Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose

BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ Lietuvių kalbos institutas THE MOST COMMON SYNTACTICAL ERRORS PIETŲ AUKŠTAITIJOS ABITURIENTŲ RAŠINIUOSE ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: sintaksės klaidos, linksniai, prielinksniai, polinksniai, dalyviai, participles, semi-participles, conjugation of sentences. INTRODUCTION The Lithuanian Language Institute’s School Lithuanian Studies Group studies the language of Lithuanian pupils. With the permission of the National Examination Centre, two thousand Lithuanian language and literature exam papers written in 2014 are being examined. Syntax errors are the most dangerous, because they undermine the language system itself. No single inappropriate word does so much harm to the language as an incorrect syntactic construction, which usually includes other words (Šukys 2001: 101). Therefore, this type of errors were chosen for the study. They were selected from 104 essays of the 2014 state Lithuanian language and literature examination in the Southern Highlands (Alytus County), and further studies of data from other counties should show whether there are any regional differences in the use of these phenomena. The aim of the article is to identify the most typical syntax errors in the 2014 state Lithuanian language and literature exam essays 1 of South Aukštaitija graduates. In determining the regularity of written syntax phenomena, the evaluation of varied syntax phenomena presented in the Language Tips was used: avoidable and unpresentable variants were considered as language errors. The main object of syntax is the sentence as a whole of interrelationships and meaningful relations between words (DLKG 2006: 476). Syntax includes not only the sentence, the text, but also the intermediate unit – the combination of words (Sirtautas, Grenda 1988: 9). This science includes verbs, adverbs and conjugations, participants, participles and semi-participles, as well as subjects of sentence conjunction. In the article, the classification of syntax errors is based on the usual classification of syntax phenomena presented in various normative publications. 1. ERRORS IN THE USE OF LINKS The most common syntax errors in the graduates’ works are humorous errors. 11 See also Aurelija Tamulionienė’s article “The most important spelling errors in students’ writings and blogs” in this volume of General Language. SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 1.1. Viena iš didesnių vardininko vartojimo klaidų mokinių rašiniuose – netinkamai reiškiamas – neapibrėžtas daiktų kiekis ar daikto dalis (vietoj dalies nobleman) with the verb to be: There have always been wars, clashes (= wars, clashes) over wealth, land, differences in religious views (A 9). 2 3 1.2. Occasionally in writings there is an incorrectly used noun of verb nouns to indicate purpose, purpose. Such verb nouns must be replaced by a communicative noun (with the beneficiary): It is the love felt for her that makes him a better, gentler person, develops the noble manner of Mykolik, <...> even encourages him to renounce himself, his spirit and physical strength to sacrifice to beautify the future of his brother (= to beautify the future) (A 44). 1.3 Pupils incorrectly use the suffix to denote an indefinite number of objects or part of an object (instead of the suffix of the part), e.g. : In loving another, a person can do all kinds of things, even things that may seem too bold or even foolish, but it makes a person a noble and exceptional personality (A 38). The latter had exceptionally good diplomatic skills (= good diplomatic skills), which he used to try to stop the Crusader attacks <...> (A 23). Quite often in the writings there are cases, when the final is used with the transitive verb to give, although the part of the genitive is needed, especially when it 4 comes to things of abstract meaning, e.g. : Thus, love is not always the appropriate way to give nobility (= nobility) <...> (A 12). This quality gives a person not only the sensations of happiness and joy, but also respect, inner spirituality and virtue (A 28). 1.4 When using the noun, students sometimes make the mistake of choosing this noun to denote an object with full verbs with the prefix pri-, unnecessarily: Does love really fill the everyday life of a person with nobility (= nobility) (A 20)? There are some writings in which the noun is used incorrectly with adjectives denoting abundance, e.g. : The poem describes the past of Lithuanian forests, which were rich in thriving forests, clean and tidy rivers <...> (= when there were plenty of thriving forests, clean and tidy rivers, large meadows) (A 20). 2 Pavyzdžiuose rašinių rašybos ir skyrybos klaidos yra ištaisytos. 3 The Alytus district and the article code are indicated. 