An Analysis of Attitude Resources in the Reading Materials of New Horizons College English (4th Edition) from the Perspective of Eco-linguistics

Abstract

This study examines the attitude resources in six ecologically themed texts from New Horizons College English (4th Edition) from the ecological discourse perspective. Using the UAM Corpus Tool software for annotation and statistical analysis, combined with qualitative and quantitative methods, the study investigated the distribution of attitude resources and the ecological orientation in the texts. Two findings emerged in the results. In terms of the distribution of attitudes, a relatively balanced distribution was observed among affect, judgement, and appreciation, with each subsystem emphasizing certain constituent within itself: the highest proportion of insecurity/security in affect resources reflects editors’ concerns about ecological crises; negative evaluations in judgement resources reflect critical attitude toward behaviors that harm nature; and negative evaluations in appreciation resources express editors’ dissatisfaction with the current ecological situation. In terms of ecological orientation, the three types of attitudes were relatively evenly distributed, with negative resources being used most. In practical implications drawn from the study, it is proposed that textbook compilers should enhance ecological awareness, increase the proportion of texts with ecological beneficial attitudes, and enhance the topical coverage of ecological topics, so as to improve the guidance and enlightening nature of the textbooks in ecological teaching.