Mentouri University, Constantine Faculty of Letters and Languages Department of Languages

An Awareness Building about the English Idiomatic Expressions and their Use in Writing The Case of Master One Students of English Civilization and Literature University of Constantine Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement of a Master Degree in Applied Language Studies
Board of Examiners President: Dr. Youcef Beghoul M.C University of Constantine M.C University of Constantine

Supervisor: Dr. Nacif Labed

Presented by: Miss. Sawsen Benane Mr. Zakaria Bensahih

Supervised by: Dr. Nacif Labed

2010 -2011

Dedication
I should be grateful to ALLAH the Almighty who gave me strength to accomplish this work. To the angel who devotes her life for me, my MOM. To all my lovely exceptional family. To my best friend Zinou. To Adra. To Meryem and Amira, especially, and all my friends generally. Thank you Allah Zakaria

To my dear mother for her never-ending love and guidance To my sister Abir, for being such a supportive, reliable and loving person To Aunt Hind and Uncle Ali To my fathers soul hoping he is proud of me. May he rest in peace I dedicate this work Susan

Acknowledgement

We

would

like

to

express

our

profound

gratitude

to

the

great

teacher

ever Dr. Nacif Labed who provided us with his support and guidelines without which we would be lost. We would like to thank him for his positive thinking, patience and commitment that gave us the push to accomplish our dissertation. Our deepest thanks go to Dr. Nemouchi who was quite helpful and to all the teachers of the department of foreign languages. We would like also to thank Bouchrit Lamine and Sadrati Djamel

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List of Tables
Table 1: Table 2: Table 3: Table 4: Table 5: Table 6: Table 7: Table 8 The Grammatical Structure of Idioms..................27 The Grammatical variety Within Idioms.............31 Students Knowledge of Idioms..............................................................39 Degree of Idiom Comprehensibility in Isolation and in Context............40 Understanding idioms with Equivalents in Other Languages..42 Students Knowledge and Use of Idioms ....................................44 Frequency and Accuracy of Students Use of Idioms in the Essays....45 Percentage of the Students Use of Idioms in the Essays.....46

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Table of Contents General Introduction1

Chapter One: Writing and Idioms: An Overview

Introduction.6 1. Definition of Writing............6 2. Types of Writing...7 2.1. Academic Writing.8 2.2. Creative Writing............11 2.3. The Use of Creative Language in Academic Writing...14 3. Vocabulary, Diction and Style.16 4. Figures of Speech.17 5. Definitions of Idioms...19 6. Types of Idioms...20 6.1. According to Their Meaning....20 6.2. According to their Structure.....26 7. The use of Idioms....32 Conclusion...33

Chapter Two: The Fieldwork.

Introduction.................35 1. Description of the population......................35
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2. Description of the Research tools......................37 2.1. The Pre-test.............................37 2.2. The Courses....................................38 2.3. The Post-test ..............................................38 3. Description of the Pre-test results ................40 4. Description of the Post-test results................44 5. Discussion of the Results...........................................47 Conclusion.....................49

General Conclusion and Recommendations .50

References.......52 Appendices .........56

Abstract
The present research, which is made up of two chapters, is conducted to check then build up Master One students awareness of idioms. It is in an attempt to draw their attention to the importance of using figures of speech in academic written production, namely idioms. We noticed a lack of knowledge of idioms amongst Master One students of English Civilization and Literature in the Department of Languages, as well as, simple writings poor of images and figures of speech in general. So, we decided to initiate an awareness building about idioms. We focused on showing them how they can make their compositions more interesting and aesthetic using the Idiomatic Expressions. We came up with two hypotheses; the first one is that if students are introduced to idioms, then their ability of understanding and appropriately using them will be higher. The second hypothesis is: the more these students use idioms in their writing the more expressive, vivid and prestigious it gets. In order to validate such hypotheses we designed a pre-test to check their awareness, a post-test to check the effectiveness of the two courses given after the pre-test. These courses were to introduce the students to idioms and their importance in writing. The results obtained showed a lack of students knowledge of idioms and a lack of mastery. They also proved the effectiveness of our introduction of idioms and thus, our first hypothesis was confirmed. However, the results have also shown that it was not effective enough to make these students use idioms in their writings. We concluded saying that students need more lectures, time and especially more practice to use idioms in writing.

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General Introduction

In the process of learning English as a foreign language, learners are supposed to go over many aspects related to it, and which are necessary for successful communication. Once they master the basic linguistic elements, students are supposed to go beyond that and improve their level with more genuine, culture related items. Many of these students will notice that their writing style, for example, is simple, their expressions are plain and clichd and their essays are no different from any other undergraduate student. Nobody then will be interested in reading what they write. Even the students themselves might get bored doing this inevitable task. These students cannot stand at the level of producing ordinary essays; they should rather use better words and expressions; something that would make their essays sound more native and also most attractive and enjoyable. This goal cannot be reached unless students go beyond the level of grammar and structure and enrich their diction with more important, vivid, and aesthetic words and expressions such as metaphors, proverbs, and idioms. That latter, will be the focus of our research study. Moreover, this research will introduce the students to the importance of using the idiomatic expressions in written discourse. This research is conducted on the basis that the majority of students doesnt know idioms or find difficulties in understanding and using them in the production of essays because of their ambiguous and unpredictable meaning. English is known to be a highly

idiomatic language and students must know that and work on using idioms whenever possible.

Aim of the Study

By checking students knowledge of idioms and examining their errors in understanding and using them in writing, the provided research aims at raising their awareness of the importance of knowing and using figures of speech in general, and idioms in particular for the sake of enlivening their writings. It aims also at enlarging students knowledge of idioms by motivating them through light and energizing lectures to make their own researches and investigations. Further, the dominating aim of the research is to push them to get rid of the boring and nonattractive style and have their own outstanding and idiosyncratic style. And thus, improve their writing skills to rise to a level prestigious enough to suit them.

Research Questions and Hypotheses

At this point, some crucial questions such as these are to be answered: 1) Why dont students of English use Idiomatic Expressions in their writings? 2) If they do, how appropriate and frequent do they use them? 3) Can an awareness building about idioms be helpful to make these students produce better essays? We hypothesize that: if the students are introduced to idioms, then their ability of understanding and appropriately using idioms will be higher. And if they know idioms well enough they will use them in their writing which makes their essays more expressive, beautiful, entertaining and prestigious.
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Means of Research
This research studies the case of Master1 students being advanced learners of English. The choice was based on the assumption that they have the required linguistic competence to be introduced to such element as Idioms. We also assume that they are at a point where their pieces of writing should be positively distinct from those of a lower grade in terms of structure and meaning. And as English is said to be a highly idiomatic language, idioms will do the job. In our research we will be making use of two tests. The first will function as a pre-test to check the advanced learners knowledge about idioms, their degree of comprehensibility as well as their frequency of using them in written production. The second will be done after two lessons designed as an initiative to raise their awareness of idioms, their main categories, and their cultural background. In addition, these lessons will show the importance and benefits of using idioms in writing. The second, which is a post-test, will check the efficiency of the awareness building. Its results will confirm or infirm our hypotheses.

Structure of the Study

The research will be divided into two main chapters: a theoretical and a practical part. The theoretical chapter will involve a review of the literature of both writing and idioms; Starting by definition of writing and academic versus creative writing. Then, we will mention the use of figures of speech in writing, which functions as an introduction to idioms being the central issue. The rest of the research will be devoted to idioms, definitions, types, cultural background and comparisons, in addition to a large number of examples and illustrations. Chapter two

represents the practical side of the research. It contains descriptions, analysis and discussions of students' performance in the tests given.

