STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEMS
Taking the existing criticism as a starting point, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison  explores how Pecola, the black  protagonist, becomes a representati”e of whole world’s marginal, neglected childhood and resultant devastation of individual talents.She suffers throughout her life negligence of parents, deprivation of love in the past, and madness in present and future. In her case not only the society but also her parents are the major problem subject to  blamed.Her mother rejects her as ugly and her father rapes her hence Pecola and her mental unhingeness are symbolic of how many a youth talent gets sacrificed because of blind adoration and adaptation of popular culture..
 

THE SOCIETY AND THE GIRL CHILD IN THE BLUEST EYE BY TONI MORRISON AND KAINE AGARYS YELLOW YELLOW

CHAPTER ONE

1.1 INTRODUCTION

According to Cambridge dictionary, society is defined as a particular community of people who share the same customs, law etc. It is also defined as the state of being with other people. (1129).
A girl child is described as a female child between infancy and early adulthood. During this period of the development of the girl child, she is under the custody and supervision of adults who may be her parents or guardians and siblings who are older and more mature than she is. The girl child is easily influenced by her experiences as she develops. She models her behaviour during this development process though observations and imitations of those she depends on, and her physical, mental and emotional development start and reach their peak within this stage.
In attempting to establish the relationship between the society and the girl child, we ask certain pertinent questions relating to how she child is received and related with in her contemporary society. What are the struggles, challenges and oppression faced by the girl child? What are the factors that foist on the girl child such challenges and oppression?
From the family circle to the public sphere, the girl child has suffered much hardship and has been greatly dehumanized. This is due to the fact that she is regarded as inferior to her brother. She is devalued and as Buchi Emecheta portrays her, she is a second class citizen in a society ruled by male chauvinism. In especially most African societies, the girl child has been consigned to an inferior status for which she constantly wears a daunted image. This inferiority is as a result of the patriarchal ideology in the society which bestows undue self importance on the male child. The result of this is that, men do everything to undermine the women in order to arbitrarily institute value and ideologies in the society. The African society and the diaspora is a society with a tradition that bestows importance to the male folk, neglecting the female folks. This patriarchal ideology has influenced the way the girl characters are projected by male writers in their literary texts. In most literary works, female characters always wear one of these images: prostitute, girlfriend, courtesans, and workers and are evident in these novels: Clara is Obi‟s lover in Chinua Achebe‟s No long at Ease: Elsie in A Man of the People by Achebe is Odili‟s girlfriend and later becomes chief Nanga‟s girlfriend; and also in Chimamanda‟sHalf of a Yellow Sun, we see Olama as Odenigbo‟s lover. These images of female character credits Chukwumma‟s assertion.
The female character in African fiction… is a facile lack luster human being, the quiet member of a household only to bear children, unfulfilled if she does not, and handicapped if she bears only daughters… Docility and complete submission of will is demanded and enacted from her. (Chukwuma 1990; 131)
They construct the girl character as a passive and inconsequential object. The male writers communicated a picture of the girl child as one whose destiny is subject to the whims of her male folk.
Our primary source will be used in carrying out this research. Attention will be paid to the womanist tenet that throws some light in the oppression of the girl child as portrayed in African literature. Womanism is referred to as the black‟s concept of feminism. Coined by Alice walker, it is meant to account for the survival of the black people. (Walker 1984;89) Womanism upholds respect for the family units by Africans both in the continent and in the diaspora. Womanism is communal in its orientation and goes beyond the husband and wife context. This ideology of womanism caused Africans and African-Americans to present the struggle of the black woman in her society. This is presented through the text of Toni Morrison and KaineAgary: The Bluest Eye and Yellow Yellow respectively.
Writers are mostly influenced by their environment and circumstance in history which helped to shape their society. We should agree that Toni Morrison and Kaine Agary portray their society through their work. With reference to Morrison’s The Bluest Eye and Kaine Agary’s Yellow Yellow, it will be just to state that the oppression and hardship faced by the girl child is as a result of the dreadful and traumatizing encounter between Africans and the white racists. It is believed that the encounter between the whites and Africans has left Africans in the continent and the diaspora with disconcerting problems. These issues are as a result of the dreadful means in which the encounter occurred: Slavery, colonialism. A short detailed review on the historical background of both authors will be the peg to tie the goat as Achebe would put it. Toni Morrison is the pre-eminent African-American female writer, while Kaine Agary is one of Nigeria‟s leading contemporary writers.

