A study of conditional sentences in the novel jane eyre by charlotte bronte and their vietnamese equivalents

Chart 2.1: Classification of Mood ...13 Chart 2.2: Classification of Tense ...16 Chart 4.1: Classification of zero conditional sentences...40 Chart 4.2: The frequency of basic types of c

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY

HÀ THỊ PHƯƠNG THÚY

A STUDY OF CONDITIONAL SENTENCES IN THE NOVEL

VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS

(NGHIÊN CỨU CÂU ĐIỀU KIỆN TRONG TÁC PHẨM VĂN HỌC “JANE EYRE” CỦA NHÀ

VĂN CHARLOTTE VÀ TƯƠNG ĐƯƠNG TIẾNG VIỆT)

M.A THESIS

Field: English Language Code: 60220201 Hanoi, 2015

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY

HÀ THỊ PHƯƠNG THÚY

A STUDY OF CONDITIONAL SENTENCES IN THE NOVEL

VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS

(NGHIÊN CỨU CÂU ĐIỀU KIỆN TRONG TÁC PHẨM VĂN HỌC “JANE EYRE” CỦA NHÀ

VĂN CHARLOTTE VÀ TƯƠNG ĐƯƠNG TIẾNG VIỆT)

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report entitled A study of conditional sentences in the novel “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte and their Vietnamese equivalents submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master in

English Language Except where the reference is indicated, no other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis

Hanoi, 2015

Ha Thi Phuong Thuy

Approved by SUPERVISOR

Dr Dang Ngoc Huong

Date:………

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A piece of work of this magnitude is never the effort of only an individual Surely, this dissertation could not be either begun or completed without the help, inspiration and moral support of many people I would like to thank them all here

This work owes its existence to my supervisor Dr Dang Ngoc Huong who opened my eyes to the complexity of conditionals From him

I have learned more than I could have ever done the work alone He read through my work and gave advice and made comments that provided justification for my work His guidance and positive criticism helped to give shape to this work I am grateful to him

My thanks also go to all lecturers of the Faculty of Graduated Studies, Hanoi Open University who taught me valuable lessons

I would like to thank my beloved family members who inspired, encouraged and fully supported me Without their love and dedication, this academic work would not be translated into reality

Last but not least, I would like to gratefully acknowledge support and

encouragement of my classmates and friends who willingly helped me to

accomplish this thesis in many aspects

ABSTRACT

This thesis discusses about the English conditional sentences in the novel” Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte The research is conducted to examine the structures and usage of conditional sentences in English, find out all kinds of conditional sentences being employed in this novel and its Vietnamese equivalents, then discuss as well as suggest some implications related to translating English conditional sentences to Vietnamese teachers and learners

The research is the mixed of qualitative and quantitative approaches The source of data is the novel “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte The main data are conditional sentences in the novel To support the main data, the research is supported by other data taken from internet and grammar books about conditional sentences In order to attain the purpose, the data is analyzed through descriptive and contrastive methods

We have studied the basic types and most common forms of 291 conditional sentences in the novel, which prove to have a complex constitution, a wide variety of forms, exceptions and functions Semantically, the most frequent type is the second one which serve the fact that this novel in its state refers to a double faced essence - the reality and fiction There are 148 sentences identified 51 per cent of past modal verbs

could, should, might, would according to the requested domain of sentences

Pragmatically, conditional sentences are also used to express threatening,

advising, warning, criticizing, requesting, suggesting and regretting

There are some implications have been listed to help Vietnamese teachers and learners of English overcome the difficulties in using and translating English conditional sentences

Chart 2.1: Classification of Mood 13

Chart 2.2: Classification of Tense 16

Chart 4.1: Classification of zero conditional sentences 40

Chart 4.2: The frequency of basic types of conditional sentences in the novel52 Chart 4.3: The appearance of modal verbs can, could, shall, may in conditional sentences 55

Chart 4.4: The appearance of modal verbs must, should, might in conditional sentences 55

Table 2.1: The Zero conditional with the same tense in both clauses 18

Table 2.2: The First conditional sentences (also called type 1) 19

Table 2.3: The Second conditional sentences (also called type 2) 19

Table 2.4: The Third conditional sentences (also called type 3) 20

Table 2.5: Types of English Conditional Sentences and their basic syntactic features 22

Table 2.6: Types of Mixed English Conditional Sentences 22

Table 4.1: The summary of the ways of translating English conditional sentences based on pragmatic functions 61

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Certificate of originality i

Acknowledgements ii

Abstract iii

List of tables and figures iv

Definition of key technical terms v

Chapter I INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale for the research 4