4 Jonas Šukys classifies such cases among those that are more difficult to identify (Šukys 1998: 199). SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 Since the adjective rich does not control the syllable stronger, it is better to use other means of expression wherever possible. In some cases, the noun conjunct is used in writing with the verb to be, which is avoided to indicate permanent being. In this case, it is replaced by the denominator, e.g. : His parents wanted him to be a priest (A 10). Being a man of high morals (– cilvēks), Vaižgantas wrote a work in which the love story revealed is a true proof of nobility (A 56). A sentence was found where the student uses the noun in the sense of being in some unchangeable state. In this case, it is avoidable (KP S1: 77): Thus, although a person has been hurt by a loved one, he must remain an honorable and noble person (– honorable and noble person) (A 68). 1.5. In the writings there are often local errors. Here are some unpresentable and avoidable values, such as: a) in the course: Love for neighbor, support and compassion for others, appreciation of development or creation, in the course of life (while living) must provide fulfilment (A 41). In the course of the creation (– in the creation) he falls in love and blinded by love forgets everything that was good and pure. Agnė’s love for Tilius is pure, nothing can destroy it, but in the course of the work (– in the work) Tilius leaves Agnieszka <...> (A 91); b) in the base: Probably in the base (= mostly) love is spoken and written about (A 5); c) as a consequence: In my opinion, the bad side of love is passion, which as a consequence (= cause) leads to infidelity (A 4). <...> love does not give nobility to the everyday life of a person, and this is most often the case when a person is humiliated as a result of love (= because of love) <...> (A d) other cases: In earlier times (– In earlier times), when all 41); living compatriots had to be hardworking, persevering people (A 26). Love can exist in various 5 forms, in this case: for a person, a family, a homeland (A 66). Also, in the Writings, there is often abuse in the name of the current domestic local. Some linguists classify it as a novelty preposition (see Klimavičius 1993: 20–21). Language hints indicate that the pronoun meilė į žmogaus kasdieninį gyvenimą įneša kilnumo, tačiau reikia suprasti, jog ši vertybė gali egzistuoti daugybėje įvairiausių formų (= gali turėti daug formų) (A 67). cannot be used for purpose, cause, or action 5 In free language styles, the time can be described by the plural pronoun, and in formal ones by the more usual temporal pronoun (see Šukys 1998: 296). SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 the basis (KP S1: 124). It is a book international value, cf. vo imia, in the name (of). The construction with vardan is justified only in two cases – in the zegnone (in the name of God the Father) and in the hymn (in the name of that Lithuania). In all other cases, it is replaced by because, for the sake of, for the benefit of someone, e.g. : It makes a person feel better (= to be better), to give up defects, to sacrifice something in the name (= for) the chosen one or to do evil to himself for the happiness of another (A 1). Nowadays men, in order to give up (= instead of giving up) one (woman – S. L.), still keep two. Some are forced to give up their freedom for the sake of (= for) the welfare of others (A 10). In “In the shadow of the altars” a false vocation is given up in the name of creative freedom (A 10). Putin sacrificed his freedom in the name of (= because of) the wishes of his parents, but he later chose freedom, giving up what was not dear to him (A 10). Lovers sacrifice their lives or lives in the name of (= for) noble love (A 56). Love for our family members, loved ones, encourages us to sacrifice for (= for) their well-being (A 96). 1.6 Separately, we should mention the most common mistake of the students in the use of verbs, which was also corrected by Jonas Jablonskis (Jablonskis 1957: 551–672), – the use of a non-Lithuanian (Slavic) noun instead of the binary verbs. In the case of adjectives and adjectives combined with a verb, the verbs could not require the adjective part of the pasakytu ar numanomu sakinio daiktavardžiu ar daiktavardiškuoju žodžiu. Kaip nurodo Antanas Rasimavičius, būdvardiškųjų kalbos dalių lietuvių kalboje veiksmažodis nevaldo, noun by their control (see Rasimavičius 1972: 4). In the current Lithuanian language, the usage norms of these constructions are not firm. In order to find out what changes in usage can be expected in the near future, the use of such constructions has been examined, which norms of expression of the existence of the model, with which verbs it appears to be the weakest, bearing in mind the fact that current students, except for foreigners, no longer experience direct influence of neither Russian nor Polish language. Most of the cases were found where the adjectives and adjectively used words are used instead of: (a) the denominator; (b) the beneficiary; and (c) the rear end. 1.6.1. Regarding the noun verb, the following erroneous models of the verb expression were used in the studies: a) (can, tries, must...) be + what: Both writers state that the homeland must be the most important thing for a person (= the most important thing), everyone must love and protect it (A 20). At all times, man has tried to be noble, noble (= noble, noble) (A 36). <...