ABSTRACT
This work is titled “study of some syntactic problems of English usage among university undergraduates in Lagos State University (LASU)” was set up to investigate the drift from Standard English among University undergraduates using Lagos State University (LASU) Ojo, Lagos State, as a case study.
One of the syntactic problems is the problem of linguistic interference which is the inability to separate the two systems that brings about linguistic interference. Linguistic interference is an inevitable feature in every bilingual or multilingual society. There is also the problem of inadequate knowledge of the rules of English grammar which is found among university undergraduates. Another problem is the pre-university academic background and the influence of Pidgin English as a means of communication in the society because of the non-speakers of vernacular which is also a problem among the university undergraduates especially in Lagos State University (LASU).
This research work was conducted among the Lagos State University Students from the faculty of arts, department of English, Literature, and African Languages.
The data analysis from the questionnaire was given to about forty students from the Lagos State University (LASU). The respondents consist mainly of the final year students who are believed to have thoroughly delved into the syntactic features of either both languages in contact.
It is therefore concluded that there should be means of re-educating the university undergraduates on the world linguistic situation, and to also adopt positive attitude in learning and practicing the English Language.
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
In communities where the English Language is used as a second language (E.S.L), there is bound to evolve a variety which is peculiar in lexicon, phonology, semantics and even syntax to that community. Studies in error and contrastive analysis have shown these varieties to be sometimes innovative and at other times, deviant. This innovation has led to the phenomenon called Nigerian English or the Educated Nigerian English (E.N.E). There has been a persistent departure from even the Educated Nigerian English among university undergraduates.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
The problem is used in a technical sense to refer to this linguistic phenomenon. “English has ceased to be the property of the English people and wherever the language has taken root, it has shown a remarkable resilience in handling ideas and concepts alien to the way in which meaning is expressed in the English structural system”. (Dadzie, 2009)
Nigerian English simply means the English language as it is used in Nigeria. Educated Nigerian English refers to the English used by educated Nigerians, university products. It is the latter that has often been chosen as Standard Nigerian English (S.N.E). It is however doubtful whether the so – called standard Nigerian English has as much stability and sophistication as any other variety of English. Ideally, the English of university undergraduates should approximate to the standard Nigerian English. Random variations from this local standard occur among undergraduates as a result of poor linguistics background and insensitivity to the internal rules operating in the English grammar. The English used by university undergraduates is replete with this.
1.3 BACKGROUND STUDY
The variation manifests in all levels of language (syntax, phonology semantics, and the lexicon). On the lexical level, there is the borrowing of words, formation of calques and code – switching which has been attributed to mental laziness. These concepts arise in a bid to make the English language do bid to make the English language do business in our indigenous societies. Consequently, words like ‘invites’, ‘squander mania’, ‘bush meat’, ‘head tie’, ‘chewing stick’, etc abound in English used in Nigeria. They therefore, feature in the English of undergraduate students.
On the semantic level, some lexical items have been invested with meanings which differ, albeit slightly, from their original connotations. They have either widened or narrow down in semantic fields. Some examples include ‘customer’ and ‘earth’. The word customer in the native speaker context is used by the seller to refer to the buyer, but in Nigeria, the term is mutual, referring to both seller and buyer. It has thus broadened in semantic field. “Earth” also is supposed to mean not only on the planet in which we live but also the “land surface of the world” or “soil” but in Nigerian usage, the word is seldom used to cover the second meaning. This is a limitation of semantic coverage.