1.2 Aims of the research 5

1.3 Objectives of the research 5

1.4 Scope of the research 5

1.5 Significance of the research 6

1.6 Structural organization of the thesis 6

Chapter II LITERATURE REVIEW 8

2.1 Review of previous studies 8

2.1.1 Previous researches overseas……….………….…8

2.1.2 Previous researches in Vietnam……….9

2.2 Review of theoretical background 10

2.2.1 Mood 10

2.2.2 Tense 13

2.2.3 The English conditional sentences 16

2.3 Summary of the chapter 30

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY 29

3.1 Research-governing orientations 29

3.1.1 Research questions 29

3.1.2 Research setting 29

3.1.3 Research approaches 30

3.1.4 Principles for intended data collection and data analysis 31

3.2 Research methods 31

3.2.1 Major methods vs supporting methods 31

3.2.2 Data collection techniques 32

3.2.3 Data analysis techniques 33

3.3 Summary of the chapter 34

CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 36

4.1 The forms of conditional sentences in the novel and its Vietnamese equivalents 37

4.1.1 The basic types of conditional sentences in the novel and its Vietnamese equivalents 38

4.1.1.1 The zero conditional sentences 38

4.1.1.2 The first conditional sentences 40

4.1.1.3 The second conditional sentences 43

4.1.1.4 The third conditional sentences 48

4.1.1.5 The mixed conditional sentences 50

4.1.2 The features of modal verbs in conditional sentences used in the novel ……… 52

4.2 The pragmatic functions of conditional sentences in the novel and its

Vietnamese equivalent……… 56

4.3 Implications for translating conditional sentences in the novel 62

4.3.1 Some mistakes that learners often have in using English conditional sentences in the novel.………62

4.3.2 The ways to help learners overcome difficulties in translating English conditional sentences in the novel….……… ……62

4.4 Summary of the chapter 65

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION 67

5.1 Recapitulation 67

5.2 Concluding remarks 67

5.3 Limitations of the current research 68

5.4 Recommendations for further research 69

REFERENCES 70

APPENDICES 74

to learn English as the second language for Vietnamese because there are a lot of differences between the two languages and grammar is the typical problem for this  

In terms of English grammar, from the author’s point of view, conditional sentences are considered one of the most difficult issues for nonnative speakers of English English conditional structure plays an important part in English Grammar and mastering it contributes greatly to the students’ English performance English conditionals require coordination

of verb forms in both the “ if” and the result clauses and the fact that verb forms often do not retain their normal temporal meaning makes it even more complex Although the various conditional forms might seem quite abstract

at first, they are actually some of the most useful structures in English and are commonly included in daily conversations. 

For the above reasons, the main aim of this paper is to examine the structures and usage of conditional sentences in English and Vietnamese in the novel “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte The author will find out all kinds

of conditional sentences being employed in this novel and its Vietnamese equivalents and then discuss as well as suggest some implications related to translating English conditional sentences to Vietnamese learners The writer hopes this will be a useful references for both teachers of English and learners. 

1 2 Aims of the research 

The study is expected to offer an overview of English conditional sentences by means of descriptive and contrastive methods through the novel

“Jane Eyre” and then to provide Vietnamese learners with the deeper understanding of English conditional sentences and some ways to help them overcome the difficulties in translating them

1 3 Objectives of the research 

In order to achieve the aims, the author has set a number of objectives

to be accomplished during the process of conducting this study: 

- Firstly, identifying types of conditional sentences employed in the novel "Jane Eyre" and their Vietnamese equivalents

- Secondly, pointing out the pragmatic functions of conditional

sentences used in the novel and its Vietnamese equivalents

- And lastly, suggesting some implications for translating English conditional sentences used in the novel  

1 4 Scope of the research 

Due to the limited amount of time, reference source and capability, the author mainly focuses only on “If” conditional sentences in the novel “Jane

Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte The study describes and analyzes the structures and usage of natural language conditional sentences in the novel, then brings out some suggestions to help those interested to avoid possible deplorable mistakes in translating this particular kind of sentence structure  

1 5 Significance of research 

This paper focuses on describing and analyzing the structures and usage of English conditional sentences described in grammatical books, then examining the usage of them in different communication circumstances in the novel “Jane Eyre” Besides, the paper will also find out the frequency of conditional sentences in the novel "Jane Eyre" to hypothesize the presence of these conditional sentences and its Vietnamese equivalents Last but not least, the paper suggests some implications for translating English conditional sentences  

1 6 Structure of Thesis 

Chapter I: Introduction 

Provides rationale of the study, research problems, aims and objectives

of the research, the significance of the study and the scope of the research. 