> it needs support and understanding, because if it does not have it, a person will simply no longer try to be such (= such) d) (ne)stáva + akým: This act tells us that even the greatest SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 (A 41). There are people that (= who) can sacrifice for the happiness of others and be noble and understanding (= noble and understanding) (A 57). When working in the lift, you must talk to strangers, smile at them, be humble (= humble) (A 84); b) feels + what: Therefore, noble (= noble) can feel only a person who has love for the homeland. In Stutthof no one felt (= could not feel) and could not even feel free (= free) (A 70). Only by memories returning to youth, back to his native land, he felt free and happy (= free and happy) (A 70); c) remains + what: First of all, I would like to write that no matter how many memories live inside a person, the most important (= most important) will always remain those that bring a smile to the ears <...> (A 74). attractors can become noble and honorable (= noble and honorable) when they fall in love (A 103). The data show that less frequently graduates make mistakes when choosing the adjective noun for the substantive part of the participle, when next to the communicatively said verb be goes the verbs can, strives, has. The error is more common when the conjunctive is used with (a) verbs of becoming, (b) a verb partly related to them to remain or c) various verbs of feeling, e.g. : a) Therefore, everyday work seems not difficult at all, but rather easy, because thanks to love you become noble and give yourself entirely to everyday work <...> (A 28). This, although very much suffering, suffers, but does not become vengeful, cruel (= vengeful, cruel) (A 42). Nobility is an increasingly rarely used word and a common (= prominent) characteristic of manner, and love is the main, still valuable reason why people want to become better, nobler (= better, nobler) <...> (A 44). <...> we can not only change, become different (= different) than we were before, but also set and pursue new goals (A 45). Often people become completely unrecognizable (= unrecognizable), after all, the desire to please and please another person can do many wonderful things (A 55). Therefore, with the help of love (= a person in love), a person who seems to be his own (= his own), becomes nobler (= nobler) than he has been so far (A 67). A person has been and will be pressured by certain unpleasant things, but after overcoming them he will only become stronger (= stronger) (A 85). First of all, love has a positive effect on people – they become nobler, gentler and happier (= nobler, gentler, happier) (A 85). Thus, a person who has left his homeland seeks to free himself from the suffering of the soul, to become free (= free) in a foreign land, by distancing himself (= distancing himself) from the vivid memories still remaining in the memory (A 88). Thus, a person who has left his homeland seeks to be freed from the suffering of the soul, to become free (= free) in a foreign land (A 88); SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 b) Kad ir kiek begalė prisiminimų gyvuoja žmogaus viduje, svarbiausiais (= the most important) will always remain those that cause a smile to the ears (A 74). praeitose gyvenimo akimirkose, sugebėjo išsaugoti savo tautiškumą, vertybės, išlikti atspariu (= atsparus) (A 84); Constantly drowned c) Noble (= Noble) can feel only a person who has love for the homeland (A 67). In Stutthof no one felt or could feel free (= free) (A 70). It has been found that non-normative cases, when adjectives or words used as adjectives are used instead of the noun to indicate the state, in the investigated writings make up about 33% of all binary humorous errors. 1.6.2. Another example is when the Slavic verb is used by students instead of the noun. The following misused constructions were found: a) be + some: This nation’s enlightened man showed his love for his homeland through his good deeds, which gave him the opportunity to be noble (= noble) in everyday life (A 12). <...> love not only does not make a woman happy (= happy), but turns life into chaos (A 12). In such a situation, the nobility given by love will be hidden by bullying, and later even the desire to be such (= such) (A 41). Thus, love brings out the good qualities of a person and helps a person to be better (= better) (A 47). To be noble (= noble) means to unconditionally sacrifice oneself and one’s well-being, not only one’s own (A 86); b) ((not) let) feel + what: Time spent together gives courage to move forward, makes you feel uplifted (= uplifted) (A1). Thus, Mykolik feels inferior (= inadequate), not fit for anyone, and most importantly – not loving anyone, which in part prevents him from feeling noble (= noble) (A 37). It makes you feel nobler (= more noble) than those who feel nothing for their nation is for whom the nation is worthless (A 50); c) remain + what: The power of this feeling is incomprehensible, because it gives the strength to survive and remain noble (= noble) (A 18). Even