Toni Morrison: Biography and Historical Background

Toni Morrison was born Chloe Anthony Wofford in Lorain, Ohio in 1931. Her father, George Wofford, was a shipyard welder and her mother, Ramah Willis Wofford, raised the family. Her family migration from the south & North is much like the migration of the Breedloves in The Bluest Eye. Morrison was the second of four children. She grew up listening to folklore in her family and community: tales of slave times, emancipation tales dealing with racism of the white majority and tales of supernatural elements. Morrison married a Jamaican architect, Harold Morrison.
The setting of The Bluest Eye is Lorain, Ohio in 1941, and the rural south in the early 20th century. The novel begins after the great depression. Economic security was of importance for African-Americans, who have fewer opportunities than the majority of their white counterparts. (www.cliffsnotes.com).
In the early 19th century, after the abolition of slavery, the blacks suffered great dehumanization. They were then the descendants of Africans captured and bundled into America as slaves. These captured slaves were forced to till the plantation of the white land owners. They farmed and produced crops such as sugar, cotton, indigo, and other tropical products. After the abolition of slavery, they were given the rural region of the society. Their environment lacked the basic amenities to survive and coupled with their slave background, life was unbearable and their region was marked by poverty. The blacks were racially discriminated upon; having no work to do in the white environment which was urban and had all the basic amenities. Competition for survival became extremely difficult and heightened, leaving their occupants with no alternative means of survival, forcing them to resort to diverse forms of crimes as over drinking prostitution, incest, wife beating, as a means for relief from the unremitting harsh condition.

Kaine Agary: Biography and Historical Background

Kaine Agary was born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. She lived most of her life in Port-Harcourt and then moved to the United States of America. She lives at present in Lagos, Nigeria, where she is the editor of Takai magazine. Agary holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in sociology and economics from Mount Holyoke College, U.S.A