Chapter II: Literature Review 

Summarizes, synthesizes and reviews critical points of relevant published works Concepts that are mentioned in the theoretical background

of interpreting include: overview of mood, tense and English conditional sentences. 

Chapter III: Methodology  

Explains what methods are employed for data collection and analysis, looks at the selection of subjects and the procedures of data collection and analysis. 

Chapter IV: Findings and discussions  

Finds out the basic types and most common forms of conditional sentences that appeare in the novel as well as their pragmatic functions, the frequency of conditional sentences and its Vietnamese equivalents Then, lists out the current mistakes of using conditional sentences and suggests some implications for translating English conditional sentences. 

Chapter V: Conclusion  

Summarizes the main features of conditional sentences in answer to the three research questions, condenses the limitations, proposes some suggestions for further studies. 

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW 

2.1 Review of previous studies

2.1.1 Previous researches overseas

From functional grammar point of view, through investigating some

projects such as A Practical English Grammar (A.J.Thomson, A.V.Martinet, 1986), English Grammar in Use (Raymond Murphy, 1994), Advanced

English Practice (B.D Graver, 1986), Understanding and Using English Grammar (Betty Schrampfer Azar, 1998) và Oxford Guide to English Grammar (John Eastwood, 1997), we realized that conditional sentences

were put into different types based on two criterions: physicalism (real, unreal) and time (past, future, present) There are three basic types:  

Type 1 – open conditional sentences and real conditional sentences 

Type 2 – unreal conditional sentences and hypothetical condition 

Type 3 – unreal condition in the past 

Moreover, B.D Graver and John Eastwood also added type 0 in order

to indicate condition – consequence Meanwhile, A.V.Martinet and Betty Schrampfer Azar put it into type 1 as the automatic consequences, habit and truth In addition, A.V.Martinet, Betty Schrampfer Azar and John Eastwood talked about mix type such as 1-3, 2-3, 3-2  

In universal grammar, the linguisticians such as Fillmore (1986), Langacker (1987), Sweetser have applied prototype theory on linguistic

analyses Eve Sweetser, in From Etymology to Pragmatics (1990) classified

conditional semantics according to the three domains she speaks of in that book, the content domain, the epistemic domain, and the speech act domain

Content-based conditionals are understood by relating the content of the two clauses to each other A typical way in which content conditionals can be understood is for the "P" clause to identify a situation which causes or automatically results in the state of affairs signaled by the "Q" clause. 

Grammar books agree that there are three or four main types of

conditional clauses Quirk et al (A Comprehensive Grammar of the English

Language) distinguished four main types such as the Zero (Cause and

Effect) Conditional, the First (Open) Conditional, the Second (Unreal) Conditional and the Third Conditional. 

2.1.2 Previous researches in Vietnam 

Dang Thi Huong (Practical English Grammar,1998) approached the

conditions from the view of two separation clauses and Mood categories Specifically, the authors suggested that the IF clause was divided into two categories, depending on the speaker's conception, the indicative and Subjunctive (based on the correlation of tense and time); the main clause included Infinitive and Modal and would be changed if it referred to the past, present or future This system came from the perspective of theory and conditional problem was solved flexibly However, when applied in practice, this approach is obviously difficult for the readers who are not English majors. 

Võ Thị Kim Anh (Different Ways to Express Condition and

Concession in English and Vietnamese - M.A thesis,2010) stated that

condition-consequence relation is often described as “If P then Q” Her article just focused on condition-consequence expressed by subordinating conjunctions Pragmatic functions of conditional sentences concerning

illocutionary act in English and Vietnamese: threatening, advising, warning, criticizing, offering, requesting, regretting, and softening are discussed. 

In short, there have been various studies on conditional sentences in general from an article, a scientific research to a graduation paper or a book However, all the authors only focus on the types and meanings, there’s hardly any research into conditional sentences in a novel For this reason, our research is an endeavor to examine the problem of conditional sentences in English grammar and novels  

2.2 Review of theoretical background 

2.2.1 Mood  

2.2.1.1 Concept of Mood  

Some authors have mentioned the concept of mood in their book  

According to E.M.Gordon and I.P.Krylova: “Mood is the form of the

which shows the relation between the action expressed by the predicate verb and reality”  

This relation is established by the speaker who may wish to present an action as a real fact or as a command (a request) or as something unreal, something that does not exist in reality  

V Vinogradov also expressed the same idea in another way: “Mood

expresses the relation of the action to reality as stated by the speaker”  

