Le dinh tuong contrastive linguistics: an introduction for internal use only

Chesterman (1998: 54) proposes the methodological framework with the following main stages: (i) Primary data collection, (ii) Determining comparability criterion, (iii) Establishing problem, (iv) Identifying initial hypothesis, (v) Testing the initial hypothesis, (vi) Revising hypothesis, and (vii) Testing of the revised hypothesis.

1 Selecting the contrastive study

2 Reviewing the literature

3 Designing the contrastive study

4 Collecting primary data against which hypotheses are to be tested

5 Establishing comparability criteria based on a perceived similarity of any kind

6 Defining the nature of similarity and formulating the initial hypothesis

7 Testing the hypothesis

8 Interpreting the results.

In the frame of the textbook, attention is paid on selecting the problem, reviewing the literature and designing the contrastive study.

2.4.1. Selecting the problem

As a research problem, a contrastive study should be significant, suitable, researchable, and should be the one that has some “sameness” in two languages.

The “sameness” can be either in form or in content/idea.

2.4.2. Reviewing the literature

Linguistic entities and discourse can be studied in various perspectives. A problem may be seen either as autonomous or as reflecting how to conceptualize the an idea of language users.

Reviewing the relevant literature helps contrastivists more understand the problem and determine what research may already have been done.

2.4.3. Designing the contrastive study

It is often hard to think about how to conduct a contrastive study. Contrastivists often want clear categories in order to plan the study. It helps to give you a sense of “what to do”. The design includes the method to be used, what data will be gathered, where, how, and from whom.

Therefore, it is necessary to identify the appropriate type of contrastive study. It is either the parallel contrast or the contrast in which one language is the source and the other is the target.

Parallel contrast(or parallel texts) refer to the type of the study in which any pair of texts, written or oral, in two languages, are used as data in contrastive studies. It is based on the analysis of the second language text and its translation.

There are two main methods for studying parallel texts: experiment and observation.

Parallel contrast is considered the most effective method in contrastive study.

Modern technology helps contrastivists investigate large varieties of texts using special search programs. Corpus linguistics allows you to rely on an immeasurably more extensive database of texts. The widely known and used database are the British National Corps (BNC, British National Corps), the National Corpus of the Russian language, corpus of texts in a number of universities (Uppsala in Sweden, Tübingen in Germany, Leeds in the UK, etc.).

The most effective way of comparative study of languages is to recognize the analysis of parallel texts.

2.4.4. Data collection

Data in contrastive studies can be collected by survey from varieties of texts. They are utterances, instances of language use. According to Krzeszowski (1990: 37- 38), the date should be (i) particular items in the two languages have similarities in some respects, (ii) the items are different in some respects, or (iii) an item in one language has no equivalent in the other language. We should pay attention to the using of forms in two languages and the conditions under which the forms are used.

2.4.5. Establishing comparability criteria

The starting-point for an analysis is a perception of a similarity between language A-speakers' use of their language and language B-speakers' use of theirs. The similarity may be of idea (or content) or linguistic expression. Table 2.1. illustrates some differences in the linguistic expressions between British English and American English.

Table 2.1 – Similar in idea, different in the expressions in British English and American English.