Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Engelska språket'

Syftet med arbetet är att undersöka och jämföra vad pojkar och flickor har för inställning när

det gäller engelska som undervisningsämne i skolan såväl som den engelska de möter på sin

fritid. Undersökningsmetoderna består av dels en enkät och dels observationer vid två olika

skolor, totalt deltar 137 elever från år åtta och nio i undersökningen. Resultatet visar att det är

främst flickor som gynnas av enkönade grupper. Intressant är också att se att pojkars och

flickors attityd skiljer sig, främst beroende på skillnader i självförtroende och förväntningar

från både omgivningen och individen själv.

Med detta arbete har jag försökt besvara frågan om progressiv form har ökat eller minskat i engelska skönlitterära romaner sedan 1813 till 1913 och vidare till 2001. Arbetet omfattar litteraturstudier avseende progressiv form och olika tempus i engelska språket. Mitt syfte var förutom att studera texter för att besvara frågan om frekvensen av progressiv form att klargöra vad progressiv form är och vilka tempus som finns, samt att besvara frågan om när man som språkstuderande bör vara medveten om vilken betydelseskillnad som föreligger då man använder enkel respektive progressiv form. Den tendens jag har funnit är att progressiv form har ökat från år 1813 till år 1913 och ytterligare till år 2001.

A study of three extracts from three English novels from three centuries regarding verb aspect, i.e. the progressive form. The tendency is that the progressive form has increased from 1813 to 1913 and further to 2001.

High school students of today frequently come into contact with the English language through

radio and television. Many students even manage to read instruction manuals and understand

how technical devices work, such as, for example, computer games. However, most teachers

underestimate their students’ ability and persist in using Swedish to explain how the English

language works. I have analysed how high school students manage when they take an English

grammar test in English. My results show that the students manage very well. Learning is

rather about the meta cognitive ability of the students which, is what both teachers and

students should spend more time on in order to achieve successful learning.

Background: During our VFU (Workplace-based Education), we met a teacher, who worked with metacognitive strategies, and used a holistic, top-down approach with her pupils. The teacher had been working with them in this way for three years. We wanted to know how the pupils used lexical inferencing strategies they had learned about in school, in their spare time outside school. Purpose and aim: The purpose of the study was to examine the use of lexical inferencing strategies and the aim was to find out whether pupils who had been encouraged to use lexical inferencing strategies in classroom teaching actually used these strategies when encountering unknown English words in their spare time. Method: We used a qualitative, semi-structured group interview, with an interview guide approach as method to achieve descriptions of the lived world of our interviewees. Eighteen out of 24 pupils in a 9th grade class were interviewed. We conducted six interviews, since the pupils were interviewed in groups of three. During the process of data analysis four different categories of strategy use emerged. Results: The results of our study showed that the pupils used the following strategies when encountering an English word outside school: avoidance, referring to another resource, inferencing from context and metalinguistic knowledge. The results also showed that even though the pupils are trained to use these strategies in school, they did not use them consistently in free time encounters with English language texts

Syftet med studien är att få en förståelse för hur några elever i grundskolan uppfattar det engelska språket och engelskundervisningen. För att kunna besvara dessa frågor har vi valt att använda en kvalitativ metod, och intervjuat fem stycken elever i vardera av grundskolans år 1, 3 och 5. Frågeställningarna vi utgått ifrån är följande;

Hur ser några elevers attityder ut till det engelska språket i grundskolan, förändras de och i sådana fall hur?

Hur ser några elevers förväntningar ut, finns det skillnader och eller likheter mellan grundskolans år 1, 3 och 5?

Vi har kommit fram till att 14 av de 15 intervjuade eleverna ställer sig positiva till ämnet engelska och dess användningsområden. De anser att det är viktigt att kunna engelska om man ska arbeta och eller åka utomlands men också för att kunna kommunicera med människor med ett annat modersmål. Eleverna i år 1 ser fram emot engelskundervisningen, men tror att den kommer att bli svår. Engelskundervisningen i klassrummet är de flesta nöjda med i år 3 och år 5, men de intervjuade eleverna i år 5 tycker att engelskundervisningen har blivit svårare men den är fortfarande rolig.

Engelska

Denna uppsats undersöker, med metoden samtalsanalys, två samtal på engelska mellan infödda talare av engelska och svenskar med engelska som sitt första främmandespråk. Fokus ligger på form och funktion för fenomenet allo-repetition i dessa två samtal, d.v.s. repetition av vad någon annan har sagt tidigare.

Inom samtalsforskning kring samtal på modersmålet har man funnit att repetitionen har många funktioner på såväl ett innehållsmässigt som ett socialt plan. Genom att använda sig av olika typer av repetitioner förhåller sig samtalaren till både ämnet och de andra samtalarna, samtidigt som koherens skapas. Också inom andraspråksforskningen har repetitionen som fenomen undersökts, och har där funnits anta vissa former beroende på om de används av inlärarna själva eller de mer språkligt kompetenta infödda talarna. I denna studie undersöks avancerade inlärare av engelska, d.v.s. inlärare med en god kunskap om målspråket. Repetitionens roll i dessa samtal granskas i förhållande till såväl repetitionens roll i samtalet på modersmålet som repetitionens roll i andraspråksinlärning.

