article
Structuring subjectivity in Asian Englishes
Multivariate approaches to mental predicates across genres and functional uses
Sandra C. Deshors | New Mexico State University
This study investigates the usage patterns of four near-synonymous mental predicates (believe,
guess, suppose and think) across three Asian ESL (English as a Second Language)
varieties as well as British and American Englishes. Using two multivariate techniques, multiple correspondence analysis and classification
and regression tree analysis, the study shows the benefits of exploring cross-varietal variation through the lens of lexicalization
patterns. The study also demonstrates that to make sense of semantic patterns it is crucial to account for extra-linguistic factors such as
genre, as different ESL writers structure the meaning of believe, guess, suppose and
think differently depending on their type of writing. Ultimately, in the broader context of the emancipation of ESL
varieties, the results raise important questions about the developmental process of Asian Englishes and the place that semantic structure
holds in this endeavor.
Keywords: Asian Englishes, classification and regression tree, mental predicates, multiple correspondence analysis, written genres
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Adopting a semantic perspective on cross-varietal variation in ESL: The case of mental predicates
- 2.1The conceptual make-up of epistemic stance expressions: Believe, guess, suppose and think
- 2.2Variation in the use of mental predicates: What are the triggering factors?
- 2.3Towards an exploration of semantic variation across Asian Englishes
- 3.Methodology
- 3.1Corpus data and annotation
- 3.2Statistical evaluation
- 3.2.1(Multiple) Correspondence Analysis
- 3.2.2Classification And Regression Tree
- 4.Results
- 4.1Joint Multiple Correspondence Analysis
- 4.2Classification and regression tree analysis
- 5.Discussion and concluding remarks
- Acknowledgments
- Notes
-
References
This article is currently available as a sample article.
Published online: 15 June 2017
https://doi.org/10.1075/etc.10.1.07des
https://doi.org/10.1075/etc.10.1.07des
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