i VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST GRADUATE-STUDIES **************************************** NGÔ THỊ MINH TRANG CONDITIONAL CLAUSES USED AS HEDGING DEVICES IN ENGLISH AND VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS: A PRAGMATIC PERSPECTIVE (Mệnh đề điều kiện sử dụng làm phương tiện rào đón tiếng Anh tương đương chúng tiếng Việt: nghiên cứu bình diện dụng học) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS CODE: 60.22.15 HANOI – 2012 ii VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST GRADUATE-STUDIES **************************************** NGÔ THỊ MINH TRANG CONDITIONAL CLAUSES USED AS HEDGING DEVICES IN ENGLISH AND VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS: A PRAGMATIC PERSPECTIVE (Mệnh đề điều kiện sử dụng làm phương tiện rào đón tiếng Anh tương đương chúng tiếng Việt: nghiên cứu bình diện dụng học) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS CODE: 60.22.15 SUPERVISOR: DR NGƠ HỮU HỒNG HANOI – 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT .i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .iv LIST OF FIGURES v PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale of the Study Objectives of the Study 3 Scope of the Study .3 Methods of the Study 4.1 Methods 4.2 Introduction of the novella Design of the Study .5 PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER ONE: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1 The Concept of Hedging 1.1.1 Definitions of Hedge 1.1.2 Forms of Hedges 1.1.3 Functions of Hedges .9 1.2 Cooperative Principle 10 iv 1.3 Politeness Theory 12 1.3.1 Politeness and Face 12 1.3.2 Face Saving Acts versus Face Threatening Acts 13 1.3.3 Grice‟s Cooperative Principle and Brown and Levinson‟s Politeness Theory .14 1.4 The Concept of Conditionals 14 1.4.1 Definition of Conditional Sentences .14 1.4.2 True Conditionals 15 1.4.3 Pseudo-Conditionals 17 CHAPTER TWO: IF-HEDGING AND POLITENESS 19 2.1 If-hedging and Cooperative Principle 19 2.1.1 If-hedging and Maxim of Quality 19 2.1.2 If-hedging and Maxim of Quantity .20 2.1.3 If-hedging and Maxim of Relation .21 2.1.4 If-hedging and Maxim of Manner 22 2.2 If-hedging and Politeness Principle 24 CHAPTER THREE: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS 28 3.1 True Conditionals and Pseudo-Conditionals Occurrence Rate 28 3.2 Pragmatic functions of Pseudo-Conditionals in English and Vietnamese equivalents 30 3.3 Suggestions on teaching and learning English conditionals .38 3.4 Suggestions on translating English conditionals 39 v PART C: CONCLUSIONS 40 Conclusions 40 Limitations 41 Suggestions for Further Study .41 REFERENCES .42 APPENDIXES .I Appendix 1: English Conditionals I Appendix 2: English Pseudo-Conditionals and Vietnamese Equivalents VII vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL: English as a Foreign Language ELT: English Language Teaching FTA: Face Threatening Act FSA: Face Saving Act LIST OF FIGURES Table 3.1: The percentage of true conditionals and pseudo-conditionals Table 3.2: The number of true conditionals and pseudo-conditionals vii PART A INTRODUCTION RATIONALE OF THE STUDY Up to date, linguistics has followed logicians in analyzing conditional sentences in light of material implication However, in spite of such a long period of theorization and application of various approaches, there has been no agreed-upon method of teaching English conditionals so far Some teachers teach conditional sentences and subjunctive mood side by side, some teachers teach them separately, and teachers use different ways to classify conditional sentences Overall, current ELT coursebooks have essentially utilized the typology in Logic (real, counterfactual and hypothetical), which they term first, second and third types respectively, with the addition of two more types: zero and mixed The vast majority of ELT materials provide information about the following aspects of conditional sentences: a The tense-aspect marking of the main verbs in the If-clause and main clause b The modal auxiliaries that can be used in each clause c The time reference of the conditional sentence (not of each clause) d The user‟s attitude towards possibility (Gabrielatos, 2003) Nevertheless, there has been considerable difference of opinion and much terminological confusion in the area of pragmatic functions Let consider the following examples: (1) If Squiggly knows the answer, he'll tell us (2) If Squiggly knows the answer, he isn‟t saying In the sentence (1), the result clause “he'll tell us”- is dependent on the “if'clause” But this is not the case in the sentence (2) where “If-clauses” does not express a condition and result; but implies “Squiggly isn‟t saying anything, whether he knows the answer or not” And