Turn openings in L2 French

Abstract

In this contribution we will analyze a corpus of telephone conversations between German students of French and native speakers from an interactional linguistic point of view. The study is based on a corpus of ten formal conversations performed as role play between German university students and native speakers of French. Taking an interactional approach, the use of discourse markers will be described as a situated activity of learners who use the resources at their disposal to accomplish conversational tasks. The analysis will concentrate on the accomplishment of turn openings and point out the dynamic nature of the use of discourse markers in exolingual interaction. During the conversations, learners employ forms already available in their repertoire as discourse markers, they use the interlocutor’s example as a model, and they develop their own routines. Against this background, certain characteristics of discourse markers in L2 can be described as the result of communication and acquisition strategies that allow learners to maintain the conversation as well as to build, expand or adjust their repertoire.