I analysen framkom att det främst är de sociala motiven som utgör skäl för repetitionerna, och rollerna som infödd talare respektive inlärare förefaller inte ha någon relevans för användandet av repetitioner. Det förekommer inga direkta bevis för aktiv och medveten inlärning, men däremot kan man anta en potentiell inlärning i ett slags ”biprodukt” av den sociala verksamheten som samtalen utgör, då det t.ex. skapas syntaktiska strukturer, vilka upprepas av de olika deltagarna med mer eller mindre variation. Det kan vidare konstateras att repetitionerna används på ett mycket kontextbundet sätt, och att de två samtalens olika karaktär således delvis ger olika resultat vad beträffar repetitionerna.

Through the character of Lily Briscoe the essay investigates the homosexual element in Virginia Woolf’s novel To the Lighthouse. The main aim of the essay is to examine Lily’s process of coming to terms with her homosexuality through her painting where the disclosure of Lily’s sexuality emerges. Lily’s path to self-recognition is analyzed in close readings of textual evidence from the novel and with the use of secondary sources.

In an increasingly globalized world with English as a lingua franca, European countries are competing in their efforts for their populations to speak English. The main goal of this study was to compare the English writing proficiency of one class in the Basque Country and one in

Sweden at the end of their compulsory education. Both classes took an essay test in which verb use, conjunction use, spelling and text length were measured. The Swedish students outperformed their Basque counterparts in almost every measured area, which was suggested

to be due to a combination of teacher-related factors (methodology, command of the language, use of the language and learning environment) and external factors (language typology, language input and student motivation). The teaching skills and command of English of Basque teachers should be improved as well as audiovisual tools and communicative approach introduced in order to compensate for the lack of language input and

language use possibilities.

This essay focuses on the genre of Chick Lit and two novels in that genre: Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella and Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot. The essay examines the origins of the Chick Lit genre and discusses its influences and the typical trademarks of the Chick Lit novel. The essay also discusses how some of the current research has come to the conclusion that Chick Lit is sprung from the genre of romance novels. In the second section of the analysis, the conventional formula of the popular romance novel is presented, followed by a discussion about the ways in which the Chick Lit novels differ from that formula. The primary research question of the essay asks “Is the Chick Lit novel a new version of the romance novel or can it not be seen as a distinct literary genre?” The third section of the essay consists of a comparative reading of the two Chick Lit novels, where it is argued that they can be seen as novels about personal growth and development, and how they deal with self-discovery more than anything else.  In the conclusion, the essay discusses how although Chick Lit novels have borrowed some themes and characteristics from the romance novels, there is also more to the Chick Lit novel than just the romance theme. Friendships and family relations are as important to the two heroines as finding love is, and it is important for the protagonists to understand themselves first, and only after that do they begin thinking about love.

This paper analyses a translation from English into Swedish in manuals for a GPS navigation tool. Focusing on two main grammatical areas this paper will answer the question how these elements of the language from the source text (ST) are handled by the target text (TT).

Works by Lennart Hellspong and Christiane Nord helped determine what linguistic elements to investigate in detail, as well as part of the method for the translation analysis. Investigated will be factors they consider problematic in, or relevant to, translation. These are terminology and sentence structure. The Background chapter presents a description of Hellspong’s and Nord’s views of translation analysis. Parts of these motivate this paper’s own translation analysis, as mentioned both in regards to how it is carried out and what elements of translation it has chosen to investigate.

Secondly, under Material, a presentation of this paper’s primary sources is offered. In addition to information on the manuals themselves, this chapter briefly covers the functions of the GPS navigation tool and a brief presentation of the company manufacturing it.

Thirdly, under Method, the method for investigation is described in detail. Here are presented sample items of what this paper will investigate, how items for investigation have been chosen, what specific language aspects will be analyzed and how the analysis will be carried out.

This paper’s fourth chapter, Analysis, consists of the actual research, presenting items analyzed following the strategies outlined under Method. The Analysis chapter will first present the result of each part of the investigation and then a result summary.

Abstract

Titel: Native Language Interference: A study of interference patterns in Swedish students’ English writing.