Chapter One: Writing and Idioms: An Overview

Introduction.6 1. Definition of Writing...6 2. Types of Writing.7 2.1. Academic Writing8 2.1.1. Definition of Academic Writing...8 2.1.2. Principles of Academic Writing9 2.2. Creative Writing...11 2.2.1. Definition of Creative Writing..11 2.2.2. What is Needed in Creative Writing.12 2.3. The Use of Creative Language in Academic Writing..14 3. Vocabulary, Diction and Style16 4. Figures of Speech17 5. Definitions of Idioms..19 6. Types of Idioms...20 6.1. According to Their Meaning....20 6.1.1. Literal and Non Literal Idioms.20 6.1.2. Transparency in Meaning.21 6.1.2.1. Transparent ...21 6.1.2.2. Semi-transparent....21 6.1.2.3. Semi-opaque..22 6.1.2.4. Opaque..22 6.2. According to their Structure...26 6.2.1. Grammatical Structure..26 6.2.2. Fixed and Variable Idioms..27 6.2.2.1. Optional Elements....27 6.2.2.2. Variable Elements.28 6.2.2.2.1. Someone versus One.29 6.2.2.3. Movable Elements....30 6.2.2.4. Grammatical Variation.31 6.2.2.5. Other Variations Within Idioms..32 7. The use of Idioms.32 Conclusion33

Chapter One: Writing and Idioms: An Overview

Introduction
To master a language, a foreign learner must work on the receptive skills as listening and reading; the productive as speaking and writing. But realizing thoughts with the production of graphic symbols is not that random and simple task. Letters should be gathered to form words according to conventions. Words have to be gathered to form sentences; and so sentences are combined into paragraphs and texts, and all in all have to serve a meaning. However, our main concern in this chapter is the relation of writing with vocabulary, especially idioms. In other words, we want to take the initiative to raise students awareness of the importance of using English idioms in their writings. Our main interest is so to help learners to produce essays in which they use idioms to make their English sound native-like, artistically and beautifully written rather than using simple and simple vocabulary that would not enliven their writings, and thus they would not attract the readers attention. Using idioms is expected to produce strong effects and deep impressions.

1. Definition of Writing
The act of putting a pen or any writing instrument on a flat surface like a paper is theoretically regarded as an easy task. However, when we put this theory in practice, it's very difficult to prove this easiness. In other words, it does not stand at the level of combining graphic symbols and numbers together. It is much more complex. Byrne in his book Teaching Writing Skill
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defines writing as "the act of forming these symbols on a flat surface of some kind." (Byrne, 1991, p.1). Elbow sees that "writing well is a complex, difficult, and time-

consuming process."(Elbow, 1998, p.3). Some scholars go further to refer to writing as an election of experience, and that's exactly what Nancy Arapof (1967) has mentioned when she claimed that writing is much more than the orthographic symbolization of speech. It is, most importantly, a purposeful selection and organization of experience."(Nancy, p. 233). Kane (2000) sees that apart from being a simple combination of units(words, phrases, sentence) on a paper, writing it is rather built on two assumptions "writing is a rational activity, and that it is a valuable activity(...)Writing is a way of growing." ( pp.3-4). According to Kane "rational activity" refers to putting mind in practice for acquiring the techniques of writing that can be learned by anyone. On the other hand, "valuable activity" is that writing deserves to be learned for its benefits (business and psychology). So, written expression is the art of making words say what one wants them to say.

2. Types of Writing
Writing is divided into many types depending on the users needs. Such types are cooperative writing, cognitive writing, academic writing and creative writing. Among the previous kinds academic and creative writing are the ones we are going to tackle since they are the best to serve our purpose. In this part we will provide definitions of both types and give characteristics of each of them. Also we will try to make a combination between the two seemingly opposites. In other words, we show the possibility of including creative language within academic writing.

2.1. Academic Writing 2.1.1. Definition of Academic Writing

This type of composition has been widely spread due to the fact that English is needed for many commercial, scientific, social and academic purposes. Foreign learners are likely to use academic writing in their assignments, because it represents the structured written form of language. Whitaker (2009) sees that academic writing refers to any production the student is assigned to do for his or her faculty, then it may have many names like essay, paper, research paper, term paper, argumentative paper/essay, analysis paper/essay, informative essay, position paper. Another perspective of the Australian School of Business (2011) suggests that academic writing is the final fruit that evolves from the process of one's thought. (The University of New South Wales, p. 2). The University of Michigan's English Language Institute (2011) defined academic writing from many considerations:" Academic writing is a product of many considerations: audience, purpose, organization, style, flow, and presentation." (The University of Michigan Press, p.7). Bailey (2003) refers to that type of writing by saying that Academic Writing is designed for anybody who is studying (or planning to study) at English-medium colleges and universities and has to write essays and other assignments for exams or coursework. "(Bailey, p.vi). He also he adds that it is a exible course that allows students to work either with a teacher or by themselves, to practice those areas which are most important for their studies."(Ibid).

2.1.2. Principles of Academic Writing

Academic writing represents the structured form language, and this can be seen from the strict rules that control its usage. The University of Michigan (2011) states five major principles
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of academic writing which are: audience, purpose, organization, style, flow and presentation. Audience, as a principle, refers to the knowledgeable instructor of the given subject. That is why the writer has to understand the readers' assumptions and prior knowledge. Whitaker (2009) from the University of Seattle considers also the same standard as in the case of student writer, his audience is his fellow students so they may be attracted to his field of writing but not interested in reading his paper. So, here comes the responsibility of the student to grab their attention by engaging them in his ideas, with his style, logical evidences and reasons. That is also what Thaiss (2006) has mentioned in his thesis saying that an imagined reader who is coolly rational, reading for information, and intending to formulate a reasoned response."(p. 3). Purpose has a strong link with the previously mentioned principle. The interconnection between them results in two points. First, when readers have less knowledge or background about the topic, the writer's aim is to guide them with instructions like in text books. Second, when the audience is more knowledgeable than the writer, the purpose is that the writer should show familiarity, expertise and intelligence. That last point is the case for student writers. Whitaker (2009) shares the same principle but in a different way stating that "the goal of your paper is to answer the question you posed as your topic. Your question gives you a purpose. The most common purposes in academic writing are to persuade, analyze/synthesize, and inform."(p.1). Organization is the third mentioned standard by the University of Michigan as followed:" information is presented to readers in a structured format. Even short pieces of writing have regular, predictable patterns of organization."(p.8). In addition to that, Whitaker (2009) said that the logical organization of every academic essay consists of introduction, body paragraphs and conclusion.
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The fourth element is Style. Some scholars, like Laurie Rozakis (2003), define style in writing as an author's distinctive way of writing. Style is made up of elements such as word choice, sentence length and structure, punctuation, figures of speech, and tone. Writers might change their style (...) to suit different audience". (p.10). All academic writers have to make sure that their writings are composed of the appropriate formal style that fits the transmitted message for the audience. Nevertheless, there are some exceptions for using the congruent scholarly formal style as explained in the following excerpt: "One difficulty in using the appropriate style is knowing what is considered academic and what is not. Academic style is not used in all academic settings. Lectures are generally delivered in a relatively nonacademic style. It is not uncommon to hear lecturers use words and phrases like stuff, things, bunch, or a whole lot of, which would not be appropriate for an academic writing task. They may also use elaborate metaphors and other vivid expressions to enliven their speaking style."(University of Michigan. p. 10).

Moreover, academic writing avoids using the first person and more often uses the third person "he, she, or it", because the focus is on the action not on the doer. It is advised to write in full forms and avoid constructions, for example instead of using he's use he is or instead of writing doesn't write does not. Colloquial vocabulary such as "a lot of or stuff" is avoided. Also, phrasal verbs like look into are avoided; instead, it is preferred to use polysyllabic verbs like investigate.

2.2. Creative Writing 2.2.1. Definition of Creative Writing

Many of us often feel the inner power that they want to own something new and extremely
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different, change their lives to get rid of the routine, or even use self experience to create something out of the restricting rules to be extraordinary, imaginative and aesthetic. That inner power is creativity. In the world of writing, there exists a type called creative writing. So, what does this term refer to? According to Ramet (2007), Chambers Dictionary sees creative as Having the power to create, that creates, showing, pertaining to, imagination, originality ,and writing refers to The act of one who writes, that which is written, literary production or composition.(p. xi). So, Ramet sees that the term creative writing may be dened as having the power to create an imaginative, original literary production or composition."(Ibid). Creative writing has been also defined as "a journey of self-discovery and self-discovery promotes effective learning." (Gaffield-Vile, 1998, p.31). For that, creative writing has a strong link with the fact of being proud after finishing writing, because it involves cognitive skills and feelings. (Nemouchi, 2008, p34). This kind of writing includes many sub-types under its category as it is explained in Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2011):"Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems. Writing for the screen and stage, screenwriting and playwriting respectively, typically has their own programs of study, but fit under the creative writing category as well."

