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To Use or Not to Use “Personal I”: That is the Question

Tarih:  Date -

In the 12th International IDEA Conference, held in Akdeniz University in April 2018, Assist. Prof. Dr. Taner Can represented our university by attending the conference as a speaker with his presentation titled "To Use or Not to Use “Personal I”: That is the Question."

 

Abstract

"The current study attempts to address the issue of passivisation (the use of “personal I”) within the scope of postgraduate studies from a corpus linguistic perspective by comparing literature theses and dissertations written in Turkey and abroad, particularly in the UK and the USA. The findings indicate some stylistic differences in the way postgraduate students compose their theses and dissertations. While Turkish students tend to use passivisation in their writing, British and American students are generally inclined to write in first person singular, particularly when they put forward the key arguments regarding their theses. This seemingly simple stylistic preference may in fact help reveal two different perspectives – one that is more independent and liberated while the other is strongly associated with an institutional voice with its claim to objectivity. The writers of the current research discuss the possible reasons for certain stylistic tendencies and their effects on students’ academic development."

 

23.05.2018