The repetition of words, lexical repetition, can be an important marker of cohesion in writing, especially in domains where precision and clarity are valued. Contemporary writing in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) is a such a domain. Nevertheless, lexical repetition is sometimes instinctively misunderstood as a feature of an exaggerated style or simplistic language use.Using a classification system inspired by both previous research on lexical cohesion and the specific needs and characteristics of STEM writing, I analysed 15 project proposals written by STEM students and examined their ways of using and avoiding lexical repetition when referring to key concepts. I then reviewed each text with its author(s) in a semi-structured interview. My aim was to understand the students’ perceptions of lexical repetition as STEM writers and English users.Results of the text analysis show that the more experienced student writers frequently chose lexical repetition to refer to key concepts, and that the less experienced student writers tended to use more paraphrases and pronouns instead. This finding challenges the notion that lexical repetition is a feature of inappropriate or simplistic language use. Results of the interviews show that some students had previously been discouraged from repeating lexical items in writing. However, they mostly recognised the value of lexical repetition in STEM writing to avoid ambiguity and ensure inter-sentential cohesion. The majority of the students in this study used lexical repetition assuredly; they were confident in their English, their purpose, and their understanding of their readers’ needs.Keywords

ZAVAM, Aurea Suely. Repeticao lexical em narrativas escritas infantis. 1998. 121f. Dissertação (Mestrado em Linguística) - Universidade Federal do Ceará, Departamento de Letras Vernáculas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Linguística, Fortaleza-CE, 1998. / Submitted by nazareno mesquita (nazagon36@yahoo.com.br) on 2012-06-19T14:25:05Z No. of bitstreams: 1 1998_diss_ASZavam.pdf: 413654 bytes, checksum: 3e5dfc7b579d81a1c891ee479c8f3e7f (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria Josineide Góis(josineide@ufc.br) on 2012-08-03T16:40:17Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 1998_diss_ASZavam.pdf: 413654 bytes, checksum: 3e5dfc7b579d81a1c891ee479c8f3e7f (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2012-08-03T16:40:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 1998_diss_ASZavam.pdf: 413654 bytes, checksum: 3e5dfc7b579d81a1c891ee479c8f3e7f (MD5) Previous issue date: 1998 / The main goal of this dissertation is to investigate the use of reiteration in contiguous sentences by children while learning in their written language as well as the linguistic factors that interfere in their choice for mechanism of cohesion. To this purpose I established two basic procedures. First I analysed 558 texts that retell the famous tale Red Riding Hood. They make up the International Basis of Child Written Language. Four aspects were observed: a) the occurence of lexical repetition; b) its linking with referential functions; c) its distribution in the episodes of the narrative; d) its relationship with grafhic signs. Secondly 32 children at 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades of Elementary School, were interviewed, being 16 from public and 16 from private school. I asked them to choose among three possible answers, that they find plausible to maintain the reference to a character mentioned in the previous sentence, taken from a version of the well-know tale. I came to the following conclusions, concerning to all of the subjects, regardlessly of the factors grade and school as far as reiteration is concerned: a) it is used for choice after the introduction and reintroduction of characters; b) it is established between the introduction of a character that contributes to the action and the beginning of the action; c) it delimits sentence bounderlines in the narrative; d) it is used instead of punctuation marks and imposes internal limits to the text. / O objetivo principal desta dissertação é investigar o uso de expressões reiteradas em sentenças contíguas por crianças em fase de aquisição da linguagem escrita e os fatores lingüísticos que interferem na opção por esse mecanismo de referência anafórica. A pesquisa se desenvolveu em dois momentos. Primeiro, foram examinados recontos da história Chapeuzinho Vermelho, 558 textos que compõem o corpus da Base Internacional de Dados sobre a Escrita Infantil, observando a ocorrência da repetição lexical, a associação a funções referenciais, a distribuição nos episódios da narrativa, e a interação com marcas gráficas. Em seguida, foram entrevistadas 32 crianças - 16 da escola pública e 16 da escola particular - das quatro primeiras séries do Ensino Fundamental, solicitando-lhes que elegessem, entre as possibilidades oferecidas, a forma que julgavam ser a melhor para manter a referência ao personagem enunciado na sentença precedente, em uma versão da conhecida história tradicional. A análise dos textos revelou que a repetição lexical contígua, utilizada por crianças de todas as séries, tanto da escola pública quanto da particular,: a) é empregada preferencialmente após introdução e reintrodução de personagens; b) se estabelece no limite entre a introdução de um personagem (principal ou não), que confere dinamismo à história, e o início de sua ação; c) delimita fronteiras sentenciais no discurso narrado; d) assume função dos sinais de pontuação, impondo limites internos ao texto.