the same is true for the other examples which not fit into the 1, 2, system, for example: (3) If I may interrupt, when is the next train? (4) If you kindly allow me, I‟ll have a meeting with you in the evening As can be seen, the If-clauses in the examples (3) and (4) are not dependent on the main clauses, and they could equally be expressed as a politeness marker used in speech act of requesting to avoid imposition on the hearer and mitigate the negative effect of refusals in communication These so-called conditionals are also used in Vietnamese, causing a lot of confusing for learners to determine the type of conditionals: Nếu mai rảnh qua nhà tớ chơi nhé! Nếu không phiền, cậu nhặt hộ tớ mớ rau nha! Vietnamese, like English, has developed through usage; as the result, language patterns may refuse to be forced into a logically consistent mold One of the reasons for the lack of appropriate system to categorize conditionals may be the inherent flexibility of the language itself In this case, teachers have to base on pragmatics‟ point of view to explain these so-called conditionals Since conditional sentences are basic to the material of grammar and pragmatics, a detailed understanding of conditional sentences is vital for an accurate interpretation of its contents In consideration of the importance of conditionals in teaching and learning English as well as the fact that limited research has been done to evaluate pragmatic functions of conditionals, especially in Vietnamese context, the researcher has decided to undertake the study entitled “Conditional Clauses Used as Hedges in English and Vietnamese Equivalents: a Pragmatic Perspective” in order to provide the more comprehensive analysis on conditionals regarding pragmatic point of view 2 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The study has been done in an effort to determine the pragmatic functions of conditionals in English and Vietnamese equivalents Particularly, the study addresses the following primary objectives: To distinguish the conditionals as hedging devices from true conditionals To identify the pragmatic functions of If-hedging comparing to Vietnamese equivalents To suggest some implications for teaching, learning and translating English conditional sentences The researcher hopes that this study cannot only bring together the fields of conditionals in grammar and pragmatics but also propose guidelines for EFL teachers who wish to implement conditionals to enhance their students‟ language proficiency as well as communicative competence Equally, this study is hoped to provide Vietnamese learners with the approaches of translating conditional sentences and some ways to help Vietnamese learners of English overcome the difficulties in translating conditional sentences By carrying out this study, the researcher also hopes that conditionals can receive more attention and enjoy more popularity among linguistics researchers so that English education in Vietnam can actually equip students with communicative competence SCOPE OF THE STUDY Due to the scope of a minor thesis, limited time and experience, it is impossible to cover all contrastive pragmatic matters Hence, this study just concentrates on pragmatic functions of If-clauses relating to the context in which If-clauses function as a politeness marker in a certain speech act Also, the study explains pragmatic functions of If-clauses as a hedging device basing on Grice‟s Cooperative Principle and Brown and Levinson‟s Politeness Theory in consideration of FTA and FSA Particularly, the pseudo-conditionals from the novella named The Little Princess are used as data in this study Detailed analysis and comparative study requires much time and effort; therefore, semantic and syntactic theories are also employed at times to help better analyze conditionals in English and Vietnamese equivalents METHODS OF THE STUDY 4.1 Methods Such methods as descriptive, comparative and contrastive were employed to describe and analyze, to compare and contrast the database in order to explore similarities and differences in using English conditionals and Vietnamese equivalents Obviously, descriptive method was utilized to provide in-depth and detailed description of conditionals in terms of pragmatics; whereas, comparative and contrastive method was used to give a comparison and contrast relevant to pragmatic properties of conditionals in English and Vietnamese equivalents A qualitative approach was also conducted to discover meanings that emerge after careful documentation and thoughtful analysis for over approximately a fivemonth period The data were quantitatively converted into numeric patterns as the primary basis for organizing and reporting results It