one-sided love helps a person to remain virtuous (= virtuous) and a noble soul (A 47). Knowing that if you act (=have acted) perhaps wrongly, but not arbitrarily, you will be understood by the loved one, allows a person to remain strong (=strong) (A 56); d) to become + what: It is precisely this behavior that will help us to carefully choose the object of love, because only by choosing properly, it is possible to reveal all the positive qualities and ultimately – to become noble (= noble) (A 44). Thus, I can conclude that the sacrifice for close people and love for them helps to become noble (= noble) (A 51). In such sentences, the adjective or adjective word in genus, number and syllable turi būti derinamas su papildiniu einančiu naudininku, tačiau dažnai tas papildinys būna tik numanomas. SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 Perhaps most sentences were found in which the conjunct was used incorrectly next to the verb jaustis, e.g. : It makes one feel nobler (= more noble) than those who feel nothing for their people (A 31). The feeling born in her heart allows her to feel happy (= happy) not only for herself, but also to make others happy (= happy) (A 39). But devotion and respect is what makes you feel right and proper (= right and proper) (A 104). The non-normative cases of binary interjections in graduates’ writings, where the adjective or adjectively used word is used instead of the noun to indicate the condition, account for about 27%. 1.6.3. The two-part ending consists of the endings of the substantive part and the complement of the compound taric. The final verb requires an auxiliary suffix (Tolutienė 1967: 48). The binary ending has been a living construction in Lithuanian language for a long time, but, as the research data shows, students do not manage to match the adjective with the suffix, which denotes the noun part of the adverb. The basic syntactic model of the incorrectly used binary ending in writings is: (pa)daryti + kokiu, e.g. : Therefore he is not called a selfish rascal, who, being unhappy, makes another unhappy (= unhappy) (A 1). Love makes everyday human life more precious (= more precious). Love makes us better (= better), makes us feel special (A 2). This feeling makes a person happy or sad, makes life beautiful and bright (= beautiful and bright) (A 7). In addition, it brightens our lives, makes us happier and better (= happier and better) (A 13). Thus love makes man better and nobler (= better and nobler) (A 28). <...> Many writers teach that love fundamentally changes a person's life, makes him happier (= happier) and teaches him to behave nobly <...> (A 28). Love for these children and love for Severa made him happy, noble, good (= happy, noble, good) (A 33). Thus, love gives nobility to the everyday life of man, because love makes man better and more caring (= better and more caring), and nobility consists of these things (A 33). Love, in my opinion, can make human life noble, exceptional, full (= noble, exceptional, full) (A 38). The love for Severia made Mykolik’s life meaningful, made it more beautiful (= more beautiful) (A 38). Thus, in summary, it can be said that love makes the everyday life of man and man himself nobler (= more noble) and gives nobility (A 54). It makes a person nobler and more honest (= nobler and more honest) (A 59). From this it can be concluded that the sacrifice for our neighbours makes us more human and noble (= more human and noble) (A 67). Love nevertheless gives nobility to man's everyday life, no matter what he loves, but morality makes ordinary everyday life nobler (= nobler) (A 92). SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 According to Pranas Kniūkštas, there are still cases when the final part is not always ir naudininkas netinka, o įnagininkas – klaida (žr. Kniūkšta 1983: 37). Tokiais atvejais geriausia rinktis kitos raiškos priemonę (šalutinis sakinys, išplėstine aplinkybė ir pan.). limpa, but is always limpa. a) to teach, b) to encourage, c) to translate, e.g. : a) So love is not always happy, but it teaches a person to be better <...> (= better / teaches kindness). Thus sometimes love, although unfortunate, teaches a person to be strong, forgiving (= strength, forgiveness), to accept losses, not to lose virtuous values <...> (A 42). Love for the family teaches to be respectful, tolerant (= respectful, tolerant / respect, tolerance), allows to understand that a harmonious family is one of the greatest values (A 68); b) Such work, sacrifice for the good of the homeland encouraged the partisans to fight, remain worthy (= orius / to act dignified), not to surrender (A 90). A person's feelings and experiences can develop many positive and negative character traits, for example, happiness and joy encourage being sincere (= sincerity), while anger or jealousy leads to hypocrisy (A c) Pure love, lasting only a week, takes over the main character's thoughts, making him be different (= different / makes him change) <...> (A 1). 