2.2.2. What is Needed in Creative Writing

Taking into consideration that there are no rules to govern creative writing, any writer should feel free whenever his pen gets in touch with the surface on which he writes. He should imagine
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the paper, in front of him, as an open space that has no dimension (Morley, 2007, p.1); he writes all expressions he wants. No matter how he writes them since" in the writing game we are all beginners."(Ibid, p.90). No matter when he starts or finishes writing since he creates that open space so that he is the governor of his world in which there are no rules, except those you set for yourself, and they will be many and complex."(Ibid, p.91). It is important to note that together with the inner power in creative writing, there exists also enthusiasm. In fact, enthusiasm that students feel comes as "they are writing a simple poem about someone they care about; or while they construct a narrative or tell a story of their childhood, they are investigating in their own experience in their own

experience." (Nemouchi, 2008, p.35). As a result, this can bring motivation to the student writer who will always search for the right words to describe his idea, feeling, and experience and so on in the right manner. But sometimes he feels frustrated, especially a foreign language learner when he does not find the exact word while he writes about hard describing imaginative settings. In other words, creative writing depends on but the power of words, and to Beetlestone (1998) it is of the student to start writing short productions rather than long ones, and it also important to construct creative writing gradually by smaller structured phrases and sentences after that shifting to longer ones. In order to avoid such situations, a creative student writer has many tools available to him for better composition as Morley (2007) suggests: "clarity is hard-won, and of rst importance. Economy is all. Style, above all else, is your aim, and it should show no sign of effort. Energy, in language, is eternal delight." (p.90). Similarly, to Markel (2007) the writer has not to worry about being objective, because creative writing is subjective since it depends on emotions, opinions, and self experience. Students can also enliven their language by the application of
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vivid vocabulary like adjectives and adverbs. Moreover, the writing language should be sharpened by the use of metaphors, alliteration, hyperbole, similes, and idioms (the latter being our concern in this research). In other words, they represent the figurative language that brings images, sense-impression, and pictures to the mind of the reader. Teresa Hackett (2005) provides two examples described in two different ways just to explain this notion. The first excerpt is:

'Toby was lost. He must have wandered off from his family during their morning hike because around noon he realized that he was all alone in the middle of the woods. He wasnt frightened exactly, but he was definitely anxious to find his family before evening. The thought of spending a night in the woods alone was a scary one. Heaving a sigh, Toby walked on. (p.13)

The second is 'Toby was totally lost. He must have wandered off from his family during their morning hike because around noon he realized that he was alone in the middle of the wide whispering woods. Thonk! Thunk! His feet went on the soft pine needles that covered the ground like a soft brown blanket. Birds twittered and tweeted from the sky-scraping branches of trees, but there was no sound of his family. He wasnt frightened exactly, but he was as anxious as a fish out of water to find his family before evening. The thought of spending a night in the woods alone was one that made his heart dance a fearful frenzied jig in his chest. Heaving a sigh, Toby tiredly trudged on.' (Hacket, 2005, p.13) She explains that both the passages consist of the same events and character but described in two different ways. Story one tells the adventure of Toby in an easily understandable language that contains few details and does not describe the feelings of Toby when he was lost. However, story two is more entertaining when it makes the reader involved in Toby's experience by the use
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of figures of speech. They help showing the whole picture to the audience rather than telling them. (Ibid)

2.3. The Use of Creative Language in Academic Writing

As it was mentioned, academic writing is the kind of writing that is governed by certain rules need not be deviated. Creative writing, on the other hand, is not governed by any rules. It is the type of writing where a writer has a total freedom to express himself in any way he likes using whatever expressions and words. All that matters is what he wants to say. But what if there is a chance of selling the cow and getting the milk at the same time? What if there is a possibility of writing academically and creatively. So as that title shows, and based on what many scholars have suggested, you can make academic writing more vivid by the use of creative language, and especially by including figurative language. It is unarguable that university students are supposed to write different forms (essays, reports, and dissertations, etc) in a congruent manner; yet, White and Arndt (1991) point out that, For many students writing is a chore to be got through for a grade, and to many others, not only is it a chore, but a boring one at that.(p. 11). The fact of getting bored happens because academic writing is bounded by strictness of formulating the thesis statement, topic sentence, supporting details and final comments. And as students are absolutely required to write in a clear, abstract, plain and scholarly formal language, this means for many those two aspects will be missed. The notions of creativity and style are the two aspects that Carter (1997) and Carter and McCarthy (1995) suggested to be of equal importance for the most formal essay as is traditional, formal, transactional, and objective language. Candlin and Hyland (1999) believe that academic writers and students writing academic assignments must not throw their creativity away. Hence, for the reason of attracting the reader's attention a writer
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should open the door to creativity and aesthetic style. The audience (fellow students) may be interested in the topic of a student writer but not so eager to read his essay if any or both of these aspects are absent. In other words, it is the creativity and the writing style that contribute in inviting the audience even in the most formal essays. Whitaker supports this idea by saying:" As students in the field, they are interested in your topic, but perhaps not so interested in reading a paper. So you will have to engage them with your ideas and catch their interest with your writing style." (2010, p.3). Tarnopolsky (2006) shares the same idea about the strictness of academic writing pointing that: "Writing business letters or CVs (practical writing), students cannot learn to write (or think) creatively because they have to write strictly following the existing standards and samples of similar documents that were used in teaching in order to demonstrate those standards. But when writing an essay in English, learners are supposed to express their own original ideas and find the most suitable language means for achieving this goal. It does not only develop the skill of productive writing but also the general creative communicative abilities...And since writing is the most conscious and deliberate of all communication skills, academic writing becomes a unique means for learners consciously mastering the creative, productive, and expressive approach towards communicative performance... "(p.1, 2)

According to him creative writing serves to enhance writing abilities, and even more importantly, ameliorates student's fluency and sophistication. (ibid). He also believes that creativity in academic writing is such an emulation or imitation among learners. And again, Wyrick (2002) provides learners with a technical way to improve and enliven their writing, which is figurative language. She argues that:"figurative language not only can help you to present your ideas in clear, concrete, economical ways but also can make your prose more memorable" (p.167). According to the oxford essential guide to writing, effective figures depend on total diction. It is all about your words. (1988, p.294). Thus, and again, academic writing

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should be equipped with tools like creative and figurative language to accelerate the development of the student's writing abilities or skills. We have been mentioning the figures of speech or figurative language, vocabulary, diction and style very often throughout the research and it is high time we gave them their share of explanation.

3. Vocabulary, diction and style

Since we are dealing with creativity, a master element to be mentioned here is vocabulary. Creativity can be best presented if the vocabulary is well mastered and manipulated. Barrass says: "Without words we cannot think; and we are limited in our ability to think by the number of words at our command. As we enlarge our vocabulary, and learn to construct effective sentences and paragraphs, we improve our ability to think and to express our thoughts and feelings." (2005, p. 51). A student writer should, by all means, enrich his vocabulary through frequent reading. Any book, article or even a dictionary may prove handy for this matter. And thus, the student will have more choices to express himself when writing. The vocabulary chosen then is called diction. According to Cody diction is:derived from the Latin word dictio, which refers to the choice of words. (2006, p. 75). Rozakis defines diction saying:"The words you select as you write and speak make up your diction. There are words, and then there are words. The word you want in a specific instance depends on context: your audience, purpose, and tone." (2003, p. 300). She believes that: "Successful writers adapt their language to the audience and circumstances because they know which words are appropriate in a specific situation." (ibid, p. 299). Thus, the fact that the student writer has his own diction, chooses a word over another or even a phrase or an expression and uses them the way he wants; makes his
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pieces of writing or essays different from anybody else`s. He has his own style. According to Cody style is: the choice and arrangement of words in sentences and of sentences in paragraphs as that arrangement is effective in expressing our meaning and convincing our readers or hearers. A good style is one that is effective, and a bad style is one which fails of doing what the writer wishes to do.(2006, p.295). All in all, rich vocabulary helps making one`s diction that leads to having ones own idiosyncratic style. But now, how can one make his writings most interesting and informative, and at the same time his style most enjoyable and appealing? The newest article published on line by the NCSSM Writing Program (2011), sums up and lists the criteria of successful writing that help improve one`s style in the following: Varied, precise, and appropriate diction; meaningful and highly effective sentence variety, tone appropriate for purpose and audience of essay, verbal adventurousness and self-confidence that includes: Stylistic elegance; innovative and energetic presentation and skillful use of figurative language, humor, anecdotes and rhetorical questions.