concentrates on smaller but focused samples rather than large random samples When studying the features of sentence patterns used, as a result of quantification, the researcher can look for recurring patterns emerging from the data 4.2 Introduction of the novella The Little Prince has been well-known all over the world because the novella has captured the hearts and minds of both children and adults Published by Harcourt in 1943 and 1971, Katherine Woods' straightforward and beautiful translation is the only one that does justice to The Little Prince The novella is divided into 27 chapters, each of which varies in length from less than a page to a maximum of or pages, depending on the size of the edition read While it presents itself primarily as a narrative in the style of a journal, the book actually contains what may be interpreted 3.4 SUGGESTIONS ON TRANSLATING CONDITIONALS Normally, when coming across a conditional sentence, learners pay much attention to the syntactic features, for instance, how tenses are used in the clauses Besides, learners may translate word by word without noticing pragmatic functions and without putting it in real contexts Therefore, a big hole in learners‟ translating knowledge can be found The suggestion is that learners should base on pragmatic functions to translate conditional sentences Importantly, learners should notice that Vietnamese conditionals are not always utilised to translate English conditionals and vice versa For example, the sentence “If I may interrupt, what time is it?” functions as a polite request, so it should be translated into Vietnamese equivalent like “Làm ơn cho em (cháu) hỏi ạ?” In some cases, basing on situational contexts, conditional sentences can be translated more effectively and persuasively Sometimes, learners should notice surrounding words, phrases … to translate Sometimes they need to pay attention to the situations where conditional sentences are produced to translate Last but not least, discerning the similarities and differences between English and Vietnamese conditionals, translators can apply this useful knowledge to translate English conditionals into Vietnamese and vice versa Additionally, with the knowledge, interpreters will be confident to pursue their career because they are provided the keen intelligence from it 39 PART C CONCLUSION After analyzing the research findings and the discussion in the preceding part, conclusion, limitations and some suggestions are taken CONCLUSIONS The study is done with the help to offer the analysis of conditional sentences by summarizing the work of previous grammarians and providing a detailed analysis of conditionals in light of pragmatics In grammar‟s point of view, conditional clause refers to the condition under which the speaker makes the utterance In pragmatics‟ point of view, conditional clauses are not only used to mention real as well as hypothetical conditions and their consequences but also used as a hedging device to perform pragmatic functions, especially in spoken contexts, where the If-clauses often stand alone and are independent of the main clauses In general, pseudo-conditionals are purposely employed with the intention of softening the foregoing part of the utterance that might be viewed as imposition The speakers use the pseudo-conditionals as the form of a redress with an aim to soften the impact of the message to listeners; by this means serving the purpose of politeness Generally, when a conditional clause beginning with “if” is put into the beginning of a sentence and is used to consult the wishes of the hearer by providing him option to act as per his wishes, it functions as face-saving device and softens the face-threatening act In such cases, the face-threatening proposition is put at the end of a sentence Another important thing is to deal with the suggestions for teachers to teach conditionals at school To improve the communicative competence of students, initially, teachers have to help their students identify the pragmatic functions that conditionals express Furthermore, because English conditional sentences are very complex in structure, function and meaning, it is suggested that teachers should design suitable exercises and teaching strategies so that students have numerous opportunities to use and 40 practice conditionals in real situation Remarkably, the study is of great linguistic value since it has explored some approaches of studying English conditional sentences in light of pragmatics and some ways to help Vietnamese learners of English overcome the difficulties in translating English conditionals into Vietnamese and vice versa Furthermore, in the last part of the thesis, Vietnamese learners of English can be provided