Chapter 3 Methods
3.2 Analytical framework
3.2.4 The information state
Example 6: Dui functions in the ideational structure.
*CAI: /ho/ 你 一直 蓋 這個!
%sit: CAI found a xylophone
*LIN: 我們 做 一 個 房. management of both speaker and hearer’s knowledge and meta-knowledge. It focused on the interactions between the speaker’s and the hearer’s cognitive states. When the use of discourse marker hao and dui was associated with the information exchange
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between the speaker and the hearer, it was identified as functioning in the information state. In example 7, hao indicated LIN’s positive evaluation and acknowledgement of NIN’s information. Likewise, in example 8, dui was used by NIN to confirm the truthfulness of JUN’s information that it was nighttime in the Unite States when they were playing.
Example 7: Hao functions in the information state.
*NIN: 記得 要 過 喔.
jide yao guo o
remember have pass PRT Don’t forget to go through (the road).
*LIN: 好 ß
hao okay Okay.
Example 8: Dui functions in the information state.
*JUN: 美國 現在 是 晚上 喔?
meiguo xianzai shi wanshang o
Unite States now be nighttime PRT It is nighttime now in the Unite States?
*NIN: +^ 對! ß
dui right Yes!
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39 Chapter 4
Results
The results presented in this chapter comprise three sections. First of all, the distribution of the two discourse markers, hao and dui, in different structures of discourse is shown in section 4.1. Afterward Mandarin-speaking children’s use of hao and dui in peer interaction are illustrated in section 4.2 and 4.3 respectively.
4.1 Hao and dui in different structures of discourse
Table 3 demonstrates the distribution of hao and dui for discourse structures in Mandarin-speaking children’s conversation with peers. The results showed that Mandarin children used hao in three discourse structures, which were the information state, the exchange structure and the action structure. The children’s use of hao in the ideational structure was not found in the current data. In the data, Mandarin-speaking children used 155 tokens of hao. Each token of hao functioned simultaneously in the information state. In other words, all of the use of hao was multifunctional. Among the total 155 tokens, hao was found mostly in the exchange structure. It appeared 96 times (61.94%) in the exchange structure, and 50 times (32.26%) in the action structure. Moreover, hao in both the action and exchange structures accounted for 5.8% (9 times) in Mandarin-speaking children’s peer conversation.
In addition to hao, dui ‘right’ was also found in different discourse structures in speaking children’s peer conversation. As seen in Table 3, Mandarin-speaking children used dui in three discourse structures when interacting with peers, which were the exchange structure, the ideational structure and the information state.
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Dui in the current data was not found in the action structure. Among all 64 tokens, dui was used 56 times (87.5%) in the exchange structure, 8 times (12.5%) in the ideational structure. Moreover, each token of dui in the present data functioned simultaneously in the information state. That is to say, all of the dui was multifunctional in the information state and another structure, such as the exchange structure or the ideational structure.
Table 3. Distribution of hao and dui in different structures of discourse
Structure of discourse Hao Dui
N % N %
Action and information state 50 32.26
Exchange and information state 96 61.94 56 87.5
Ideational and information state 8 12.5
Action, exchange and information state 9 5.8
Total 155 100 64 100
The result suggested that Mandarin-speaking children used hao in the information state, the action structure and the exchange structure of discourse when interacting with their peers. All the use of hao functioned simultaneously in the information state. Moreover, other than the information state, Mandarin-speaking children used hao most frequently in the exchange structure. The frequency in the exchange structure was nearly twice as that in the action structure. On the other hand, Mandarin-speaking children also used dui in three discourse structures, which were the information state, the exchange structure and the ideational structure. All tokens of dui were found concurrently in the information state and the other structure.
Besides the information state, Mandarin-speaking children used dui predominately in the exchange structure. Meanwhile, they have the ability to use dui in the ideational
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structure to manage the organization of the propositional content in discourse. When comparing the two markers, they both appeared in the information state and the exchange structure. However, only hao was found in the action structure and dui in the ideational structure. Also, only hao served the multifunction in three structures, which were the action structure, the exchange structure, and the information state.
Such multifunction in more than two discourse structures was not found in Mandarin children’s use of dui. The results also indicated that Mandarin-speaking 5-year-olds had the ability to manipulate the multifunction of hao and dui in different structures.