2.2.3.2 Types of Mood  

There have been a lot of opinions about the difficult types of mood but the most common view is that in modern English there are three moods: Indicative , Imperative mood and Subjunctive mood

a) Indicative Mood

According to llyish (1971), the use of the Indicative Mood shows that the speakers (or writers) present the action or real Most of what we have said is in the indicative mood, most of what anyone says or writes is in the indicative mood So, this is the most common mood used in any language

We can use indicative mood to give information (I like reading poetry, we

had dinner at six…), to express opinions (I think she is a good student,…) to

make promises (I shall do everything I can help you,…)  

b) Imperative Mood

The imperative Mood is the plain stem of the verb It may be used in

the affirmative (Sit down!) and in the negative form (Don’t go out!, Don’t be

a fool!) If we want to make a command or request more expressive, we use

the emphatic form (Do listen to him! Do be quiet! ) We have the following

different kinds of command:  

- Command without a subject (Open the door!)  

- Command with a subject (Don’t you worry! or Somebody clean the

board!)  

- Command with “let” (Let me take your coat! or Let’s go outside!)  

Thus, in English, the imperative verb is severely restricted in tense, aspect, voice and modality 

The present Subjunctive of all verbs is identical with the simple present tense indicative, except that the third person singular form is the same as in all other persons (for example: without the “s” ending) The present Subjunctive form of “to be” is “be” for all persons  

Example: It is necessary that they be told what happened. 

In the sentence above, the dependent clause (that…) contains an order; therefore, the mood should be Subjunctive Therefore, the verb should be be

told rather than are told  

+ The past Subjunctive:  

The past Subjunctive in English consist of the past Subjunctive which

is identical with the simple past tense indicative, except that the verb “to be” has “were” for all persons and the past perfect Subjunctive which is identical

in form with the past perfect indicative The past Subjunctive is used in conditional clauses implying a negative, or in clause in which the condition

is combined with improbability or unreality  

Examples: 

If I were you I should accept the offer

If I had worked harder, I wouldn’t have failed the exam  

Futhermore, the past subjunctive is also used after such expressions as:  

- I wish that… ( I wish he visited us more often)  

- Suppose that…(Suppose (that) the teacher caught us wasting time) 

Summary

it is the most appropriate among all the other definitions

Mood 

Subjunctive

The past subjunctive 

Indicative mood 

Imperative Mood

Subjunctive Mood

2.2.2.2 Types of tense

a) Present tenses

Comrie (1988:37) states that the present moment is a location fixed in the time line Thus, the present tense is the location of the situation at that point Yet, this seems somehow a controversial argument since situations that coincide with the present moment are rare However, such rare situations do occur Comrie gives an example with a performative verb:  I promise to pay you ten pounds. 

Comrie (Ibid.: 38) adds that one of the most interesting characteristics

of the present tense is that it can be used to refer to situations that occupy a much longer period of time than the present moment, including the present moment. 

Example: The Eiffel Tower stands in Paris. 

b) Past tenses

The past tense is used when the happening state, action or event

is related to a definite time in the past, a point that may be called ' then '.The past tense is the marked member of the opposition past/ present, as Fowler (1974:42) suggests that tense in English has only two values from a formal point of view, i.e., [ ± past ] avoiding the use of ' present ' in tense opposition A sentence is either marked ( + past ) or unmarked ( - past ). 

c) Futurity

Traditional grammarians divide time into threefold opposition, i.e., past, present and future, while structuralists, being more committed to form than to meaning, reject the term ' future tense ' because there is no verb form that can denote future time like the two forms representing past/ present respectively. 

Stone (1976:36) states that simple futurity denotes an action with reference to future time or future intention It is distinguished by means of two main markers, viz shall and will whose function is either to give the meaning of pure futurity or to express determination or promise The problem arises, according to Hornby (1977:45) in indicating future activities aside from other notions like likelihood , willingness, and so

on  

Yet, one can assume that when future events are not inflected by these notions, i.e., likelihood and the like, we are talking about “pure future” The objections that have been raised against dealing with a “future tense” is treated by Daoud (1988:1) who considers tense as a semantic category whose main function is to express the concept of time in its three dimensions, i.e., past, present and future Taking this definition into consideration, Daoud (Ibid.) argues that “future tense” should be treated as

an integral part of the English tense-system though most linguists reject the use of “future tense” since the inflectional morphology of the English verb does not include any affix that could be regarded as an explicit marker of future tense

Summary of tense

Chart 2.2: Classification of tense 

2.2.3 The English conditional sentences

2.2.3.1 Definition of conditional sentences

Randolph Quirk in “university grammar of English” (1972) suggested

an idea: “Conditional clauses state the dependence of one circumstance or

set of circumstances on another”

Collin Cobuilt (1990) in “English grammar” also pointed out:

“Sentences containing conditional clauses are sometimes called conditional

sentences” and as for him conditional clauses begin with “if” or with conjunctions having similar meaning like “unless”

From the definition above we can define the Conditional Sentence as one kind of complex sentence of at least two main clauses “the main clause (result clause)” and “subordinate clause (if clause)” used to express the dependence of one circumstance or set of circumstances on another and in most of cases two clause orderings are acceptable In others words the “If

clause” sets up the condition for “the main clause” to produce the result or outcome

2.2.3.2 Different classifications of conditional clauses

This section deals with various types of conditionals clauses that exist in English The mood of the verb is the key element in identifying the type of condition, certain constructions are fairly standard The verb forms are a salient feature in the description of conditionals and later the classification The classification of the types of conditionals identified

as shown subsequently is dependent on the various verb forms used in both the protasis (antecedent) and the apodosis (consequent) The identification, classification and discussion done in this study is in conformity with most grammarians on conditionals such as (Young, 1989), Goodwin cited in (Fintel, 2012), and whose classification of conditional sentences is based on the verb in the protasis, Robertson also cited in (Fintel, 2012) whose classification basically follows that of Gildersleeve in classical Greek by identifying four types of conditionals, each determined by the mood of the protasis Depending on which book of grammar one consults, one will find three, four or more English conditional sentence types referred to (and with slightly different names for each), but generally, one can say that there are four that are most recognized These are the zero conditional, the first conditional, the

second conditional, the third conditional and the mix conditional

a) The zero conditional sentences

The zero conditional is a structure that expresses that something is (or was) always true, that one action is (or was) always followed by another It is also used to talk about scientific facts - things which always

happen under certain conditions It is worth pointing out that most zero conditional sentences will mean the same thing if “when” is used instead

of the “if” In the zero conditional therefore, the Present Simple Tense or the past is used in both clauses The Zero conditional is called Zero because it is not about what might, or will, happen in the future, or about hypothetical or unreal situations, but about things that always happen when something else is done The result or the consequence is always true

or certainty

Table 2.1: The Zero conditional sentences with the same tense in both clauses

b) The first conditional sentences: real possibility

The first conditional sentence (also called conditional type 1) is a structure used for talking about possibilities in the present or in the future

In other words, it is possible and also very likely that the condition will be fulfilled Table 2.2 describes how this is realised

If- clause Time ref of

If-clause

Main- clause

Time ref of Main- clause

Real, possible Time-less

generic

excessive heat, Peter is cursing, Mary was sad,

it melts

it means that he is very angry she just stared into the distance

Form Semantic Function If-clause Time ref of

If-clause

Main clause

Time ref

of Main clause

Pre/ future Real, possible

& probable Pre/future time

bound:

explicit

Table 2.2: The First conditional sentences (also called type 1)

c) The second conditional sentences: unreal possibility or dream

The Second Conditional (also called conditional type 2) is a structure used to talk about unreal situations in the present or in the

future It is used to talk about impossible situations Table (3) shows how

this type of conditional is realised

of clause

Main clause Time ref

of Main clause

If I won the lottery I would buy a car

Table 2.3: The Second conditional sentences (also called type 2)

d) The third conditional sentences: no possibility

The Third Conditional Sentences (also called conditional type 3) is a structure used for talking about unreal situations in the past In other words, it is used to talk about things which DID NOT HAPPEN in the past The action in the third conditional is characterized by impossibility

Form Semantic Function

unreal probable past result

Past

If I had won a lottery I would have bought a car

Table 2.4: The Third conditional (also called type 3)

e) The mixed conditional sentences

When we talk about mixed conditionals, we are referring to

conditional sentences that combine two different types of conditional patterns These combinations are not all that frequent, but the most common

combination is when we have a type 3 conditional in the if-clause (if + past perfect) followed by a type 2 conditional (would + infinitive) in the main

clause

+ Mixed third / second conditional

With this combination we are contrasting an imagined or real event in the past with the present result of that Consider these examples:

+ Mixed second / third conditional

The other possibility, though this is less common, is when there is a

type 2 conditional in the if-clause (if + past simple) followed by a type 3 conditional (would've + past participle) in the main clause

With this combination, we are describing ongoing circumstances in relation to a previous past event Consider these examples:

If you were not such a poor dancer, you would have got a job in the

chorus line in that musical

If you were not so blind to his faults, you would have realized that he

was out to swindle you

In short, types of Conditional Sentences can be summed up as in the tables below:

2- Unreal in

present,future

Simple Past

Example If I had lots of money, I would travel round the world

Had+ V3/ed Would + have + Pp Example If you had taken a taxi, you would have got here in time