with useful knowledge that can help them know how to perform a pseudo-conditional effectively in communication LIMITATIONS The minor thesis has been done with the author‟s greatest efforts and to the best of her knowledge and understanding; however, it is obvious that shortcomings and inadequacies are unavoidable First of all, data were collected only within a period of five months; this time constraint was determinant for the way in which data was collected Also, the data were collected from one novella consisting of 27 chapters; therefore, the findings discussed in this study cannot be generalized for the occurrence rate of conditionals Moreover, because of the same constraint, the researcher was able to gather only examples from If-clauses, while more other conditional structures would have certainly enabled the researcher to draw a more detailed picture of actual conditionals Next, this study was guided by a simple research design whose aim was to begin to understand the pragmatic functions of pseudo-conditionals in linguistics and communication It is the first study of conditionals to be conducted in light of pragmatics, and it is hoped that more in-depth studies will follow, which may contribute to a better understanding of conditionals in term of both grammar and pragmatics SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY For a further study, a well designed study and more detailed data analysis should be made to bring more light to the area under investigation, thus, arriving at more convincing conclusions Accordingly, the researcher will conduct a research of conditionals in the spoken discourse with a corpus-based approach That will offer her a chance to observe and analyze great amounts of data, thereby ensuring a higher degree of representativeness 41 REFERENCES Vietnamese: Nguyễn Tấn Đại, (2001), Hoàng Tử Bé (Trans.), Nhà xuất Hội Nhà Văn, TP HCM Lê Thị Minh Hằng, (2009), Câu Điều Kiện Tiếng Việt góc độ ngữ dụng, Retrieved from the website: http://vietnamhoc.multiply.com/journal/item/14 English: Akatsuka N (1986), Conditionals are discourse bound, Cambridge University Press Austin J L (1962), How to Things with Words, Oxford, Oxford University Press Bonano M (1982), Women‟s language in the medical interview, Linguistics and the Professions, Norwood, N.J: Ablex Brown P., Levinson S C (1987), Politeness: Some Universals in Language Use, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press Buikema R., Roeters A (1982), Politeness Strategies in the Interaction of Women and men, Mexico City Coates J (1989), Women‟s Speech, Women Strength? York Papers in Linguistics 13 Cobuild C (1990), English Grammar, Collins Birmingham University International Language Database Coulmas F (1981), Conversational Routine, The Hague, Netherlands, Mouton Crompton P (1997), Hedging in Academic Writing: Some Theoretical Problems English for Specific Purposes 10 Crystal D (2008), A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics, Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub 11 Drechsel J (1989), Peer Groups and the Language of Negotiation in Education Linguistics 42 12 Elbaum S.N (1986), Grammar in Contex, Boston, Cengage Heinle 13 Fasold R W., Shuy R W (1977), Studies in language variation: semantics, syntax, phonology, pragmatics, social situations, ethnographic approaches, Georgetown University Press 14 Fraser B (1975), Hedged Performatives, Syntax and Semantic volume 3: Speech acts, New York 15 Fraser B (1996), Pragmatic Markers, Boston University 16 Fraser B (2010), Pragmatic Competence: The Case of Hedging, Emerald Group Publishing Limited 17 Fraser B., Nolen, W (1981), The Association of Deference with Linguistic Form, International Journal of the Sociology of Language 18 Gabrielatos C (2003), Conditional Sentences: ELT typology and corpus evidence, Paper given at the Annual Meeting of the British Association for Applied Linguistics, University of Leeds 19 Grice H P (1975), Logic and Conversation, Syntax and Semantics 3: Speech Acts, New York, Academic Press 20 Groenendijk J., Stockhof M (1984), Studies in the semantics of questions and the pragmatics of answers, Doctoral Dissertation, University of Amsterdam 21 Haiman J (1978), Conditionals are Topics, Language 54 22 Halliday M A.K., Hasan R (1989), Language, Context and Text: a social semiotic perspective, Oxford 23 Hatch E (1992), Discourse and Language Education, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press 24 Holmes J (1982), Expressing doubt and certainty in English, RELC Journal 25 Hyland K (1994), Hedging in Academic Writing and EAP textbooks English for Specific Purposes, Vol 13 26 Hyland K (1998), Hedging in Scientific Research Articles, Amsterdam, John Benjamins