Nevertheless, their uses of the two markers demonstrated both similarities and differences. In-depth analysis of the various functions of hao and dui in these structures would be illustrated in the following sections respectively.
4.2 Hao in different structures of discourse 4.2.1 Hao as a marker in the information state
Because of the original meaning of hao as a stative verb indicates the speaker’s positive assessment toward the information provided, it is considered as functioning in the information state, which concerns about the interaction between the speaker and hearer of their knowledge and meta-knowledge. According to earlier research, the discourse functions of hao derived from this positive assessment meaning. In other words, all the discourse functions of hao are connected to this core meaning. Since it is the core meaning that is related to the information state, each discourse function of hao is considered to appear simultaneously in the information state. That is, all the tokens of hao in the data were multifunctional. The use of hao in the information state is exemplified in excerpt 1 and 2. In excerpt 1, CAI used hao to show his positive
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information that NIN likes green.Excerpt 1. NIN and CAI are playing with toy cars and some bells.
*NIN: 鈴鐺 這 是 樹.
Excerpt 2. NIN and JUN are playing with some blocks. JUN is going to make a toy car for NIN using these blocks. JUN asks NIN what color he would like of his car.
*NIN: 我 喜歡 綠色.
Because the discourse functions derived from the core positive assessment meaning, hao functioned in the information state indicates the speaker’s positive
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evaluation towards previous moves in order to achieve shared information between the speaker and hearer. In addition, since it is this original meaning of hao, which is related to the information state, each token of hao is considered multifunctional in the information state.
4.2.2 Hao as a marker in the exchange structure
In the present data, hao functioned predominately in the exchange structure in Mandarin-speaking children’s peer interaction. According to previous studies, in the exchange structure, hao serves as a marker of agreement/acceptance, a marker of appreciation of assertion, or a turn-grabbing device. Mandarin-speaking 5-year-olds in the current study used hao in the exchange structure mainly as a marker of agreement/acceptance to others’ suggestions and requests. Excerpt 3 is an example of how Mandarin children used hao to show their agreement with others. In this excerpt, LIN and NIN were planning to build a house. NIN suggested they use the blocks in the back of the playroom to make it. LIN soon expressed her agreement by saying hao
‘okay’. Excerpt 4 also shows the children’s use of hao as a marker of agreement. In this excerpt, both JUN and CAI gave each other a suggestion or a request. JUN at the beginning of the excerpt proposed that they have a contest of playing yoyos next Tuesday. CAI agreed by answering hao. After that, he then requested JUN not to hit his head with the door again. JUN also answered hao to express his compliance. In both excerpts, the children used hao as an agreement marker to show their positive evaluation and supportive attitude towards their peer’s suggestions. It demonstrated the children’s intention to collaborate and may further help them maintain their relations with peers.
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Excerpt 3. LIN and NIN plan to build a house together.
*LIN: 來 吧.
%act: pointing at the blocks in the back of the room
*LIN: 好. ß
hao okay Okay.
Excerpt 4. JUN and CAI are playing with some blocks. Before the conversation, JUN tried to put the toy door onto the block. But the door fell down and hit CAI’s head.
JUN found it very funny, so he used the toy door to hit CAI’s head again.
*JUN: 那 下個 禮拜二 我們 來 比賽 溜溜球.
na xiage libai’er women lai bisai liuliuqiu then next Tuesday we come race yoyo Next Tuesday let’s have a game of yoyos.
*CAI: 好. ß
hao okay Okay.
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So don’t you hit my head again (with the door).*JUN: 好. ß
hao okay Okay.
When hao functioned as a marker of agreement, Mandarin-speaking children sometimes combined it with particle la. According to Biq (2004), although adding no additional propositional content, hao combining with particles expresses a wider range of interactional functions. When hao co-occurs with particle la, hao la indicates a reluctant agreement, which shows that the speaker is unwilling to agree with the previous speaker. Excerpt 5 demonstrates how Mandarin 5-year-old children use hao la to express his unwillingness to agree with the previous speaker. In this example, CAI was distracted from building a house because some kids outside the playroom were calling him. LIN was annoyed by CAI’s distraction and asked CAI to focus on building the house. CAI felt a little embarrassed to be found distracted. Therefore, instead of saying hao, he added particle la with hao to indicate his unwillingness to accept LIN’s demand. He reluctantly accepted LIN’s suggestion in one hand to conceal his embarrassment and in the other hand to imply his collaborative stance.