Am, is, are//Verb

Table 2.5: Types of English Conditional Sentences and their basic syntactic features

Table 2.6: Types of Mixed English Conditional Sentences

2.2.3.3 Principal typologies of conditional structure

There are numerous different systems for classifying and describing

conditional structures Some principal schemes are summarized below

a) Semantic Terminology

i) Quirk et al.:

+ Open conditions: If I have the time, I will take a break

+ Hypothetical conditions: If I had had the time, I would have taken a

break

( Note: Both the second and third conditionals above fall into this category)

ii) Celce-Murcia & Larsen-Freeman [5]

+ Factual conditionals: If I have the time, I take a break

(Sub-categories: Timeless generic and habitual—(d) is the bound implicit inference and explicit inference)

+ Future/Predictive: If I have the time, I will take a break

(Strong condition and result The other sub-category here is degrees of weakened condition or result using modals Example: “If I should have the time I might take a break.” )

+ Imaginative:

Example: If I had the time I would take a break

(Hypothetical present Hypothetical future is a second hypothetical type.)

Example: If I had had the time I would have taken a break

(Counterfactual past Counterfactual present is a second type.)

The terminology used for both systems appearing under this part seeks

to replace the traditional formal terms with semantically oriented terms In Quirk et al the focus is on the meaning established by the speaker’s intent relative to the truth value of the conditions expressed The open vs hypothetical distinction is one of neutral conditions in the open conditionals, which “leave unresolved the question of fulfillment or nonfulfillment of the condition, and hence also the truth of the proposition expressed by the matrix (result) clause” and hypothetical conditions, which convey “the speaker’s belief that the condition will not be fulfilled” for either future, present, or past conditions, depending on the situation, “and hence the probable or certain falsity of the proposition expressed by the matrix clause” [23,p 1091] This distinction is then linked to variations in verb forms, for example, the back shifting of tense seen in hypotheticals

The approach taken by Celce -Murcia and Larsen-Freeman is to use the semantic relationships expressed by conditionals to examine their function and use in discourse Their tripartite classification on semantic principles— factual, predictive, and imaginative — are further divided in 10 sub-categorie

b) Cognitive domain terminology

The Cognitive Linguistic Framework advocated by (Fillmore, 1977, Lakoff and Johnson, 1980, Langacker, 1987, Fillmore, Kay and O’Connor, 1988) In this framework, it is argued that every aspect of structure and wording of a given utterance is considered to make a contribution to its overall interpretation Cognitive linguistic approach sees conditional constructions as playing a very important role in interpretation In other words, conditional constructions in both Tonga and English are associated with interpretation The belief in the cognitive linguistic approach is that meaning of a sentence is derived from meanings of words in it, and their relations to one another This approach also has thus been adopted to complement the semantic and pragmatic interpretations of conditionals

In Cognitive approach, it is not possible to speak of grammar in isolation from meaning On the contrary, grammar is meaningful and essentially symbolic in nature In Langacker’s Cognitive Grammar, for example, Lexicon, Morphology and Syntax form a continuum of symbolic units serving to structure conceptual content for expressive purposes Each grammatical construction, be it lexical or syntactic has a semantic and or pragmatic interpretation as part of its description In this work, therefore, an attempt has been made to describe how various aspects of the form of conditionals (including the choice of verb morphology and clause order) map unto various aspects of their interpretations The cognitive approach has tried to describe conditionals from the point of view of the form used The approach has tried to identify the aspects of the form of conditional sentences that contribute to

interpretation and specify the aspects of interpretation each formal distinction is connected with The description has thus covered the role of the component clauses and has also considered the significance of these exponents in context (which has been taken care of by the Speech Act theory)

c) Counterfactual conditionals

Counterfactual conditionals express impossibilities with reference to either the present or the past There are two basic combinations for the present (i), (ii) and one for the past (iii):

i) If he were two feet taller, he could play in the NBA

protasis: present subjunctive; apodosis: modal (usually would)

ii) If you lived here, you would be home right now (Sign outside an

apartment complex)

protasis: simple past ; apodosis: modal (usually would)

iii) If I had known the answer to that question, I wouldn’t have asked you

protasis: present perfect; apodosis: modal perfect (usually would) Although most accounts of counterfactuals present would as the verb form of the apodosis, there is no reason another modal cannot be used, as in (i), as long as an impossible state of affairs is being expressed This is found

in well-respected ESL grammar texts such as Using English: Your Second Language (Danielson & Porter, 1990) grammars such as The Grammar Book (Celce-Murcia & Larsen-Freeman, 1999), and research articles such as Varieties of Conditional Sentences (Fillmore, 1986) [1, p 44]