The setting of Yellow Yellow is the oil region of Nigeria, Port Harcourt to be precise. In the early 19th century, Nigeria was invaded by the British under the guise of religion. They took over the traditional governing system, discarded and eclipsed our tradition, and referred to Nigerians as barbaric. They exploited both human and natural resources –men and women were captured as slaves and transported to their home to cultivate and till their land, while the resources were used in developing their society. By 1937, oil exploration started in Nigeria and was pioneered by the shell development company of Nigeria limited which was based in Warri. In the course of exploration, the first well was drilled in 1951 at the North east of Warri where oil was discovered by shell in commercial quantities at Oloibiri, in the then Rivers State. Pipeline connection was constructed between Oloibiri and Port Harcourt which saw the first cargo of crude oil leave Niger Delta in 1958. Production was at 6,000 barrels per day and this implies that the oil industry was solely responsible for 95% of the nation‟s foreign exchange earnings and shell was the major contributor.
Based on the review of the biography and historical background of both authors, it will be appropriate to state that the struggles, and the experiences, of the girl child is as a result of the encounter with the whites which has degraded and under developed the African society. Slavery is regarded as the worst human experience, followed by colonialism, due to the high rate of maltreatment, oppression and human right violation which was prevalent. There was also high rate of exploitation –human beings were traded for western products such as guns, mirrors, pots etc and resources were transported to their home for development of the western world. These pernicious activities according to economic historians played a major role in the development of capitalism. Despite having gained freedom and independence, the presence of the western world is still very much felt in the contemporary African society. The whites continue segregation, racism, setting standards and imposing ideologies upon the blacks. They also monopolize economic activities, thus preventing and restricting development within the white urban settlement. They impose standard for measuring and qualifying beauty: whiteness, thereby displacing the black identity at the bottom of the social hierarchy. This makes blacks develop disdain for themselves. All these means by the white to remain imperial over blacks, was what has exiled the girl child into an endless struggle as she encounters oppression within her society. This is what Morrison tries to depict and fight using her book The Bluest Eye.
Also in the African continent, the western grip is still very much felt. Neo colonialism is the continuation of colonialism, but without the use of force or weapons as is the case in classic colonialism. Neo Colonized states are politically independent, but economically dependent. The whites still continue to control the economic activities of Africa by placing African bourgeoisies in key positions to ensure their dominance over their colonies. By so doing, African continent remain dependent on the West. This is what Agary depicts and communicates in Yellow Yellow, with particular emphasis on the predicament of the girl-child.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
The girl child has been consigned to a position of inferiority and she faces series of oppression and struggle as a result of societal anomalies.
The African continent is dependent on the western world today; most decisions made by African leaders are to some extent influenced by the western world and there are little or no black indigenous entrepreneurial class as compared to the whites which is evident in the Forbes world ranking or world‟s richest men. The African continent is racked by affliction, disaster, macro-economic crisis, corruption, high level illiteracy, squalor, hunger and other destabilizing conditions by the white in cahoots with a greedy, unpatriotic ruling class.
The wests describe everything black as evil, which has made blacks to hate themselves and loose their dignity and self-worth. The African continent, with so much natural resources, is still marked by poverty and disharmony and are regarded as third world countries. According to Bill Moyer:
You have seen what happen when the primitive societies are unsettled by white man‟s civilization, they go to pieces they disintegrate, they become deceased. (The Power of Myth 1, 2)
In The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, we see Pecola embarking on acquiring blue eyes as a result of the imposed standard and ideal of beauty and this imposed standard has affected how she is received by her society.
Also in Yellow Yellow by Kaine Agary, we see how the activities of the western oil company destroyed the dreams of the girl (Zilayefa) and her entire society and have deprived them of a better life, exiting them into endless struggle as a result of political and economic marginalization ravaging the Niger Delta.
1.3 AIMS AND OBJECTIVE
With this project, we aim to redeem Africans from embarking on a journey to the white man‟s racist ideologies and values.
To redeem blacks from the internalized self-hate and loss of dignify as a result of the white ideals is our major preoccupation.
To portray that the challenges of environmental degradation, poverty, lack of amenities evident in the black society have a great impact on the female folk, especially the girls.
1.4 SCOPE OF STUDY
This research work deals with the society and the girl child. It entails textual analysis of the two text; The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison and Yellow Yellow by kaine Agary.
1.5 RESEARCH METHOD
The primary and main source of information includes articles and works on slavery, colonialism and neocolonialism, the girl child internet materials and other written research work.
REFERENCES
Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. London: Heinemann, 1958
Adichie, Chimamanda.Purple Hibiscus. Lagos: Farafina, 2000
Agary, kaine.Yellow Yellow. Lagos: Dtalkshop, 2006
Angelou, Maguerite. I know Why The Caged Bird Sing. New york: penguin, 1969
Chukwuma, H. Feminism and African Literature. Enugu: New Generation, 1994
Emecheta, Buchi. The Joys of Motherhood. New York: Braziller, 1979
Fanon, Frantz. The Wretched of the Earth. Great Britain: penguin, 1967
Jonathan, Brown. Niger Delta: issues of oil spills after 50 years 25, August 2012. www.independent.co.uk
Kwame, Nkurumah. Neo-colonialism, the last stage of imperialism. London: Thomas Nelson and books, Limited, 1961
Morrison, Toni. The Bluest Eye.USA: plume, 1970
Nwoga, Dr. Literature and modern West African culture. Benin: Ethiopia publication corporation, 1979
Wa Thiong’o, Ngugi.Devil on the Cross. London: Heinemann,1982
Wa Thiong’o. Ngugi.Moving the Castle: The struggle for cultural freedom. Oxford: James Currey, 1993.
Walker, Alice. Color Purple.USA. Harcourt Brace: JovanovIch, 1943
Walker, Alice. In search of our mother’s garden. London: The Women’s Press, 1983.
INTERNET
www.cliffnotes.com/thebluesteye. 25,August 2012
www.google.com/articles/ngugiwathiog‟o/decolonizingthemind.28,August 2012
UNPUBLISHED WORK
Aneke,Ejike. A Lecture on literature and Society.2012