4. Figures of speech
Whenever language is simple, plain, direct, whenever it employs words in their conventional meaning, we say that it is literal. Literal comes from the Latin litera, "letter"; what is literal is according to the letter. On the other hand, Figurative means that a word has been stretched to accommodate a larger or even very different sense from that which it usually conveys. (1988, p.296). Consider, for example, this statement: "A writer's style should be purposive, not merely decorative." It is to be read literally: the words mean nothing more and
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nothing less, than what they say. In figurative language the same idea has been expressed like this: "Style is the feather in the arrow, not the feather in the cap." Figurative language or figures of speech are devices that enliven language. They include: proverbs, metaphors, similes, idioms, etc. our main concern in this research is idiomatic expressions. But to avoid any confusion between the different kinds, here are some definitions: Similes are figures of speech in which a thing is described by being likened to something usually like or as. Eg: He smells like a dead horse in August. Metaphors are expressions in which the persons, actions or things referred to, are described as if they really were what they merely resemble. Eg: Zakovic is my sunshine. Proverbs are well-known neatly-expressed sayings that give advice or express supposed truths. Proverbs contain everyday experiences and common observations in succinct and formulaic language, making them easy to remember and ready to be used Eg: Behind the Cloud the Sun Is Shining : Abraham Lincoln

Idioms: "idioms are the grease that makes the language flowthe sheer number of idioms and their high frequency in discourse, make them an important aspect of vocabulary acquisition and language learning in general.(Fernando. 1996). Cooper adds saying: since idioms are so frequently encountered in both spoken and written discourse, they require special attention in language programs and should not be relegated to a position of secondary importance in the curriculum. (1998). Thus, we have decided to devote the rest of our research to Idioms. And here is an overview. Eg: I wonder when you are going to stop having a finger in every pie. You are such a pain in the neck!

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5. Definitions of Idioms
English as any other language has phrases that cannot be understood literally. Even if you know the meanings of all the words in such a phrase and you understand the grammar completely, the total meaning of the phrase may still be confusing. These expressions are called idioms or idiomatic expressions. The older meaning of an idiom was: a form of speech peculiar to a nation or to a limited area. (Oxford Dictionary of Grammar, 1994) This is no longer correct since more and more people from all over the world are learning English. And after going through several books, articles and dictionaries; here are some definitions: Websters New World College Dictionary (fourth edition, 1999:708) outlines five senses of the term. The third sense is "a phrase, construction, or expression that is recognized as a unit in syntactic patterns or has a meaning that differs from the literal meaning of its parts taken together". The example that follows is: she heard it straight from the horses mouth. In a much simpler way, Oxford Dictionary Of English Grammar defines idioms as a group of more or less fixed words having a meaning that is not deducible from those the individual words (1994). And according to the Penguin dictionary of English idioms, an idiom is "a combination of words with a special meaning that cannot be inferred from its separate parts." (2001). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language identifies an idiom by two features. First, the meaning of the idiomatic expression cannot be deduced by examining the meanings of the constituent lexemes. Second, the expression is fixed, both grammatically and lexically. Thus, the idiom: put a sock in it!" means `stop talking`, and it is not possible replace any of the lexemes and retrain the idiomatic expression. So expressions like `put a stocking in it`
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or `put a sock on it`, must be interpreted literally or not at all. Idioms are figures of speech. And they differ from other figures, such as similes, metaphors and proverbs in that they have a conventionalized meaning. That is, they are recognized by the native speakers. (Injo, 1986).

6. Types of Idioms 6.1. According to Their Meaning 6.1.1. Literal and Non Literal Idioms
We recognize two types of idioms of this kind: The first type is an idiom which has both a literal meaning and a figurative meaning. And of course it is the figurative or metaphorical sense that is considered as an idiom. (Gulland, 02). Let us take this example from the penguin dictionary of idioms: John cannot say boo to a goose. You might think at the beginning that this is a strange thing to say. Of course it is quite possible for someone to say boo to a goose, but who would want to do such a thing? However, its idiomatic meaning is simply that John is very timid that he would not dare to make the mildest protest, no matter how bad he was treated. The second type as in the case of the following example, taken from the same source, the idiom can only have a figurative meaning. That is, no literal interpretation can be made: shall we go Dutch? This means that everyone should pay for his own meal or entertainment or has to share the expenses. Again, it is impossible to infer the meaning of the idiom from its separate words in question.

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Before moving forth with this, here is a clarification of what a figurative meaning is. According to Ponterotto: Figurative language is a language which does not mean what it says.(1994, p.2). For example if you say that a person has burnt his boats; it is just an image that refers the inability of going back home (retreat is impossible). Idioms often originate from metaphors in which figurative meaning is embedded. And it is really hard then to draw a dividing line between them. The figurativeness of an idiom is actually a characteristic that helps in the identification of idioms in general along with other characteristics such as being a lexical item having a certain peculiar collocation.

6.1.2. Transparency in meaning

According to Lewis The figurative meaning of an idiom is the criterion by which different kinds of idioms are said to range from easily interpretable to totally opaque. (1993. p.98). He adds saying that there is a continuum from transparent to opaque along which idioms are categorized. And he calls it: 'spectrum of idiomaticity'. Thus, idiom comprehensibility is related to its degree of transparency. Fernando sees that this spectrum can be divided into a four-point scale. (1996. p. 204), i.e. four degrees that are as follows.

6.1.2.1. Transparent
In this type of idioms, the idiomatic meaning is pretty close to the literal one that some scholars, namely Fernando, consider them non-idiomatic to a certain extent, as in: Think nothing of it = do not worry about it. To be a piece of cake = very easy.

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6.1.2.2. Semi-transparent
This kind of idioms is usually a metaphor, such as: To eat like a horse = in large quantities As two peas in a pod = alike. To fish for complements = want to be praised.

6.1.2.3. Semi-opaque
Here the figurative meaning becomes more detached from the meaning of the constituent elements of the idiom: To be all thumbs = clumsy. To sit on the fence = to be neutral. To be thin skinned = over sensitive.

6.1.2.4. Opaque
The meaning of the idiom is completely different of that of the individual elements. It is impossible therefore to work it out. I.e. either you know it or you simply do not, as in: To spill the beans = reveal a secret. Till the cows come home = for a long time or forever. To catch somebody off guard = unprepared.

The question to be asked now is how can one understand the meaning of an idiom especially if it is an opaque one? The best way to learn an idiom is either to see it in context or/and to check its origins and how it came into use. After putting the previous idioms in context notice how clearer they get:
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6.1.2.4.4.1. Transparent:
Eg01: - sorry, I couldnt pick up the phone. I had a meeting. -Oh! Think nothing of it. It was not important. (Do not worry about it) Eg02: -So, how was the game? Did you win? -Sure we did. It was a piece of cake. (Very easy)

6.1.2.4.4.2. Semi-transparent:
Eg01: No wonder he has a stomachache. He eats like a horse. (In large quantity) Eg02: Is this your sister? You are as two peas in a pod. (Alike) Eg03: -I am not nearly as pretty as Isabel. -what are you saying! You are a hundred times prettier! You really are fishing for complements! (Wants to be praised)

6.1.2.4.4.3. Semi-opaque:
Eg01: Do not ask Marry to help you with the cooking. She is all thumbs. (Not skillful and clumsy) Eg02: Listen mike, either you support me or you dont. You cant just sit on the fence all your life. (Avoid deciding between two sides of an argument) Eg03: I did not mean him to take my remarks so personally. He is so thin-skinned!

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6.1.2.4.4.4. Opaque:
Eg01: she has spilt the beans about your engagement. It will be all over the town by now. Eg02: you can argue about that till the cows come home. You will never agree. (Forever) Eg03: The question caught him off his guard, so he could not answer. (Was unprepared) (Our examples)

Many idioms have stories behind their use. They are usually related to the social and cultural environment in which they appeared. They are sometimes related to old stories, legends and myths. Knowing the origin of an idiom can surely help understanding it no matter how opaque it is. Examples of such idioms are:

Achilles` heel This expression was named after the old Greek hero Achilles. When he was a child, his mother dipped him into the River Styx which made him invincible. She held him by the heel, which therefore was not touched by the water. And thus it was the only vulnerable pats of his body Achilles died after being wounded by an arrow in the heel. (Oxford Idioms Dictionary. 2006. P: 2). so, now people use this expression to refer to a hidden weakness or fault in somebody that can be used against them. Eg01: Her stubbornness proved to be her Achilles heel. Eg02: He was such a successful man. What a sticky end! Being a ladies man was really his Achilles heel. I feel sorry for him.

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A ball and chain

In the past, prisoners had to wear a heavy metal ball on a chain around one leg so that they could not escape. (ibid. P: 16). Now the expression is used as an idiom to mean: a problem that prevents you from doing what you would like to do. Eg: English was as a ball and chain when I finally decided to study architecture abroad. It can also humorously mean: someone`s husband or wife as in: - I must get home to the ball and chain. She would be waiting by now. Cry wolf

Its a folk story of the shepherd boy who shouted wolf! just to frighten people, so that when a wolf did come, nobody went to help him. And thus the expression crying wolf refers to a false alarm against danger. Eg: Is the economic future really so bad? Or are the economists just crying wolf?