Hypotheticals are generally identified as expressing “a negative expectation or assumption about the possibility of the condition” [9, p.143], with the added distinction for the past form (i.e past counterfactual) that the

speaker is certain that the condition was not fulfilled, hence its impossibility

As noted, Quirk et al includes both probable and certain falsity of propositions under the type hypothetical [23, p.1091] In fact, the line between hypothetical (contrary to assumption) and counterfactual (contrary

to fact) can become blurred, or may not always be considered a distinction of great importance, so that an all hypothetical simplification has semantic justification in addition to the advantage that there are fewer terms to sort out

iv) If Joe had the time, he would go to Mexico

v) If you had Triple A, and went to a phone, you could get a tow

immediately

These examples demonstrate an interplay between assumption, possibility, and contrariness to fact that has nothing to do with grammatical form but much to do with context In other words, the present time reference

of the conditional does not simply signal “contrary to assumption” [23, p.1092] There is nothing inherent in either the content or the grammatical structure of (d) to indicate that Joe definitively will not have the time under a certain set of circumstances known to the interlocutors through background knowledge, unlikely though the speaker might consider it In (v) the speaker knows that you do not in fact have Triple-A (background knowledge—there

is no question of assumption or speculation here), so both propositions of this conditional are entirely counterfactual Perhaps this hypothetical-counterfactual distinction is splitting semantic hairs, but it seems important

to make distinctions where they exist, instead of formulating generalizations which may not fit all situations

Sweetser’s classification of conditionals neatly avoids these kinds of ambiguities by placing all non-cause and effect conditionals under the epistemic category, and approaching them individually based on their epistemic stance, i.e how close or how far from reality is the expressed state

of affairs in the knowledge/belief system of the speaker

Sweetser’s analysis is based on a cognitive linguistic approach, while

Comrie takes a pragmatics-semantics approach which considers speakers’

subjective evaluations informed by background knowledge and context rather than the truth conditional semantics of the traditional, logical analysis

He argues that there are no counterfactual conditionals in English, positing that all conditionals express greater or lesser degrees of hypotheticality, an analysis built on the claim that “a conditional never expresses the factuality

of either of its constituent propositions” [5, p.89] Rather, it expresses a logical relation between the constituents, a relation formed in the mind of the speaker; it is interpreted within a discourse context with a mental model using physical (real world) and social context Particularly as regards the preeminence given to discourse context in creating meaning, this approach has some affinities with Sweetser’s analysis and the mental spaces model which will be looked at shortly

2.3 Summary of the chapter

In this chapter, the theory of conditional sentences and other previous studies related to sentences have been reviewed Theories of conditional sentences such as definition, structures, overview of syntactic and semantic features, and others concepts such as English clauses, sentences, mood and tense have been made clear in this chapter In addition, all types of conditional sentences have been clearly listed Briefly, what has been

mentioned in this chapter is the theoretical background for discussing and finding in chapter 4

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY

the novel by qualitative and quantitative approach

Charlotte Brontë (21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855) was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Bronte sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novels have become classics of English literature She

first published her works (including her best known novel, Jane Eyre) under the pen name Currer Bell

Jane Eyre (originally published as Jane Eyre: An Autobiography) was

published on 16 October 1847, by Smith, Elder & Co of London, England

Primarily of the bildungsroman genre, Jane Eyre follows the emotions and

experiences of its title character, including her growth into adulthood, and her love for Mr Rochester, the byronic master of fictitious Thornfield Hall

In its internalisation of the action—the focus is on the gradual unfolding of Jane's moral and spiritual sensibility, and all the events are coloured by a

heightened intensity that was previously the domain of poetry—Jane

Eyre revolutionised the art of fiction Charlotte Brontë has been called the

'first historian of the private consciousness' and the literary ancestor of writers like Joyce and Proust The novel contains elements of social criticism, with a strong sense of morality at its core, but is nonetheless a novel many consider ahead of its time given the individualistic character of Jane and the novel's exploration of classism, sexuality, religion, and proto-feminism

The author Tran Kim Anh translated “Jane Eyre” from the original English book of the Everyman’s Library publisher, London in 1950 and referred to the French translation of Margueritte Faguet Therefore, this translation is considered to be the best because he retained all the special cultural features of English literature The first one was published in 1987

by Literature Publishers and reprinted in 2011 We use this book for our Vietnamese equivalents

syntactic and semantic features, therefore the research was appropriate to be conducted from both qualitative and quantitative perspective