Publishing Company 27 Kitamura N (2000), Adapting Brown and Levinson‟s „Politeness‟ Theory to the Analysis of Casual Conversation, Australia 43 28 Lakoff G (1972), Hedges: a study in Meaning Criteria and the Logic of Fuzzy Concepts in Papers from the Eight Regional Meeting, Chicago, Chicago Linguistic Society 29 Lyons J (1977), Semantics, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press 30 Markkanen R., Schröder H (1989), Hedging as a Translation Problem in Scientific Texts, Special Language: from Humans Thinking to Thinking Machines, Clevedon, Multilingual matters 31 Mauranen A (2004), “They're a little but different” : Observations on hedges in academic talk, Discourse Patterns in Spoken and Written Corpora, Amsterdam/Philadelphia, John Benjamins Publishing Company 32 Murphy R (1996), English Grammar in Use, (Bilingual series), NXB Da Nang 33 Myers G (1989), The Pragmatics of Politeness in Scientific Articles, Applied Linguistics 34 Pyle M A, Munoz M E (1994), TOEFL preparation guide, New York, John Wiley & Sons 35 Quirk R (1987), A University Grammar of English, England, Longman Group UK Limited 36 Richards J C., Schmidt R (2010), Longman dictionary of language teaching and applied linguistics (4th ed.), London, Longman (Pearson Education) 37 Riekkinen N (2009), “This is not criticism, but…” Softening criticism: The use of lexical hedges in academic spoken interaction, Unpublished MA thesis, University of Helsinki 38 Salager-Meyer F (1994), Hedges and Textual Communicative Function in Medical English Written Discourse, English for Specific Purposes, Vol 13 39 Schmidt C (1974), The Relevance to Semantic Theory of a Study of Vagueness in Papers from the Eight Regional Meeting, Chicago, Chicago Linguistic Society 40 Searle J R (1969), Speech Acts: An Essay In The Philosophy of Language, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press 44 41 Skelton J (1988b), Comments in academic articles, Applied Linguistics in Society, London, CILT/BAAL 42 Thomson A J, Martinet A V (1986), A Practical English Grammar, Oxford, Oxford University Press 43 Verschueren J (2000), Understanding Pragmatics, Beijing, Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press 44 Weinreich U (1966), On the semantic structure of English, Universals of language, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press 45 Wilamová S (2005), On The Function of Hedging Devices in Negatively Polite Discourse, Brněnské University 46 Wilamová S (2005), On Expressing Negative Politeness in English Fictional Discourse, Ostrava, Ostravská University 47 Woods K (1971), The Little Prince (Trans.), Mariner Books 45 APPENDIXES APPENDIX 1: ENGLISH CONDITIONALS If one gets lost in the night, such knowledge is valuable I would try to find out, so, if this was a person of true understanding “If you please– draw me a sheep!” “If you please– draw me a sheep ” “That is so And if you are good I will give you a string, too, so that you can tie him during the day, and a post to tie him to.” “But if you don‟t tie him,” I said, “he will wander off somewhere, and get lost.” If I have told you these details about the asteroid, and made a note of its number for you, it is on account of the grown-ups and their ways If you were to say to the grown-ups: “I saw a beautiful house made of rosy brick, with geraniums in the windows and doves on the roof,” they would not be able to get any idea of that house at all If anybody wants a sheep, that is a proof that he exists.” 10 But if you said to them: “The planet he came from is Asteroid B-612,” then they would be convinced, and leave you in peace from their questions 11 If I try to describe him here, it is to make sure that I shall not forget him 12 And if I forget him, I may become like the grown-ups who are no longer interested in anything but figures 13 I pointed out to the little prince that baobabs were not little bushes, but, on the contrary, trees as big as castles; and that even if he took a whole herd of elephants away with him, the herd would not eat up one single baobab I 14 If it is only a sprout of radish or the sprig of a rose-bush, one would let it grow wherever it might wish 15 A baobab is something you will never, never be able to get rid of if you attend to it too late 16 And if the planet is too small, and the baobabs are too many, they split it in pieces 17 That would be very useful to them if they were to travel some day 18 If you could fly to France in one minute, you could go straight into the sunset, right from noon 19 “A sheep– if it eats little bushes, does it eat flowers, too?” 20 At that instant I was saying to myself: “If this bolt still won‟t turn, I am going to knock it out with the hammer.” 