Sometimes, an especially for foreign students of English having similar idioms in one`s own language and culture is helpful and makes the English one easier to understand an more memorable. And they are more like old sayings: Appearance can be deceptive. As cunning as a fox. A friend in need is a friend indeed.

Which have similar expression, in terms of function, in Arabic: Almadhahir khadda3a. Makiron katha3lab. Assadik wktaddik.
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In such sentences, even if a student does not understand every single constituent word; but the general idea gets across; however, it does not always work.

6.2. According to their structure 6.2.1. Grammatical structure

This table shows the different categories of idioms according to their syntactic structure. Every idiom we encounter must fall within one of the following forms:

Form Verb+ object+ complement Prepositional phrase Simile Compound Binominal Trinomial Whole clause or sentence

Example Kill two birds with one stone In a blink of an eye As dry as a bone A bone of contention Rough and ready Cool, calm and collected To cut a long story short

Meaning To produce two useful things by just doing one action. In an extremely short time Very dry indeed Something which people argue about or disagree over Crude and lacking sophistication. Relaxed, in control not nervous. To tell the main points but not all the fine details.

Table 01: The Grammatical Structure of Idioms

6.2.2. Fixed and variable idioms

It was mentioned in the different definitions that idioms are more or less fixed expressions or phrases. So most idioms are fixed in their form, and cannot be changed or varied. Sometimes,
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however, the grammar and vocabulary can slightly be varied. According to the American Idioms Dictionary, the majority of the idioms allow four kinds of variation which are: optional items, variable elements, movable elements and grammatical variation.

6.2.2.1. Optional elements

They are words, phrases or variable elements that may or may not be present in an idiom. In some idioms adding or omitting certain words does not change its meaning at all. The optional item is usually put between parentheses in most dictionaries. Eg: Alike as (two) peas in a pod. The idiom here is actually two variants: Alike as peas in a pod Alike as two peas in a pod.

But this does not really matter since the metaphor gets across. And it is still the same idiom.

6.2.2.2. Variable elements

A variable element in an idiom is a word that can stand for a whole list or class of words or phrases. The most common ones are: someone, somebody, something, someone or something, one (The same person as the agent of the sentence), someplace (for locations). And other more specific items like: an amount of money, doing something, some time (Spears, 08)

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- To put pressure on somebody to do something. Eg: The director is putting pressure on the workers to finish their reports on time. The underlined elements can vary within the same class: somebody can be workers, children, her husbandand so can the other elements. - To be a prey to something. Eg: He was often a prey to doubt and despair. Something here can also be replaced by a large number of possible words: poverty, sadness, wolves (metaphorical)

Someone versus one

In the process of learning idioms, a student may get confused. How can `one` be different from `someone` in an idiom? So `one` simply refers to the same human being that is named as the agent or subject of the sentence in which the variable element `one` is found. The variable element `oneself` works the same way. Eg01: To be able to do something standing on one`s head. Some possible variants here are: He is able to bake cookies standing on his head. She is able to drive this car standing on her head. I am able to finish this report standing on my head.

The personal pronoun must be linked to the possessive one. So sentences like the following ones are incorrect or inappropriate
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He is able to bake cookies standing on her head. She is able to drive this car standing on his head. I am able to finish this report standing on your head

Because the idiom will be like: to be able to something standing on somebody`s head, that is someone else`s head, and this is not it. A native English speaker would instinctively know the latter sentence is wrong, but language learners might find it a little hard to tell the difference between one and someone. So, extra practice is required at this point.

6.2.2.3. Movable elements

They are usually adverbs or other particles that can either follow or precede a direct object. This mainly concerns phrasal verbs and it refers to the possibility of moving the verb`s particle before the object. (Some phrasal verbs are considered as idiom. They are the ones with a figurative meaning such as: to look after somebody, which means to take care of him/her). Examples: - keep something quiet. - Verb+ Object+ particle. Put+ your hat+ on. Take+ the trash+ out. Or Or Or Or keep quiet about something. verb+ particle+ Object. Put+ on+ your hat. Take+ out+ the trash.

We should also mention that not all phrasal verb particles are movable. For instance, it is impossible to say: I will look him after. It is rather: I will look after him.
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6.2.2.4. Grammatical variation

A good knowledge of the Basic English grammar enables the learner to reduce the plural nouns to singular, verbs to their infinitive forms and passive voice to active. And then the idiom will be easy and ready to be used.

Variation

Example

Occasionally, an idiom in the active voice can 01. Government ministers always pass the buck if they are challenged about poverty. be used in the passive. (blame someone else or refuse to accept responsibility) > 02. The buck has been passed from minister to minister. No one seems prepared to accept the responsibility. Some verb-based idioms also have non- There is too much buck passing in the compound forms. government these days. One or more words can be varied in the idiom Stop acting the fool/goat. (stop acting stupidly)

Table02. Grammatical Variety within Idioms According to Ball, the idiomatic expression does not conform to ordinary grammatical usage. You may use verb in the past or present tense to refer to a future event. Eg01: It is time we went home. (Past for future meaning) Eg02: When you come tomorrow, I will pay you back. (Present for future meaning)

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Also, the idiomatic expression is not strictly grammatical, but is well established within the native speakers. (They are mostly spoken) Eg01: It is ages since we met. (Singular with plural noun) Eg02: He is a friend of mine. (Possessive instead of personal pronoun) Some others show unusual structures. Such as: come to think of it. (1988, p. 204)

6.2.2.5. Other variations within idioms

The last point mentioned in table two needs more details. Sometimes a word in an idiom can be replaced with another. Whether one word is more used or is most recognized as an idiom; or are equally used. And the idiom, then, is defined at the first word that is fixed. Eg: A bag/a box of tricks: A set of methods or equipments that somebody can use. - The hotel managers are using a whole new bag/box of tricks to attract their guests. Some idioms have variants which belong to a particular variety of English such as American English Eg: `Eat humble pie` is a British idiom which has an American variant: Eat a crow. And they both mean: say and show that you are sorry for a mistake that you made.

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7. The use of idioms

As we have mentioned earlier in this research, figures of speech, such as idioms, play an important role in enlivening one`s essay. However, a student writer must bear in mind that the way of using and choosing them is what matters the most. Figures of speech which, according to Baratta (2004), belong to the hardly described word style cannot be viewed as right or wrong. Yet, the best side from which we should consider them is appropriateness. Moreover, it is the context that determines a figure of speech to be appropriate or inappropriate. As a result, he suggests contextual awareness to determine how much figures of speech and other literary devices are needed for an academic essay. Consequently, the excess of using figures of speech in one's academic essay will make it less formal and even not academic. Thus, a student writer should be very selective and moderate while writing. In fact, most idioms are considered informal, especially American. But most dictionaries mention whether the idiom is formal, informal or even slang. Eg01: To go ape: (to be very angry) is considered as very informal or slang. Eg02: A man of straw: (a weak or cowardly person) is a formal expression. And so on So, whenever a student learns a new idiom, he ought to check it out in a dictionary for better and appropriate use.

Conclusion
If you are sick of your simple and plain English, and you really want to write vivid and outstanding essays, idioms will do the trick. Not only they clarify ideas and concepts, they
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entertain your readers so that they take pleasure in reading the witty succinctness in which your complicated ideas are made clearer and enriched by images. So explore this aspect of language and you will be surprised by what you can learn. And remember, they say: an image is worth a thousand words

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Chapter Two: The Fieldwork.

Outline:
Introduction...36 1. Description of the population.....................36 2. Description of the Research tools.......37 2.1. The Pre-test..............................37 2.2. The Courses.....................................37 2.3. The Post-test ...............................................38 3. Description of the Pre-test results ..................40 4. Description of the Post-test results.................44 4.1. Part One...................................43 4.2. Part Two..................................43 5. Discussion of the Results...........................................47 Conclusion.......57

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Chapter Two: The Fieldwork.

Introduction
Chapter two represents the practical part of the research. It focuses on raising students` awareness about idioms and the importance of using them in their writing. The tools presented in this part are used for the requirements of the research. We designed a pre-test to check the student's knowledge about idioms. After that, we gave the students two courses as an initiative to build up their awareness about idioms and their usefulness in academic writing, giving as much information as was possible. Finally, we provided them with a post test to see whether they have taken advantage of the lessons given to them, and if they, eventually, would use idioms in writing. We have taken into consideration all the circumstances that surrounded the study. Both of the pre-test and the post test were handed to twenty of Master One students, who study English Civilization and Literature in the Department of Languages, University of Constantine. It is to be mentioned also, the interference some unwanted variables that could not, in any way, be ruled out.

