Moves and Wrap-Up Sentences in Chinese Students’ Essay Conclusions

Abstract

Whether L1 (first language) rhetorical transfer affects L2 (second language) writing remains a controversial issue. Based on Hyland’s move theory, this article focuses on the moves and the quality of wrap-up sentences in essay conclusions, exploring the impact of L1 rhetorical transfer. One hundred eighty-four expository essays written by Chinese college students were analyzed, as well as 20 English and 20 Chinese model essays. Besides, sentence-initial discourse markers in 100 Chinese model essays were collected and categorized to investigate why Chinese teachers and students favor certain English linking adverbials. The research results show that the Chinese students displayed their strategy use in Discourse Marker, Consolidation and Close, but the preference to certain sets of linking adverbials and Affirmation move can be attributed to the L1 rhetorical transfer at lexical level and text level. In this study, L1 rhetorical transfer has been found to go hand in hand with strategy use. For the students at tertiary level, strategy use might overweigh L1 rhetorical transfer.