21 And if I know– I, myself– one flower which is unique in the world, which grows nowhere but on my planet, but which one little sheep can destroy in a single bite some morning, without even noticing what he is doing– Oh! 22 “If someone loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars 23 He can say to himself, “Somewhere, my flower is there ” But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened And you think that is not important!” 24 “I think it is time for breakfast,” she added an instant later “If you would have the kindness to think of my needs–” 25 So, too, she began very quickly to torment him with her vanity– which was, if the truth be known, a little difficult to deal with II 26 If they are well cleaned out, volcanoes burn slowly and steadily, without any eruptions 27 “Well, I must endure the presence of two or three caterpillars if I wish to become acquainted with the butterflies It seems that they are very beautiful 28 And if not the butterflies– and the caterpillars– who will call upon me? You will be far away as for the large animals– I am not at all afraid of any of them I have my claws.” 29 “If I ordered a general,” he would say, by way of example, “if I ordered a general to change himself into a sea bird, and if the general did not obey me, that would not be the fault of the general 30 If he had been master of such complete authority, he would have been able to watch the sunset, not forty-four times in one day, but seventy-two, or even a hundred, or even two hundred times, without ever having to move his chair 31 “If I ordered a general to fly from one flower to another like a butterfly, or write a tragic drama, or to change himself into a sea bird, and if the general did not carry out the order that he had received, which one of us would be in wrong?” the king demanded 32 If ordered your people to go and throw themselves into the sea, they would rise up in revolution I have the right to require obedience because my orders are reasonable.” 33 If you succeed in judging yourself rightly, then you are indeed a man of true wisdom.” 34 “If Your Majesty wishes to be promptly obeyed,” he said, “he should be able to give me a reasonable order 35 “It makes it possible for me to buy more stars, if any are ever discovered.” III 36 “If I owned a silk scarf,” he said, “I could put it around my neck and take away with me If I owned a flower, I could pluck that flower and take it away with me But you cannot pluck the stars from heaven ” 37 And if the recollections of any one among them seem interesting to him, the geographer orders an inquiry into that explorer‟s moral character.” 38 For example, if the discovery in question is that of a large mountain, one requires that large stones be brought back from it.” 39 If the two billion inhabitants who people its surface were all to stand upright and somewhat crowded together, as they for some big public assembly, they could easily be put into one public square twenty miles long and twenty miles wide 40 “You move me to pity– you are so weak on this Earth made of granite,” the snake said “I can help you, some day, if you grow too homesick for your own planet I can–” 41 “She would be very much annoyed,” he said to himself, “if she should see that she would cough most dreadfully, and she would pretend that she was dying, to avoid being laughed at And I should be obliged to pretend that I was nursing her back to life– for if I did not that, to humble myself also, she would really allow herself to die ” 42 But if you tame me, then we shall need each other 43 But if you tame me, it will be as if the sun came to shine on my life 44 If you want a friend, tame me ” 45 “If, for example, you come at four o‟clock in the afternoon, then at three o‟clock I shall begin to be happy 46 But if you come at just any time, I shall never know at what hour my heart is to be ready to greet you IV 47 But if the hunters danced at just any time, every day would be like every other day, and I should never have any vacation at all.” 48 “They are asleep in there, or if they are not asleep they are yawning 49 “They waste their time over a rag doll and it becomes very important to them; and if anybody takes it away from them, they cry ” 50 “As for me,” said the little prince to himself, “if I had fifty-three minutes to spend as I liked, I should walk at my leisure toward a spring of fresh water.” 51 “Ah,” I said to the little prince, “these memories of yours are very charming; but I have not yet succeeded in repairing my plane; I have nothing more to drink; and I, too, should be very happy if I could walk at my leisure toward a spring of fresh water!” 