Qualitatively, the researcher paid close attention to the text that

required the researcher to interpret, explain, describe and analyze in detail due to the research object to offer an in-depth understanding All the conditional sentences were analysed in the novel “Jane Eyre” and then divided into five types based on their structures and meanings This helped the readers have a particular view about conditional sentences in a novel Quantitatively, the writer classified the analyzed information based on the research questions The writer also transferred the data into numerical form and made calculations to identify the percentage of subjects sharing the same responses For better comprehension, each concerned problem is presented in a table with numbers and percentages Therefore, in chapter 4, there are four charts that are used to describe the result of our findings

3.1.4 Principles for intended data collection and data analysis

The main data are taken from the novel entitled Jane Eyre by Charlotte

Bronte published in London 1991 The data are in the form of words, sentences and paragraphs which are related to the subject matter

The supporting data are obtained from criticism upon the novel, Jane

Eyre, about conditional sentences, and articles and essays related to Jane Eyre, the age when it is written, the works influencing mostly taken from the

internet and other sources which are relevant to support the analysis of the

conditional sentences in Jane Eyre

3.2 Research methods

3.2.1 Major methods vs supporting methods

With the aim of achieving the set goal “examining the conditional sentences” and “finding out the frequency of conditional sentences and its Vietnamese equivalents” in the novel “Jane Eyre”, the researcher used descriptive and contractive method as major methods Descriptive research

methods are pretty much as they sound -they describe situations They do

not make accurate predictions, and they do not determine cause and effect There are three main types of descriptive methods: observational methods, case-study methods and survey methods The writer chooses observational method with the main categories being laboratory observation It is called laboratory because it only uses the document and written sources to run the analysis without conducting research in a field It shows that in laboratory observation, the data in the form of words, sentences or figure have greater significance than merely numbers or frequencies and the results are more meaningful, less time-consuming and cheaper than those obtained with naturalistic observation

Contractive analysis mean the comparison of two languages by paying attention to differences and similarities between the languages being compared

3.2.2 Data collection techniques

First of all, because this study focuses mainly on “if” conditional, the initial step is to screen out all the entire “if” sentences A method for focusing the extraction on just these phrases is, first, to generate concordances for “if” in sub-corpus, and, second, to extract the recurring string from that output and tally the frequency of each throughout the corpus

We began to survey the occurrence of if-sentences Some disqualified materials were eliminated from the corpora For example, “only if”, “as

if”, “what if”, “if necessary”, “if any” and “if possible” …etc and “even if” a concessive marker, were excluded because they are not the conditional targets for which we aimed Additionally, some pro-forms

are used to substitute a whole sentence, for instance: If so, please let me

know (Halliday & Hasan, 1976) “if so” and others, such as “if not”…etc.,

were also singled out for their absence of subject and verb (though they can

be inferred, the risk of misinterpretation may occur), since our purpose lies in the verb change in the sentences Besides, the pattern “V+if “ was also ignored as well as the pattern “imperative + if-clause” The former is equivalent with “whether”, while the latter performs a function, which is discourse-oriented rather than conditional Moreover, those with incomplete structure were not considered, including the sentence

introduced by if but not being a conditional (see example [1]) and the

sentence without its main clause (example [2])

[1] My hunger, sharp before, was, if not satisfied, appeased by this hermit’s meal (p.286)

[2] If the flood annoyed him, so much the better (p.267)

3.2.3 Data analysis techniques

We collected all the conditional sentences in the novel “Jane Eyre” All the collected data were qualitatively and quantitatively processed The samples were interpreted contextually with the reference to the types of conditional sentences to check if these sentences should be analyzed in the most preferable and reasonable way Conditional sentences were divided into different categories according to the procedure of finding out the semantic, syntactic and pragmatic features of all ways to express condition

Then we sought sentences that belong to the same catalogue and

studied their structures and meanings to create matrices of categories Therefore, conditional sentences were divided into five groups such as type

0, type 1, type 2, type 3 and mixed type After we obtained the taxonomy of the linguistic devices carrying these semantic features, we looked at the data

in many difference ways to avoid premature conclusions and also treated the evidence fairly to produce analytic conclusions answering the original

“what” research questions

Afterwards, the writer used a percentage table to analyzed the data The following formula was used to get the percentage as an example:

Where:

P = the percentage of the conditional sentence types

F = the frequency of the conditional sentence types

N = the number

The writer computed the conditional sentences percentage and classified them into the standard of the levels

3.3 Summary of the chapter

The research was qualitative and quantitative research The source of

the data was the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte The main data were

conditional sentences in the novel To support the main data, the research was supported by other data taken from internet and grammar book about conditional sentences

In order to attain the purpose, the data of the research was analyzed through descriptive and contrastive methods These methods were appropriated to analyze the data because they were related to the use of