nÃo hà / CoordenaÃÃo de AperfeiÃoamento de Pessoal de NÃvel Superior / O objetivo principal desta dissertaÃÃo à investigar o uso de expressÃes reiteradas em sentenÃas contÃguas por crianÃas em fase de aquisiÃÃo da linguagem escrita e os fatores lingÃÃsticos que interferem na opÃÃo por esse mecanismo de referÃncia anafÃrica. A pesquisa se desenvolveu em dois momentos. Primeiro, foram examinados recontos da histÃria Chapeuzinho Vermelho, 558 textos que compÃem o corpus da Base Internacional de Dados sobre a Escrita Infantil, observando a ocorrÃncia da repetiÃÃo lexical, a associaÃÃo a funÃÃes referenciais, a distribuiÃÃo nos episÃdios da narrativa, e a interaÃÃo com marcas grÃficas. Em seguida, foram entrevistadas 32 crianÃas - 16 da escola pÃblica e 16 da escola particular - das quatro primeiras sÃries do Ensino Fundamental, solicitando-lhes que elegessem, entre as possibilidades oferecidas, a forma que julgavam ser a melhor para manter a referÃncia ao personagem enunciado na sentenÃa precedente, em uma versÃo da conhecida histÃria tradicional. A anÃlise dos textos revelou que a repetiÃÃo lexical contÃgua, utilizada por crianÃas de todas as sÃries, tanto da escola pÃblica quanto da particular,: a) à empregada preferencialmente apÃs introduÃÃo e reintroduÃÃo de personagens; b) se estabelece no limite entre a introduÃÃo de um personagem (principal ou nÃo), que confere dinamismo à histÃria, e o inÃcio de sua aÃÃo; c) delimita fronteiras sentenciais no discurso narrado; d) assume funÃÃo dos sinais de pontuaÃÃo, impondo limites internos ao texto. / The main goal of this dissertation is to investigate the use of reiteration in contiguous sentences by children while learning in their written language as well as the linguistic factors that interfere in their choice for mechanism of cohesion. To this purpose I established two basic procedures. First I analysed 558 texts that retell the famous tale Red Riding Hood. They make up the International Basis of Child Written Language. Four aspects were observed: a) the occurence of lexical repetition; b) its linking with referential functions; c) its distribution in the episodes of the narrative; d) its relationship with grafhic signs. Secondly 32 children at 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades of Elementary School, were interviewed, being 16 from public and 16 from private school. I asked them to choose among three possible answers, that they find plausible to maintain the reference to a character mentioned in the previous sentence, taken from a version of the well-know tale. I came to the following conclusions, concerning to all of the subjects, regardlessly of the factors grade and school as far as reiteration is concerned: a) it is used for choice after the introduction and reintroduction of characters; b) it is established between the introduction of a character that contributes to the action and the beginning of the action; c) it delimits sentence bounderlines in the narrative; d) it is used instead of punctuation marks and imposes internal limits to the text.