52 “It is a good thing to have had a friend, even if one is about to die I, for instance, am very glad to have had a fox as a friend ” 53 One runs the risk of weeping a little, if one lets himself be tamed 54 If you love a flower that lives on a star, it is sweet to look at the sky at night 55 For you who also love the little prince, and for me, nothing in the universe can be the same if somewhere, we not know where, a sheep that we never saw has– yes or no?– eaten a rose 56 And, if you should come upon this spot, please not hurry on Wait for a time, exactly under the star 57 Then, if a little man appears who laughs, who has golden hair and who refuses to answer questions, you will know who he is 58 If this should happen, please comfort me V APPENDIXES APPENDIX 2: ENGLISH PSEUDO-CONDITIONALS AND VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS English pseudo-conditionals Vietnamese equivalents If all these reasons are not enough, I Còn lí chưa will dedicate the book to the child làm em thông cảm, tơi đề from whom this grown-up grew tặng người thuở bé (Dedication) If one gets lost in the night, such Điều thật có ích, người ta lỡ knowledge is valuable (Chapter 1) lạc hướng bay vào ban đêm If you please - draw me a sheep! Chú ơi! Làm ơn vẽ giùm cháu (Chapter 2) cừu! If I have told you these details about Tơi kể lể dài dịng tiểu hành tinh B the asteroid, and made a note of its 612 khẳng định với bạn số number for you, it is on account of the đó, tất người lớn grown-ups and their ways (Chapter 4) If I try to describe him here, it is to Tôi muốn viết lại đây, để không cho make sure that I shall not forget him phép quên (Chapter 4) Just so, you might say to them: “The Do đó, bạn nói với họ: “Cháu proof that the little prince existed is gặp hoàng tử bé, cậu dễ thương, that he was charming, that he laughed, cậu cười với cháu, cậu and that he was looking for a sheep muốn có cừu Chuyện (10) If anybody wants a sheep, that is có thật cậu muốn có a proof that he exists.” (Chapter 4) cừu” VI If it is only a sprout of radish or the Nếu mầm củ cải hay mầm hoa sprig of a rose-bush, one would let it hồng, hẳn nhiên ta chúng grow wherever it might wish (Chapter tiếp tục lớn lên 5) And if I know - I, myself - one flower Và cháu, cháu biết which is unique in the world, which có hoa đời, grows nowhere but on my planet, but khơng có đâu khác ngồi hành tinh which one little sheep can destroy in a cháu, ngày single bite some morning, without cừu nhỏ bé đớp gọn even noticing what he is doing - Oh! mà khơng cần biết đến hậu quả, You think that is not important! chuyện quan trọng hay (Chapter 7) sao! “I think it is time for breakfast,” she Tôi nghĩ đến ăn sáng, - added an instant later “If you would hoa mau chóng lên tiếng, - bạn have the kindness to think of my có vui lịng nghĩ chút đến tơi… needs.” (Chapters 8) So, too, she began very quickly to Cứ thế, bơng hoa làm tình làm torment him with her vanity - which tội hoàng tử bé tính kiêu kì đỏng was, if the truth be known, a little đảnh difficult to deal with (Chapters 8) If Your Majesty wishes to be promptly Nếu Ngài muốn thấy tuân obeyed," he said, "he should be able to phục lúc, Ngài ban cho give me a reasonable order (Chapter thần mệnh lệnh hợp lí Chẳng hạn 10) như, Ngài ban lệnh cho thần vòng phút Thần thấy điều kiện thích hợp If I ordered a general to fly from one VII Nếu trẫm lệnh cho vị tướng flower to another like a butterfly, or to phải bay lượn vườn hoa write a tragic drama, or to change bươm bướm, hay phải viết himself into a sea bird, and if the bi kịch, hay phải biến thành chim general did not carry out the order that biển, vị tướng không thực he had received, which one of us mệnh lệnh ban, ai, ơng ta hay would be in the wrong? (Chapter 10) trẫm, người có lỗi? If you succeed in judging yourself Khanh mà tự xử khanh rightly, then you are indeed a man of người thông thái true wisdom (Chapter 10) It makes it possible for me to buy Để mua ngơi khác, có more stars, if any are ever discovered tìm thấy (Chapter 13) They are asleep in there, or if they are Họ ngủ khò ấy, họ not asleep they are yawning (Chapters ngáp dài 22) It is a good thing to have had a friend, Có người bạn tốt chứ, even if one is about to die (Chapters người ta phải chết 24) VIII ... method was used to give a comparison and contrast relevant to pragmatic properties of conditionals in English and Vietnamese equivalents A qualitative approach was also conducted to discover meanings... function as a politeness marker in a certain speech act Also, the study explains pragmatic functions of If -clauses as a hedging device basing on Grice‟s Cooperative Principle and Brown and Levinson‟s... the hearer One point to make, pseudo-conditionals are used both in English and Vietnamese as hedging devices to perform certain pragmatic functions; however, in a lot of cases, Vietnamese conditionals