a focus on national cultural factors in interpreting rhetorical differences. Addressing these limitations, the current study examined the presence or absence and placement of thesis statement and topic sentences in four sets of argumentative texts produced by three groups of university students. We found that C hinese students tended to favour a direct/deductive approach in their E nglish and C hinese writing, while native E nglish writers typically adopted an indirect/inductive approach. This study argues for a dynamic and ecological interpretation of rhetorical practices in different languages and cultures.