Författare: Skoog, Petra

Engelska C, 2006

Abstract: The purpose of this investigation was to find out if there are any patterns of native language interference in Swedish students’ written English. Extensive research has been carried out in the area of native language influence on the target language and a large number of terms are used when the influence of the native language is discussed, including contrastive analysis and positive and negative transfer. These are described in the theoretical background section of this study. The material for the empirical investigation was collected from students in year eight at a secondary school. They were given a task consisting in free essay writing, so that a general picture of interference problems would emerge. 42 essays were handed in, containing about 201 interference errors. The total number of non-interference errors found in the students’ essays was 1115 and this suggests that interference errors are not especially common among the students in my investigation. The errors committed due to interference mainly concerned the use of prepositions. One conclusion that can be drawn from this investigation is that it is very difficult to determine the source of errors and separate between errors in general and interference errors.

Nyckelord: Foreign language learning, native language influence, errors, interference.

This essay is about metaphors of time, mortality and transience in William Shakespeare’ssonnets. Exploring these metaphors, I examine sonnets nr. 60, 64 and 65 more closely, since Ithink they are particularly representative as regards the metaphors of time. Unlike the rest ofthe sonnets, these three deal with the subject throughout the sonnets, focusing on theinevitable degeneration of material things. The image of time in the sonnets is depicted in avaried way constructed by several metaphors that add to the depth and paint imagesinfluenced by the beliefs and knowledge of Shakespeare’s time. I put these images in relationto the English Renaissance and its concepts of time using sources from, for example, JohnSpencer Hill, Katherine Duncan-Jones and Dympna Callaghan, who all have made their ownanalyses of Shakespeare’s sonnets. In my close reading of the sonnets I analyse the variousmetaphors Shakespeare uses to make us experience the passage of time as in, for example,sonnet number 60, where the ongoing passage of time is described in a cyclical way by theuse of the metaphor of the waves rolling in and out of a pebbled shore. In a repetitive way thewaves are in constant motion. We can recognise ourselves as being the pebbles, affected bythe constant motion in our lives, slowly turning into sand by time’s cruel hand.

This essay researches how the literary personae H. D. Thoreau and Robinson Crusoe develop during and by their respective sojourns in nature as evinced in Walden and Robinson Crusoe. Thoreau and Crusoe come to spend time in nature for different reasons but since they both face similar challenges the two narratives are comparable.

The objective is to analyse how the protagonists view nature and what impact their closeness to nature has in terms of their expressed thoughts, actions and emotional life. The approach consists of a comparative and contrastive close reading of the narratives so as to disclose the most important moments, events and thoughts forwarded in the respective texts for later analysis. What is stated or implied in the narratives are thus interpreted as the genuine views and reactions of the protagonists and hence analysed as such. Moreover the close reading is informed by both psychoanalytical literary theory and ecocritical theory.

The approach is thematic and concentrates on several themes or challenges both Thoreau and Crusoe encounter during their habitation in nature. This division of the narratives makes it easier to isolate the moments and events that are the most relevant to the protagonists as regards their views of nature and their development while living in it.

During his stay at Walden Pond Thoreau does not just preoccupy himself with the practical challenges a life in nature poses but also to a large degree the philosophical questions those challenges raise in him. Thoreau comes to discover an interconnectedness between man and nature which depends on the willingness to simplify life, rid oneself of the act of consumerism and really devote oneself to attending to one’s surroundings. Crusoe, for his part, is terrified by the unknown environment and possible threats it poses to him but decides to survive and does so by making sure his basic needs of shelter and food as well as his dream of becoming a wealthy colonial master are met.

The aims of this study are to examine how the two protagonists view nature and how and in what ways their respective stays in nature change them. They both clearly develop throughout the narratives and return to civilization with greater inner abilities and strengths than before. Thoreau, for instance, keeps and deepens his feeling of interconnectedness with nature during his stay at Walden Pond while Crusoe’s perceived dislike of nature is mitigated when he understands how to make it useful to his cause. The time they spend in nature allows the protagonists to think about, and perhaps revise their attitudes towards it and find ways to incorporate nature, and what they have learned while living in it in their lives and mindsets.

Abstract

Title: From To-infinitives to Gerunds – an Essay on the Translation of Non-finite Clauses

Author: Sanna Evaldsson

The aim of this study is to find out how non-finite clauses are translated into Swedish and what translation strategies are applied in the process of translation. Non-finite clauses are very effective stylistic devises providing condensed and concise language, which is useful in academic texts. Even though English and Swedish are both languages of Germanic origin and share similarities, the translation of these clauses into can be difficult due to the languages’ different uses of non-finites.

To provide with material for this essay, a translation of a text written by Nicholas Cook has been made by the author of the essay and the two texts have been compared in order to make generalizations. The to-infinitive, the present participle, the past participle clauses and the gerund are features which are treated in this study. They are treated separately and their translations are compared with the secondary literature, which include grammars and books on translation theory.

The results for this study show that the translation strategies used for these types of clauses are ‘equivalence’, ‘structural shift’, ‘correspondence’, ‘transposition’ and ‘level shift’. The former three seem to be the most common, while the latter two are less frequently used.

Keywords: non-finite clauses, to-infinitive, present participle, past participle, gerund, translation.