90); 1.6.4. Very rare cases when students are unable to use the binary noun (usually with a negative verb): The majority of those who love sincerely do not try to destroy the personal happiness of a person, do not make them unhappy (= unhappy), do not take revenge (A 68). Non-normative binary verbs, when the adjective or adjectively used words are used incorrectly to indicate the condition instead of the suffix, were found in the students’ writings about 27%, instead of the suffix – 2%. 1.6.5. There are cases (hypernormalisms) when students overdo it unnecessarily by using the binary verb, for example, with the transforming verb virti and its derivatives: On the other hand, glances into the past make life easier (= make life easier), what kind of person one should be (A 8). It is precisely these qualities that always help a person to reveal his good side, his talent or help him to understand the most important things, make life SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 more interesting (= more interesting) (A 25). By sacrificing, the soul of the personality becomes nobler and more noble (= more noble and noble) (A 63). That the pupils do not fully understand the expression of existence is clear from the correct and incorrect variants presented in the same essay, e.g.: <...> only love, which he experiences every day, allows him to remain noble, decent, striving and wanting to make others happy. <...> I think it is very important to remain honorable, exemplary and noble towards yourself and others. <...>. pasakyti, kad šis pasaulis be meilės būtų niūrus ir liūdnas, juk būtent jos dėka (= dėl jos) žmogus randa jėgų keistis, nuveikti kažką gero ir, žinoma, tapti geresniu (= geresnis) (A 34). This connection encourages people to become at least a little bit better, more humane and more caring (= better, more humane and more caring) (A 36). Thus, the examples of the students’ speech clearly show that the adverb of the participle penetrates into the constructions of the old binary vowels (see Figure 1). 33% 2% 27% 38% Binomial denominator errors Errors of the duality nobleman Errors of the dual beneficiary Errors of the double-back 1 PAV. Frequency of binary errors (percentage) 1.6.6. According to Vytautas Ambrazos, the two-word verbs are one of the most prominent ancient features of the sentence, which the Lithuanian language has preserved until historical times, and in some cases – until the present (see Ambrazas 2006: 280). In the Latvian language, there are still such constructions of the present tense. In Slavic languages, only the noun is used (see Table 1). However, the Latvian linguist Janis Endzelynas (Jānis Endzelīns) believed that the dialectal consonant was a Baltic and Slavic phenomenon (see Endzelīns III 2: 456). SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 Šukys J. 1998: Lithuanian Verbs and Prepositions: Use and Norms, Kaunas: Šviesa. Šukys J. 2001: Lithuanian language for 11th grade, Kaunas: Šviesa. 1967: Double-decker. – Language Culture 13, 48–50. Received 09/11/2015 Adopted on 22 January 2016 COMMON SYNTAX MISTAKES IN GRADUATES’ ESSAYS OF SOUTH HIGHLANDERS Summary This article discusses common syntax mistakes found in the essays written by graduates during the Lithuanian Language and Literature Exam 2014. The data was obtained from 104 essays of South Highlanders (Alytus county), and further study should show whether there are any regional differences in the use of these phenomena. Syntax mistakes prevailing in the graduates’ essays are case use mistakes (about 60 %). A common mistake which has been described since Jonas Jablonskis’ times is the use only due to the impact of the Slavic languages of not Lithuanian (Slavic) state instrumental case instead of double declension. In modern Lithuanian, use of these structures are not sound. Perhaps they appeared not but also for the analogy with nouns. The most problematic verbs which were mostly accompanied by a number of non-normative state expression cases are būti, išlikti, jaustis, laikyti, (pa)daryti, tapti (be, remain, feel, keep, do, and become). Hence, it is necessary to look for the causes of such use, as well as effective methods to observe norms. Other category of relevant mistakes is use of verb forms, such as participles (about 18 %). Perhaps major syntax mistakes are made while using participles when a single character performs both major and minor roles in personal sentences. The third group of syntax mistakes contains use of prepositions and postpositions (about 11 %). Prepositions that are most incorrectly used are pas, prieš, virš (about, at, before, over). The most abundant are the cases of incorrect use of postpositions dėka, (su) pagalba (thanks (to), (with the) help (of)). When writing essays, fewer mistakes are made while joining sentences or clauses (about 9 per cent). SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ. Būdingiausios sintaksės klaidos Pietų Aukštaitijos abiturientų rašiniuose BENDRINĖ KALBA 88 (2015) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSSN 2351-7204 KEYWORDS: syntax mistakes, cases, prepositions, postpositions, participants, verbal adverbs, participles, joining sentences. SOLVITA LABANAUSKIENĖ Lietuvių kalbos institutas 5, LT-10308 Vilnius, Lithuania [email protected]