Research on use of referring expressions in narrative discourses of Japanese native and non-native speakers

在本研究中，我分析了日语母语者和非日语母语者在日语叙事中指称表达的使用情况，以及指称选择与篇章情节结构之间的关系。这些数据是通过让告密者用日语向一个朋友讲述一部动画电影的故事得来的。我将指称表达定义为指涉语篇中的人或物的表达，并将所谓的“ko-, so-, a-”指示词作为指称表达的一个子类。我认为np和省略号都是指称表达式的形式。根据Clancy（1980）和Givon（1983）的研究，指称物选择的一般原则是：1)指称物第一次引入时使用NP； 2)处于听者意识中心的指称物使用省略号；3)指称物距离较远或发生干扰时使用NP。在我的数据中，母语为日语的人经常违反这些原则，在省略号不会引起任何歧义的情况下使用NPs，甚至在指称物可能有歧义的情况下也使用省略号。我证明了母语人士使用这些np和省略号来标记话语的部分。相比之下，一些非母语人士在动词代理的指称物发生变化时没有使用NPs来标记话语结构，或者在提到主要人物时不断使用省略。

In this study, I analyzed Japanese native and non-native speakers' use of referring expressions in Japanese narratives and the relationship between referential choice and episodic structure of discourse. The data were elicited by having informants tell the story of an animated film to a friend in Japanese.I define referring expressions as expressions that refer to people or things in the discourse and include so-called "ko-, so-, a-" demonstratives as a subcategory of referring expressions. I consider both NPs and ellipses to be forms of referring expressions. According to research by Clancy(1980) and Givon(1983), the general principles of referential choice are 1) an NP should be used at the first introduction of a referent, 2) ellipsis should be used for referents in the center of the hearer's consciousness, 3) NP should be used for referents with greater referential distance or when interference occurs.Native speakers of Japanese in my data often violated these principles by using NPs in cases where ellipsis would not cause any ambiguity, and using ellipses even in cases when the referent was potentially ambiguous. I demonstrated that native speakers used these NPs and ellipses to mark sections of discourse. In contrast, some non-native speakers failed to mark discourse structure by using NPs whenever the referent of the agent of the verb changed, or constantly using ellipsis when referring to the main character.