1. Description of the Population

Our research population is one group of 35 Master One students of English Civilization and Literature, from the Department of Languages, University of Constantine, from which we randomly chose 20. We have purposefully selected this population on the basis that after four years of study, they have good language mastery. They are also more exposed and interested in the English culture and its different aspect, which makes understanding idioms easier.
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2. Description of the Research Tools

The tools used in this research are a set of a pre-test, two courses, and a post test.

2.1. The pre-test (See appendix 1)

It was designed to evaluate the students' knowledge about the idiomatic expressions. It is also an indirect introduction to the concept of idiom. We wanted the pre-test to be as inviting as possible to motivate students. It is divided into four units, every unit serves a purpose. Unit 1 starts from question 1 to question 4. It is a kind of warm up to the rest of the questions. It checks whether or not the students know idioms. Unit 2 includes questions 5 and 6. In this unit we provided four idioms: - Think nothing of it. - Air one's views. - Fog the mirror. - Kick the bucket. These idioms represent the four degrees of idiom transparency. They were given to check the degree of comprehensibility of idioms in isolation in question five, and then in context in question six. Unit 3 consists of question 7. It was given to present the idea of the similarity of certain idiomatic expressions between English and Arabic, and to see if this similarity will help understanding idioms. Students were to give the equivalents of the idioms provided in their mother tongue. The idioms are: 1- Once bitten twice shy. 2- All that glitters is not gold.
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3-Honesty is the best policy. The fourth unit includes question 8, in which we asked students to write paragraphs about a funny story or a terrible day they had. We wanted the topics to be light, motivating and suitable for imagination. We asked them to be creative so that they will be free to use figures of speech, precisely idioms. We hid the purpose of the pre-test in order not to influence the students' performance in any ways and get their real level and style. With the agreement of the teacher of the written production skill, the students were given half an hour of time to answer the questions. This limitation of time was done on purpose to check out the existing knowledge of students and their performance in such situation.

2.2. The courses

The results of the pre-test were as we anticipated. They showed a lack of knowledge of idioms. After getting back the students' answers of the pre-test, we devoted two courses in two different sessions for the awareness building. In the first session we started with a general feedback of the pre-test, which helped introducing the theme of our research. The second session aimed at refreshing students' knowledge about the writing skill and its two types (academic and creative writing). In addition to that, we have introduced them to the importance of using creative and figurative language in academic writing. In the end, we shed light on the idiomatic expressions as an instance of the figurative language. It was an overview that included definitions, types and classifications. In addition to some useful tips to learn, understand, memorize and appropriately use these idioms.

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2.3. The post-test

To check the effectiveness of our lectures, we designed a post-test. We were interested in knowing to things: first, whether the students knowledge about idioms has improved. Second, if so, are they going to use idioms in their writing, in the sense that they realize now their importance? Thus, the post-test was divided into two parts; in the first part we asked the students to come up with their own definitions of idioms, and then provide us with examples of idioms in isolation and in context. The examples should prove their ability of using idioms appropriately. In the second part students were asked to write an assay about one topic out of three. The three topics were: 1-Why did you choose to study English and why civilization and literature? 2-How can idioms improve your pieces of writing? Give Examples. 3-If you want to write about a topic of your choice be our guest. The reason of which topic 1 is chosen is that it is a topic anyone can write about passionately. So there is a chance of creativity that leads to the use of idioms. By writing about topic 2 students will hit the core of our research idioms, because they should be able, by now, to tell the difference between a plain simple text and an idiomatic one. Topic 3 gave them a chance to express themselves without ties and, hence, to be creative. In the post-test, however, we did not limit students by the time as in the pre-test but it rather took one day. Again, we wanted them to be comfortable for better results. Also, doing it at home gives them a chance to do more research about idioms and thus our purpose would be fulfilled.

3. Description of the Pre-test Results

The pre-test papers have been gathered from the sample students. Then the answers were
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carefully examined and analyzed. Unit One: Includes the questions from1 to 4 We wanted to know whether or not students can recognize the idiom in the joke, and if they know the term itself. Giving examples would be a prove.

Students who: Understood and explained the joke Knew the term idiom provided correct examples

Number 12/20 6/20 5/20

Rate 60% 30% 25%

Table03: Students Knowledge of Idioms

As Table03 shows, 12 out of 20 students understood the joke that included the idiom` pay attention. So, the warm up was 60% successful. The other 40% students were not able to explain the punch line. As for their knowledge of the term idiom, only 6 students could recognize the nature of the expression. This means, only 30%of them know about idioms. The students who could provide correct examples, though, were only 5 that is 25%. We noticed also that some students understood the joke and provided examples, but just could not give the term idiom. So they know the concept, yet not the terminology.

Unit Tow: includes questions 5 and 6 We aimed at knowing students degree of idiom comprehension in isolation and in context to show context effectiveness.

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Right guess of idioms in Isolation Context Number/4 Rate Number Rate 1 1 25% 4 100% 2 1 25% 1 25% 3 1 25% 1 25% 4 0 0% 4 100% 5 1 25% 3 75% 6 0 0% 0 0% 7 0 0% 3 75% 8 1 25% 0 0% 9 1 25% 1 25% 10 0 0% 3 75% 11 0 0% 0 0% 12 1 25% 1 25% 13 1 25% 4 100% 14 1 25% 1 25% 15 2 50% 3 75% 16 1 25% 1 25% 17 0 0% 1 25% 18 3 75% 3 75% 19 2 50% 3 75% 20 0 0% 1 25% Total 17 21.25% 38/80 47.5% Table4: Degree of Idiom Comprehensibility in Isolation and in Context Student

We can see that none of the students could know all the four idioms provided when they were put in isolation. Only one student out of 20 could recognize 3 idioms. That is 5% of students understood 75% of the provided idioms. Two students, who represent 10%, understood 2 idioms out of 4, that is 50% of the idioms. On the other hand, 10 students, that is half of the students, knew no more than 1 idiom, which represents a percentage of 25%. The rest of students that are 7 (35%) did not know any idiom at all. Their degree or rate of understanding those idioms is 0%. So, students degree of idiom comprehensibility in isolation is 21.25%. As for idioms in context, 3 students understood all the four idioms provided in context. This means that 15% of students were a 100% successful in understanding idioms in context. Then, 6
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students, which represent 30% of them, figured out the meaning of 3 idioms. it is a total understanding of 75%. Forty percent of students (8) had the rate of 25% when they knew only 1 idiom in context. The remaining 3 students had the percentage of 0% as they did not recognize any of the idioms. Hence, this results show a total understanding of idioms in context of 47.5%.

Unit Three: question 7 We wanted to see if students will give idiom equivalents in Arabic or French to show that the similarity of these expression help understanding idioms.

student 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Total

Right equivalent of idioms in another language Number/3 Rate 2 66.66% 1 33.33% 1 33.33% 2 66.66% 2 66.66% 2 66.66% 0 0% 0 0% 2 66.66% 2 66.66% 1 33.33% 2 66.66% 0 0% 0 0% 1 33.33% 2 66.66% 1 33.33% 2 66.66% 2 66.66% 3 100% 28 46.66%

Table5: Understanding idioms with Equivalents in Other Languages

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Table 5 displays that only one student out of 20, which represents 5%, could write the right equivalents of all the three idioms in other languages. 10 students gave the appropriate equivalent of 2 idioms out of 3, which is a percentage of 66.66%. The Table also shows that only5 students were able to find an equivalent of 1 idiom, which is a percentage of 33.33%. Four students, however, did not give any equivalent. Consequently the average of understanding idioms which are similar to others in other languages is 46.66%.

Unit Four: The paragraph was aimed to see if students will use any form of figures of speech, particularly, idioms. Out of 20 students, 06 did not even write the paragraph, which represents 30%. And only 02 of the other 14 used idioms in their paragraph, which is a percentage of 14.28%. They did not use any form of figurative language. They only used one idiom taken from the examples we gave them, which is to pay attention.