CAI’s use of hao la demonstrated his intention to maintain the alliance between LIN and himself. Excerpt 6 also illustrates Mandarin-speaking children’s use of hao with particle la to express the additional interactional information of the agreement. JUN in this example found some blocks in the playroom and claimed they were money. CAI requested JUN to give him some money. JUN agreed with hao la, which implied that
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even though he was not willing to do so, he still did it because of some reasons, for example, to maintain their alignment and social relations.
Excerpt 5. LIN and CAI are playing blocks together in the playroom. Some children outside the room are calling CAI and CAI is distracted.
*LIN: 做 房子 啦. Hurry up make up the house.
*CAI: 好 啦. ß
hao la
okay PRT
Okay.
Excerpt 6. JUN and CAI are looking for toys to play together.
*JUN: 喂 我 找到 錢 [= 積木] 了.
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children’s conversation as a marker of acceptance in the exchange structure. Excerpt 7 demonstrates this function of hao in the present data. In excerpt 7, though pretending, JUN offered ZHI some rice. ZHI accepted the offer using the marker hao.Excerpt 7. ZHI and JUN pretend they are having breakfast together.
*JUN: 給 你 吃 米.
Rice can not be the breakfast.
*ZHI: 只 能 吃 飯飯 喔.
zhi neng chi fanfan o
only can eat steamed rice PRT
(We) could only eat steamed rice.
*JUN: 給 你 吃 飯.
gei ni chi fan
give you eat steamed rice
Give you some steamed rice to eat.
*ZHI: 好. ß
hao okay Okay.
Besides followed by particle la, hao in the exchange structure sometimes appeared after the A-not-A question hao-bu-hao in Mandarin-speaking children’s peer interaction. Hao-bu-hao and hao formed a question-answer pair in Mandarin children’s peer conversation. The A-not-A question hao-bu-hao was used to ask for the hearer’s evaluation, opinions or permission. According to Liu (2008), hao-bu-hao
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in spoken Mandarin is now more than just a tag question but a discourse marker indicating refutation, directive, elicitation, and comforting. Hao as a preferred second pair part expressed the speaker’s positive evaluation toward the previous proposition.
The appearance of this question-answer pairs showed that Mandarin-speaking 5-year-olds had the ability to take other people’s opinions into consideration. With the preferred second pair part hao, it helped Mandarin-speaking children to build up the alignment with their peers. Also, as previous researcher suggested, through the interactions with peers, children could have more opportunities to examine their ideas, to negotiate and to discuss with others from various perspectives (Piaget, 1932;
Rogoff, 1990). The examples are given in excerpt 8 and 9. In excerpt 8, the children were playing with the toys they pretended to be their treasure. JUN suggested that they hide their treasure. He added hao-bu-hao at the end of his utterance to ask for CAI’s opinion. CAI then expressed his agreement by saying hao. Similarly, in excerpt 9, when the children were pretending to be postmen, LIN proposed that they send out the mails at night and used hao-bu-hao to seek NIN’s opinion. NIN showed his positive evaluation by hao. In this excerpt, that LIN’s announcement of the setting and the A-not-A question hao-bu-hao were separated in two utterances may indicate LIN’s thinking process. She might not think of asking for NIN’s opinion at first but she then remembered that it would be more polite to consider other people’s thoughts.
Therefore she added hao-bu-hao at the end of her turn. The use of hao-bu-hao to ask for other people’s opinion and the preferred answer hao may help Mandarin children construct the alignment between peers more easily. This result may also imply that Mandarin-speaking children at age five have acquired to pay attention to other people’s thoughts and feelings. This perspective-taking ability, as previous researcher claimed, would be acquired in children’s interactions with peers (Sullivan, 1953).
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Excerpt 8. JUN and CAI are playing with some toys. They both assume that the toys are their treasure.
