Effects of Differences between Chinese and Western Thinking Modes on College English Writing

孙静

【Abstract】Due to history， culture， philosophy and other reasons， Chinese and Western form different thinking modes. It is obvious that Chinese college students are affected by Chinese thinking modes in their English writing，which is also a major problem for college English writing.This thesis will explore effects of differences between Chinese and Western thinking modes on college students English writing with a contrast study. At the same time， the thesis will put forward some countermeasures to cultivate English thinking modes and improve English writing abilities.

【Key words】differences between Chinese and Western thinking modes； countermeasures； English writing

1. Introduction

Several years ago， some scholars in California made a research of Chinese students English essays； it showed that although Chinese students didnt have problems in the structure of sentences， they are not good at writing English essays logically. The main problem is Chinese style writing. Although this kind of essays is flowing， they have mistakes of collocation and other obvious drawbacks. These mistakes cant be explained by grammar rules and they are caused by the differences between Chinese and Western thinking modes.

With the popularity of learning English， many scholars and professors in our country have started to pay attention on the project of differences between Chinese and Western thinking modes.

2. Differences between Chinese and Western Thinking Modes

2.1 Circular Thought and Linear Thought

Chinese thinking mode depends on instinct. Chinese people would like to elucidate something from indirect ways. This mode states environment firstly and points key information in the end. The reason is that Chinese thinking mode starts with details. Chinese people tend to use details step by step. China was under the control of feudal society in a long term， and people have to suppress their own personality. People dont dare to express their real ideas， and they are cautious to everyone.

However， western thinking mode is straightforward， which is used to putting the key point on the beginning of the sentence， then replenishing all kinds of symbols. Western thinking mode starts with the key information. Western people like to collate information in a linear way； the ideal way is to arrange information along one-dimensional space.

2.2 Subjective Thought and Objective Thought

Chinese usually uses person expression method. When the person is obvious， it can be concealed or omitted. However， English attaches the importance to the distinction between subject and object， stresses object and fair description， and shows things in an objective tone. So， it usually uses objective expression method.

This is the reason why Chinese uses more active sentences while English uses more passive sentences. When English people say “I was told that we would go to picnic this weekend.” Chinese people usually say “She told me that we would go to picnic this weekend.”

In Chinese， people who behave are important than people who bear. But in English， the use of passive voice is in high frequency.

2.3 Analytic Thought and Holistic Thought

Chinas traditional philosophy thinks that the world is an entirety. Therefore， its thinking mode and speech viewpoints are inclined to seek entirety and generalization. One of the characteristics of Chinese thinking mode is analytic thought.

On the contrary， western peoples thought is “separation of heaven and man，” paying attention on individuals independent effects and detail analysis， from small to big， parts to entirety. Westerns traditional philosophy stresses on individual consciousness and regards objects as center.

3. Measures for Treating Differences on College English Writing

3.1 Cultivating Cross-cultural Consciousness

There is a sentence that almost all Americans know： When youre down， you are not necessarily out. But many English learners dont understand its meaning； the reason is that they dont know the cultural background. In the boxing game， if the boxer are fallen by the opponent and he doesnt stand until the judge counts to 10， he loses the game. However， in many situations， the fallen competitor will compete again before the judge counting to 10. Therefore， the superficial meaning of this sentence is： It doesnt mean that you lose the competition when you are down. Its moral is： you may not lose the chance of being successful when youre in trouble. This shows that linguistic expression originates from life background. Knowing cultural background is the premise to understand language. One of the difficulties in learning foreign language is to combine the language with its background. So， it is important to cultivate the cross-cultural consciousness when learning language.

In order to cultivate students cross-cultural consciousness， teachers can create environment and build cultural atmosphere. In this environment， everyone has to use English to communicate with others. It can help students form western thinking mode. In the class， teachers can also compare cultural differences and introduce the knowledge of background.

3.2 Combining Writing with Reading

Students always complain that they cant write the passage with essential connotation in the progress of writing. The fundamental reason is that students dont accumulate sufficient language in their daily life. Writing is usually regarded as linguistic output， and the reason language cant be exported is the lack of linguistic input. The direct way for improving input is to increase reading. Only accumulate enough related materials can we write passages with essential contents. Usually， English journals， English magazines and literary works can be used as materials which can not only provide native English expressions but also make students know the cultural connotation.

Students are supposed to analyze and figure out the structure of discourse， feature of language， sentences making and so on in the essays. Students are supposed to read the good phrases and sentences in the essays carefully. Besides， students can improve their writing ability by imitating， rewriting， repeating， abbreviating and generalization.

If students persist in training for a long time， there will be a large number of graceful and native English expressions in their minds. Then they can write English essays smoothly.

3.3 Emphasizing Words Learning

Vocabulary is the basic element for writing. We cant write good essays without enough vocabulary. However， insufficient vocabulary is a difficult problem for almost every English learner. If we dont have enough words， we cant express our ideas in written form. Lack of words will cause many problems in students writing： essays without thoughts， empty contents， monotonous expression， and disorganized logic and so on.

How to build a sufficient lexicon？ The first thing students are supposed to do is to throw off traditional learning of vocabulary and memorial system. In traditional learning of vocabulary， students usually memorize English words by their Chinese meaning and some related phrases. Obviously， this kind of traditional learning method and memorial method dont work well and make students feel dull. They cant grasp the deep meanings of the English words. Therefore， when students remember vocabulary， especially those simple words with various meanings and basic words， they need to grasp its usage and common collocation in special context. Secondly， spreading imagination of vocabulary and opening writing thought. No textbook can involve all the related vocabulary and phrases. And students dont have time to consult data and memorize the related information when they learn vocabulary. So students are supposed to spread vocabulary and excavate more related vocabulary， especially the topics that they are interested in， in order to open their writing thought. Thirdly， paying attention on the learning of phrases and improving the quality of language output.

4. Conclusion

Learning English becomes more and more important. Because of the differences between Chinese and western thinking modes， college students in China usually use Chinglish. And their English writing is affected by these differences. Therefore， students need to cultivate cross-cultural consciousness， combine writing with reading， and pay attention on the learning of words during English learning. Students also need to learn the features of English discourse and know the rules of English writing and use western thought to organize their writing materials. Although students are unfamiliar with western thinking mode， they can write native English essays when they know the western thinking mode and then imitate it.

Effects of differences between Chinese and western thinking modes on college English writing is a heated topic. This thesis just makes a skin-deep study. In order to learn this field well， more studies should be carried out.

References：

[1]Bandar，R.American English Rhetoric[M].New York：HaltRinehart and Winston，1978.

[2]Connor，Ulla.Contrastive Rhetoric[M].Cambridge：Cambridge University Press，1996.

[3]Cook，G.Discourse[M].Oxford University Press，1989.

[4]Ijaz，I.H.Linguistic and cognitive determinants of lexical acquisition in a second language[J].Language Learning，1986（4）.

[5]Kaplan，R.Cultural thought patterns in intercultural education[J].Language Learning，1996（16）：1-20.

[6]Rutherford，W.Second Language Grammar：Learning and Teaching[M].Harlow，Essex；Long-man Group UK Limited，1987.

[7]何善芬.英漢语言对比研究[M].上海：外语教育出版社，2002.

[8]连淑能.论中西思维差异[J].外语与外语教学，2002（2）.

[9]刘宽平，周业芳.英汉思维差异对中国学生写作的影响[J].外语学刊，2004（5）.