4. Description of the Post-test Results 4.1. Part One

This part of the test was designed to see if the awareness building about idioms was successful. In question one, 14 students out of the 16 who gave back their post-test papers, provided a good definition of idioms. That is a percentage of 87.5%. If we consider the 4 missing papers as unsuccessful definitions, then the total rate will be 70%. The answers of questions two and three are to show if these students know idioms well enough to provide accurate examples in an appropriate context. The results are tabulated as follows:
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Students

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Total

Examples of Idioms In isolation In context Number/4 Rate Accuracy/4 Rate 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 3 75% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 3 75% 3 75% 3 75% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 3 75% 4 100% 3 75% 4 100% 3 75% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 4 100% 3 75% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 63 78.75% 57 71.25%

Table6: Students Knowledge and Use of Idioms It is noticeable from the table above that in 15 students wrote down 4 correct idioms in isolation and gave their adequate explanations. This means that 75% of students gave a 100% good examples. Just 1 student gave 3 out of 4 good examples with their explanations; this represents 75% of idioms. The 4 missing papers were considered as null. Those 20% of students, thus, gave neither examples of idioms in isolation nor their explanation; they, therefore, have a rate of 0%. Hence, totally we have 63 correct idioms in isolation with their right meaning, which is a percentage of 78.75% of the students' knowledge and use of idioms. However, in context we can see that 9 out of 20 students succeeded in putting their four own idioms in context, that equals 45%. We noticed also that 7 students could put 3 idioms in their
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right context. That is 35% of students were 75% successful. The four remaining students did not succeed in doing this task. That represents 0%. All in all, the rate of accurately putting idioms in context is 71.25%.

4.2. Part two

Students in question 8 were asked to write an essay to see if they, after the awareness building, will use idioms frequently and accurately. As we examined the students essays, we noticed that none of them used any form of figures of speech other than idioms. Some did not include any figures of speech at all. The use of idioms was as the following table demonstrates.

Students 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Total

Idioms Frequency Accuracy 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 13 13

Table7: Frequency and Accuracy of Students Use of Idioms in the Essays

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We can see from Table 7 that only 1 student out of 20 accurately used 5 idioms in his essay. Then, 4 students accurately used 2 idioms. Two students made use of only 1 idiom in their productions. However, 13 students, including those who did not give back their papers, did not provide idioms at all in their compositions. As a result, only 13 idioms were used in 20 students essays. These results are represented in percentage in Table 8.

Number of idioms 0 1 2 5 Total/13

Number of students 13 2 4 1 Total/20

Rate 65% 10% 20% 5% Total/ 100%

Table8: Percentage of the Students Use of Idioms in the Essays

This table shows that 65% of the students did not include a single idiom in their essays. And a total of 35% of them used idiom as follows: 5% used 5 idioms, 10% used 1 idiom and 20% used 2 idioms in their essays.

5. Discussion of the Results

The results of the pre-test analysis show that students knowledge about idioms is low and limited. The fact that the percentage of students who actually knew the term idioms is 30% and that of those who gave examples is25% as table 3 shows, proves that there is a lack of awareness and knowledge of idioms amongst these students. As for unit 2, which was represented in Table4, it shows that the percentage of students understanding of idioms in context (47.5%) is
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higher than that of idioms in isolation (21.25%). This is an evidence of the usefulness of context in understanding idioms. The rate is not very high itself, so depending on context alone is not enough. Table 5, on the other hand, shows a similar percentage of understanding idioms in comparison to other languages which is 46.66%. Here, many students were able to identify the equivalent idiom in Arabic and in French which helped them understand the English idiom. So, comparing idioms might be another method to understand idioms if context does not help. As for the paragraphs, the very low rate of using idioms which is 14.28% and the fact that none of them used any form of figurative language other than idioms, is again a sign of students lack of awareness of idioms and the importance of using them for better writing. That is why their paragraphs were really plain and simple. The other 30% of the students, though, did not write a single word because of the lack of time. All in all, these students were in need of an awareness building about idioms and writing. Then next step was an attempt to raise their awareness via courses. Our lectures were only a small introduction that resulted in the following. The pos-test results show that 70% of the students were successful in writing their own definitions of idioms. Also, 80% were able to give good examples of idioms in isolation with their meanings, a percentage of78.75%. Most of those idioms were put in an appropriate context (71.25%); Even though we considered the score of those who did not return the test papers as null. These results are considerably high and show a great improvement in students knowledge and mastery of idioms. This means that the idioms awareness building was, though short, effective and fruitful. On the other hand, they essay results were unexpected. After having given the students enough time (a whole day) to write; only 35%of them used idioms in their writing ranging from 1 to 5 idioms only. The other 65% of them have not used a single idiom or any figurative language of any kind. And their style was neither academic nor creative, not even a
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combination of both as we wanted an expected. In our assumption, this is either because the idea of using idioms is still new to them, or the concept is too vague so they need more time and practice; or the awareness building was not deep enough to make them use idioms. The first assumption is more probable because the results of the first part of the pre-test prove that these students have acquired a great deal of knowledge in the courses and they successfully understood what idioms were about. Also, we think after going over their written productions that their level of English is not is it is supposed to be and they need to work on their grammar and diction weaknesses. Furthermore, the awareness building was only an introduction to idioms and their role in enlivening essays. And the purpose was to motivate them and push them to investigate more if they wanted to enhance their writing abilities. Our goal was reached since the first part was successfully done. In a nutshell, our first hypothesis is confirmed. That is if the students are introduced to idioms, then their ability of understanding and appropriately using idioms will be higher. This has been proved. Yet, the second hypothesis which is: if they know idioms well enough they will use them in their writing which will make their essays more expressive, beautiful, entertaining and prestigious, was disconfirmed. So maybe they just did not know them well enough. Also knowing idioms does not necessarily mean that a student will use them.

Conclusion
To conclude, students knowledge of idioms could be improved through light, energetic and motivating lectures. Yet students should make their own effort and investigate more. But if they really want to enhance their writing abilities they must work on their weaknesses, apply what they learn, and practice writing whenever possible.

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General Conclusion and Recommendations

Our study is devoted to check and improve students awareness of idioms and their importance in enlivening their essays. As an attempt to motivate them to make their own researches about the issue being a very vague, yet an interesting one. The main questions we were to answer are whether Master One students of English Civilization and Literature know idioms and if they do know them, why dont they use them in writings. This is what led us to question whether an awareness building will make them use idioms to write better essays. Thus, we came up with two related hypotheses that are: if Master students of English are to idioms, then their ability of understanding and appropriately using idioms will be higher. And if they know idioms well enough they will use them in their writing which makes their essays more expressive, beautiful, entertaining and prestigious.

Before getting into practice, we have presented an overview of writing and idioms represented by Chapter One. The aim behind this theoretical part is to shed lights on the nature of writing, its two types academic and creative writing, in addition to the nature of idioms, their types, and then the use of creative language in academic writing by the inclusion of idioms. Chapter Two, our fieldwork, included a thorough description or the research tools that were a pre-test and a post-test. It also described an important step in the research which is the two awareness building courses given to students. The results were analyzed and helped us determine the efficiency of our work. At first, the majority of students lacked knowledge of idioms as a term and concepts. Their essays were simple and did not include any kind of figurative language. Yet, after the courses,
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their knowledge and mastery of idioms has improved a great deal, which confirmed our first hypothesis. Their essays on the other hand did not witness the same rate of improvement. Their style was still the same and the idioms were almost absent. These results have disconfirmed our second hypothesis. We finally concluded by justifying these results by the lack of time which was a major limitation of our study. Also, improving one essay does not happen overnight. Students are recommended to practice writing more and investigate more to get their essays to the level that suits them as Master students In the light of our findings, we recommend the following: For better results in the future, the awareness building should be deeper and should include numerous sessions of guided practice. This is as far as Master students are concerned.

For even better results, the awareness building should start from students first year so that by the time they graduate, both their spoken and written productions will be better.

We hope that our work was a good eye-opener and that it has helped to have insight into the use of idioms in writing. We also hope that it will help learners as well as teachers reconsider their stand vis-a-vis creative writing and idioms.