I detta arbete undersöks två etablerade och en experimentell metod för bestämmande av läsbarheten hos texter. Metoderna undersöks genom att de appliceras på två litterära verk: Atemschaukel av Herta Müller och Berühre mich. Nicht. av Laura Kneidl. Metoderna som undersöks är läsbarhetsformeln Flesch-Reading-Ease (meningslängd och ordlängd) och ordfrekvens (hur vanliga orden är). Dessa båda läsbarhetsundersökningar är väletablerade och har använts flitigt. I detta arbete testas även en ny möjlig läsbarhetsfaktor: Upprepningar av ord, där upprepningar av innehållsord räknas. Resultaten av analyserna enligt de olika metoderna sammanställs och jämförs för att besvara två frågor: 1. Vilket verk förefaller mest lättläst enligt de två etablerade läsbarhetsundersökningarna? 2. Samvarierar mängden upprepningar med resultaten från de andra två läsbarhetsundersökningarna? Resultaten ger en något splittrad bild: Atemschaukel är enligt Flesch-Reading-Ease det mest lättlästa verket, medan ordfrekvensen visar på motsatt förhållande: Berühre mich. Nicht. har de genomsnittligt vanligare orden. Huruvida upprepning av ord har ett samband med läsbarheten är svårt att avgöra baserat enbart på resultaten i denna undersökning. Användandet av språkliga stilfaktorer för eventuellt att läsbarhetstest inte lämpar sig för undersökning av skönlitterära texter.

On the assumption that different registers of translated drama have different functions and that they therefore present information differently, the aim of the present study is to identify textual features that distinguish an Afrikaans stage translation from a page translation of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. The first issue addressed concerns the nature and extent of lexical cohesion in these two registers. The second issue concerns my contention that the dialogue of a stage translation is more "involved". (Biber 1988) than that of a page translation. The research was conducted within the overall Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS) paradigm but the analytical frameworks by means of which these aims were accomplished were derived from text linguistics and register variation studies, making this an interdisciplinary study. Aspects of Hoey's ( 1991) bonding model, in particular, the classification of repetition links, were adapted so as to quantify lexical cohesion in the translations. Similarly, aspects of Biber's (1988) multi-dimensional approach to register variation were used to quantify linguistic features that signal involvement. The main finding of the study is that drama translation register (page or stage translation) does have a constraining effect on lexical cohesion and involved production. For Act IV of the play an overall higher density of lexical cohesion strategies was generated by the stage translation. In the case of the involved production features analysed, the overall finding was that the stage translation displayed more involvement than the page translation, to a statistically highly significant extent. The features analysed here cluster together sufficiently to reveal that in comparison with an Afrikaans page translation of a Shakespeare play, a recent stage translation displays a definite tendency towards a more oral, more involved and more situated style, reflecting no doubt a general modern trend towards creating more appropriate and accessible texts / Linguistics / D. Litt. et Phil. (Translation Studies)

On the assumption that different registers of translated drama have different functions and that they therefore present information differently, the aim of the present study is to identify textual features that distinguish an Afrikaans stage translation from a page translation of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. The first issue addressed concerns the nature and extent of lexical cohesion in these two registers. The second issue concerns my contention that the dialogue of a stage translation is more "involved". (Biber 1988) than that of a page translation. The research was conducted within the overall Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS) paradigm but the analytical frameworks by means of which these aims were accomplished were derived from text linguistics and register variation studies, making this an interdisciplinary study. Aspects of Hoey's ( 1991) bonding model, in particular, the classification of repetition links, were adapted so as to quantify lexical cohesion in the translations. Similarly, aspects of Biber's (1988) multi-dimensional approach to register variation were used to quantify linguistic features that signal involvement. The main finding of the study is that drama translation register (page or stage translation) does have a constraining effect on lexical cohesion and involved production. For Act IV of the play an overall higher density of lexical cohesion strategies was generated by the stage translation. In the case of the involved production features analysed, the overall finding was that the stage translation displayed more involvement than the page translation, to a statistically highly significant extent. The features analysed here cluster together sufficiently to reveal that in comparison with an Afrikaans page translation of a Shakespeare play, a recent stage translation displays a definite tendency towards a more oral, more involved and more situated style, reflecting no doubt a general modern trend towards creating more appropriate and accessible texts / Linguistics and Modern Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (Translation Studies)