*JUN: 我們 把 我們的 寶藏 藏 在 +…
women ba womende baozang cang zai +…
we BA our treasure hide PREP
How about we hide our treasure in…
*JUN: 藏 在 某 一 個 地方 好不好? ß
Excerpt 9. LIN and NIN pretend to be the postmen. They are discussing when they should send the mails.
*LIN: 晚上 送 信.
wanshang song xin
night deliver mail
(We are going to) deliver the mails at night.
*LIN: 好不好? ß exchange structure was also found to express acknowledgement in Mandarin-speaking children’s peer interaction. Excerpt 10 and 11 illustrate how these children
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use hao to acknowledge others’ assertions. In excerpt 10, JUN announced that he was going out. ZHI acknowledged her receipt of JUN’s announcement by saying hao.
Other than showing acknowledgement only, ZHI further said good-bye to imply her approval to JUN’s announcement. Similarly in excerpt 11, CAI and LIN were building roads for their toy cars. CAI found a set of built-up tracks on the shelf and was very excited. He immediately showed those tracks to LIN. LIN said hao to acknowledge her receipt of this information.
Excerpt 10. Some children outside the playroom are calling to JUN. JUN wants to go out and talk to them.
Excerpt 11. CAI and LIN are playing with toy cars. CAI has found a set of railway that was already linked together on the shelf.
*CAI: 哇 -: .
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*LIN: 0 [=! screaming].
*LIN: 好. ß
hao okay Okay.
Briefly speaking, in the exchange structure, Mandarin-speaking children tended to use the discourse marker hao to show their agreement and acceptance to their partners’ suggestions, and also to acknowledge their receipt of information. They sometimes combined hao with other discourse particles such as la to imply their unwillingness to agree. Sometimes hao in Mandarin-speaking children’s conversation served as a preferred answer to an A-not-A question hao-bu-hao, which is used to ask for the addressee’s opinion or assessment. The above-mentioned functions of hao in the exchange structure illustrated how Mandarin children forged an alliance with their peers by showing their collaborative stances, and how they intended to maintain the relationships with peers.
4.2.3 Hao as a marker in the action structure
In the present data, Mandarin-speaking children also showed their ability to use hao in the action structure. Previous studies suggested that hao functions as a speech act of declaration initiating directives, assertives or mark the closure/completion of an action (Huang, 2000; Miracle, 1991; Xian, 2007). Xian (2007) claimed that hao is a marker used by speakers to capture the hearers’ attention and declare for a new action, which usually appears in the form of directives, to begin. In other words, hao serves as a declaration marker in the action structure. In the data, Mandarin-speaking children used hao as a declaration of directives, assertives, and the completion of physical actions. According to Searle’s (1981) classification of speech acts, directives
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demonstrate the speaker’s attempts to make the listener to do something. Excerpt 12 illustrates Mandarin-speaking 5-year-old children’s use of hao as a declaration initiating directives in the action structure. In the excerpt, NIN used hao to capture JUN’s attention and to express his attempt for both of them to throw the blocks again.
Excerpt 12. NIN and JUN are playing with some blocks. They pretend they are fighting with some spinning machines and they are attacking those machines with the blocks.
%act: both NIN and JUN throw the blocks out off their hands
*NIN: 好 再 來 一次. ß Mandarin-speaking children’s conversations. According to Searle’s classification, assertives are speech acts that “commit the speaker (in varying degree) to something’s being the case, to the truth of the expressed proposition” (Searle, 1981, p. 12). Excerpt 13 is an example of hao as a declaration of assertives in Mandarin-speaking children’s peer
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interaction. In this example, the two children were playing with a toy car and trying to knock out the plastic trees with it. They were negotiating the next person who can play. In NIN’s second utterance, he used hao to mark his assertion that it was his turn to play with the toy car. Excerpt 14 shows the same function of hao declaring an assertive. NIN used hao to capture CAI’s attention and to initiate his assertion zheyici kan wo de ‘this time (you) watch me do it’ to announce that it was his turn to play.
The utterance also implied that his performance would be impressive.
Excerpt 13. NIN and CAI are trying to knock down all the plastic trees by a toy car.
CAI tried first but only one plastic tree was knocked over.
*NIN: 怎麼 只有 一隻 倒下去 啊?
*NIN: 怎麼 只有 一隻 倒下去 啊?