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References
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Fernando, C. (1996). Idioms and Idiomaticy. London: OUP. Gaffield-vile, N. (1998). Creative Writing in ELT Classroom. New York: Harcourt. Hackett, T. C. (2005). Using Figurative Language. New York: Prufrock Press Inc. Haward, J. (1987). Idioms In American Life. Chicago, illinois, usa: The language institute. the National College of Education. Haward, J. (1998). Idioms in American Life. New jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc. Hopkins, J. U. (s.d.). Retrieved February 2011, from What is Academic Writing: w.w.w. uta.fi/FAST/ FIN/ RESEARCH/acadwrit. Html Howell, D. M. (2002). The Penguin Dictionary of English Idioms. London: Penguin. Kane, T. S. (1988). The Oxford Essential Guide to Writing. New York: Berkley edition. Langacker, W. R. (1968). Language and Its Structure, Some Fundamental Linguistic Aspects. San Fransisco: Harcourt, brace and World, Inc. Lewis, M. (1993). The Lexical Aproach, the Stage of ELT. London: LTP. Markel, M. H. (2007). Technical Writing. Boise State: Micron Technology Foundation MGulland, D. (2002). The Penguin Dictionary Of English Idioms (second edition ed.). London: The pinguin group. McCarthy, M. (2001). English Idioms In Use. Cambridge University Press. Morley, D. (2007). The Cambridge Introduction to Creative Writing. Cambridge: Camnbridge University Press.
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NCSSM, W. P. (2011). Features of the General Holistic Rubric for Academic Writing NCSSM Writing Program. Retrieved April 2011, from www.dlt.ncssm.edu/write_prog/.../wp_rubric_rev051805.pdf Nemouchi, Abdelhak. (2008). Writing Connection with Grammar and Literature in the Study Organization of the L.M.D System at the University of Constantine. Ph.D. Algeria. Oxford. (1994). Oxford Dictionary of Grammar. New York: Harcourt. Oxford. (2006). Oxford Idioms Dicitionary fro Leraners of English. new York: Penguin. Ramet, A. (2007). Creative Writing: How to unlock your imagination, develop your writing skills- and get published. Oxford: How to Books Ltd. Reading Manipulatives, Inc. Tips for teachers. (2011). Retrieved March 2011, from IdiomsFigurative language: w.w.w.w. readskill.com Rozakis, L. E. (2003). The Complete Idiot's Guide to Grammar and Style. New York: Penguin Group Inc. Spears, R. (2007). Essential American Idioms Dictionary (second edition ed.). New York, usa: McGraw-Hill. Swick, E. (1999). American Idioms and Some Phrases Just For Fun. New York, Hauppauge, USA: Barron`s Educational Series, Inc. Tarnopolsky, O., Kozhushko, S., Rudakova, M. (2006). Writing Academically. A Coursebook for Teaching Academic Writing in English to Students of Linguistic Tertiary Educational Institutions. Kyiv: INKOS.

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Thaiss, C. a. (2006). Dynamic Disciplines: the Academic Writing Life. Portsmouth. The Longman Pocket Idiom Dictionary. (2001). Edinbrugh Gate: England. University of Michigan's English Language Institute. (2011). Academic Writing for Graduate Students. Retrieved April 27, 2011, from www.kantakji.com/fiqh/Files/Research/t164. Thomas, K. J. (2006). idioms figures of Speech or What. SIL International . Wales, T. U. (2011). Academic Writing. Retrieved April 16, 2011, from

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Appendices

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Appendix A The pre-test

Do please answer the following questions! - My uncle is so cheap that he would never let his children go to school. - Why? - Because they have to pay attention.

1-Did you understand the joke? .............................................................................................................................................. 2-What is so fun about it (punch line)? ............................................................................................................................................................ .................................................................... 3-Do you know how to call this expression "to pay attention"? ............................................................................................................................................................ .................................................................................................................................. 4-Do you have other examples? ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ..................................................................................................................... 5-Guess the meaning of the following expressions! -Think nothing of it. ............................................................................................................................................... -Air one's views.
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............................................................................................................................................... -Fog the mirror. ............................................................................................................................................... -Kick the bucket. ............................................................................................................................................... 6-Now read these examples! Did you make the right guess? If not write your second guessing. -Sorry I didn't make it to the party yesterday. Oh, think nothing of it. I know you had a lot of work ............................................................................................................................................................ .................................................................................................................................. -When we visit aunt Marry I hope you won't air your views the way you did last time. You will only annoy her if you do. ............................................................................................................................................................ .................................................................................................................................. -Look! I don't need an athlete to do this job! Anybody able to fog the mirror will do fine. ............................................................................................................................................................ .................................................................................................................................. -Oh! My grandfather? He kicked the bucket a long time ago. I don't even remember him. ............................................................................................................................................................ .................................................................................................................................. 7-Do you know these expressions? Can you give their meaning in another language? -Once bitten twice shy. ...............................................................................................................................................
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- All that glitters is not gold. ............................................................................................................................................... -Honesty is the best policy. ............................................................................................................................................... 8-Write a paragraph telling us about a funny story that happened to you or a terrible day you had! Be creative. ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................................................................

Thank you!
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Appendix B The post test I. Part one

01. Based on what you have studied in class, can you come up with your own definition of idioms? .. 02. Give us four examples of idioms and their meanings. 03. Put them in context be it a single sentence, a dialogue
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II.

Part two

Essays

Write about one of these topics 01. Why did you choose to study English and why civilization and literature? 02. How can idioms improve you pieces of writing? Give examples. 03. If you want to write about a topic of your choice be our guest.
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 Thanks for your cooperation

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Appendix C Idioms provided in the research

-To have a finger in every pie: to be involved in everything that happens. -To hear something straight from the horses mouth: information received from someone whose testimony cannot be questioned. -Would not say boo to a goose: to be shy and afraid of upsetting or annoying people. -To go Dutch: to share the costs of a meal, etc. equally with somebody else. -To burn ones boats: do something that makes it impossible to return to the previous situation. -Think nothing of it: do not worry about it. -To be a piece of cake: to be very easy. -To eat like a horse: to eat in large quantities -As two peas in a pod: alike. -To fish for complements: want to be praised. -To be all thumbs: to be clumsy. -To sit on the fence: to be neutral. -To be thin skinned: to be over sensitive. -To spill the beans: to reveal a secret. -Till the cows come home: for a long time or forever. -To catch somebody off guard: to catch him unprepared. -Achilles` heel: somebodys weakness which can be used against him. -A ball and chain: an obstacle.
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-To cry wolf: to give a false alarm against danger. -An eye for an eye: a like punishment. -All that glitters is not gold: not everything that seems good is actually good. -As cunning as a fox: very cunning indeed. -A friend in need is a friend indeed: a friend who helps you when you are in trouble is a real friend -To kill two birds with one stone: To produce two useful things by just doing one action. -In a blink of an eye: In an extremely short time. -As dry as a bone: very dry indeed. -A bone of contention: Something which people argue about or disagree over. -Rough and ready: Crude and lacking sophistication. -Cool, calm and collected: Relaxed, in control not nervous. -To cut a long story short: To tell the main points but not all the fine details. -To be a prey to something: to be harmed or affected by something bad. -To be able to do something standing on one`s head: do something easily. -keep something quiet: not to tell anybody. -To look after somebody: to take care of somebody. -Eat humble pie or Eat a crow: to be sorry for a mistake that you made. -A bag/a box of tricks: A set of methods or equipments that somebody can use
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-To pass the buck: to blame someone else or refuse to accept responsibility. -Stop acting the fool/goat: stop acting stupidly. -To go ape: to be very angry. -A man of straw: a weak or cowardly person. -In a nutshell: express something in a very clear way, using few words. -Be my guest: to give somebody the permission to do something they asked for. -Air one's views: to express your opinion freely, often in inappropriate situation. -Fog the mirror: to be alive -Kick the bucket: to die -Once bitten twice shy: if something has gone wrong once, you are very careful not to let it happen again.

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Appendix D Students Provided Idioms

On the breadline Golden hand cuffs In the bag The ebb and flow Come out of the blue Go to town on something In/ out of touch Step down Call it a day Rough and ready Get a move on Brain box A good few years Have something at one finger tips With flying colors Thats it Be our guest Like an old lady When it rains it pours After all Back your brain Get on ones high horse A bolt from the blue Cat got ones tongue It runs in the family Let something/ someone go Come to your senses At sea As such Race against the clock To eat ones heart out To fill someones shoes To bark up the wrong tree Stick in the mud From scratch To see eye to eye Fade away By the book To walk on air Very poor a promise of money Certain that something is to be achieved The repeated movement or change Appear suddenly Spend money invite many people, energy Having no recent news of somebody Give position, authority to somebody Decide to stop doing something Simple, prepared quickly but good enough Hurry Very intelligent Quiet a lot Ready for easy access and use With great success Had enough To give permission to somebody Lazy and lacks energy When something goes wrong, so do others Used when you explain something Try so hard to remember Act arrogantly Receive unexpected news Cant speak because you are shy Something many members of a family share Stop holding it/ him Stop behaving in an unreasonable way Sailing in a ship As the word is usually understood Work fast because of a deadline To be jealous to replace him Take the wrong choice Cant change your serious nature From the beginning When people agree on something Disappear slowly Strictly following the rules Be very happy
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To have finger in every pie To give a damn Passed away At the top of your lungs Fog the mirror Pave the way

Be involved in everything that happens To care about something or someone Died Speak loudly Be alive Make the arrival of someone or something easier

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