ANALYSIS OF SELECTED INAUGURAL SPEECHES OF NIGERIAN CIVILIAN AND MILITARY HEADS OF STATE

ABSTRACT

This work centered on Critical Discourse Analysis of Selected Inaugural Speeches of Nigerian Civilian and Military Heads of State. Critical Discourse Analysis is an indispensable tool in exploring opaque language uses that are assumed by writers as part of the background knowledge (Fairclough, 1985) and how the opacity of relations between discourse and society is itself a factor in securing power and hegemony (Fairclough, 1995; van Dijk, 2009). The practice of CDA in unravelling the opacity is also done critically by looking at the composite of the linguistic elements in the data.The study,therefore, is aimed at analysing the inaugural speeches of the Nigerian civilian and military Heads of State using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) with a view todetermining the pattern of the speeches of the Military and Civilian Heads of State; identify how the speeches convey the feelings/emotion of the Military and Civilian Heads of State; gauge the ideological inklings of the speakers in the speeches;establish how power is manifested in the speeches; measure how hidden meanings relate to social structure and identities of the Civilian and Military Headsof State in the speeches. Reviews of empirical and conceptual studies related to Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) were conducted. The study adapted van Dijk (1993), Wodak (2001) and Fairclough (1989) as theoretical framework. In that regard, the research used Franklin (2000) method of essay structural layout,Johnson-Liard and Oatley‘s (1989) method of classification of language of emotion, van Dijk (1996) classification of ideology, Ng and Bradac‘s (1993) method of classification of power relations, Samovar et al (2007) classification of identityin analysing the data. On the structural pattern of the speeches, the Civilian Presidents were found to express gratitude using words denoting honour and elation to God and to the citizens through greetings. The speeches contained paragraphs that are narrative, expository, persuasive and promissory. The sentence types used included compound, complex and compound-complex sentences. In respect of the Military, the research showed that the Military Heads of State started also with greetings but entailing nerve racking and emotionally touching words and expressions. Their sentence types included compound, complex and compound- complex sentences. The tones they expressed were accusatory, abhorrence and gimmickry. The Civilian Presidents used Positive Basic Emotion and Positive Caused Emotion Expressions in their inaugural speeches. While the military used Negative Emotional Relations and Causative and Emotions Expressions in their speeches. Also, the research found out that Civilian Presidents expressed ideological beliefs of unity in diversity, fight against corruption and indiscipline and nation building. While the military expressed ideological beliefs of nation building and negative-other- presentation, the civilian presidents were found to express Positive-self Presentation, persuasion through personality and stance, persuasion through reasoning, persuasion through arousal of emotion, implicit threat and appeal as show of power in their speeches. While the military Heads of State expressed Positive-self Presentation, persuasion through reasoning, explicit threat and appeal as a mark of power. In relation to hidden meaning relating to social structure and identity of the speakers, the Civilian Presidents employed personification, irony, ellipsis, vague statements, deceptive statement, false promises etc. While the Military portrayed hidden meanings through negative-other presentation, hyperbole, euphemism, metonymy, adjective, conditional clauses, passivisation etc. in their inaugural speeches.The research recommends that the speeches should be appropriately documented and be subjected to linguistic analysis. More methods in Critical Discourse Analysis should be employed to conspicuously clear the opacity in the inaugural speeches. The inaugural speeches should be made constitutional because of the significance Nigerians attach to it.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Abstract       ix
• CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
•             Background to the Study    1
•             Statement of the Research Problem            12
•             Research Questions 13
•             Aim and Objectives of the Study   13
•             Significance of the Study   14
•             Scope of the Study  14
• CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
•             Introduction            16
•   Conceptual Review
•             The Critical Discourse Analysis Framework           19
•             CDA Framework by Hodge and Gunther Kress    21
•             CDA Framework by Teun van Dijk            22
•             CDA Framework by Theo van Leeuwen    25
•             The Other Side of CDA      26
•             The Strength of Critical Discourse Analysis           30
•             Theories in Critical Discourse Analysis       32
•             Language and Politics         33
•             Inaugural Speeches 34
•             Inaugural Speech and Antecedent  35
•             Presidential Inaugural Speech         37
•             Inaugural Speech and Nigerian Military Leaders    40
•             The Structural Pattern of Inaugural Speeches         43
•             Politics and Military Discourse       46
•          Military Discourse      50
•             Language and Emotive Use of Language   51
•             Language and Emotion       53
•             Basic Emotional Terms        54
•             Emotional Relations            56
•             Caused Emotions    58
•          Causatives and Emotions       59
•          Emotional Goals         60
•          Complex Emotions     61
•             Emotion in Politics  63
•             Ideology in Political Discourse       65
•          Types of Ideology      68
•          Reality of Ideology    70
•          Ideology in Linguistic Theory            71
•          Language and Ideology         72
•          Ideological Structures of Discourse   73
•          Ideological Discourse Analysis          73
•          Discourse Analysis of Political Ideology       79
•             Power Relations in Political Discourse        80
•             Theories of Power   83
•             Political Power and Forms of Society         88
•             Political Discourse and Power Relation      89
•          Power Relations         91
•             Persuasion as Element of Power Relations 92
•             Persuasive Techniques in Power Relation   93
•             Threat as Element of Power Relations        94
•             Abuse/Insult as Element of Power Relations         95
•          Appeal as Power Relation      97
•            Manipulation as Power Relation      98
•   Devices of Manipulation of Meaning
•            Promise as Power Relations 99
•             Language and Identity        100
•          Identity Defined        101
•          Multiple Identities      102
•          Categorization of identity      103
•          Identity Construction 107
•             Linguistic Resources for Identity Construction      108
•             Linguistic Identity  110
•             Review of Empirical Studies on Language and Politics
•             Theoretical Framework       123
• CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
•             Introduction            127
•             Research Design      127
•             Population of the Research 127
•             Sample for the Study          128
•             Sampling Procedure            128
•   Source of Data
•             Method of Data Collection 130
•             Procedure and Method of Data Analysis   130
• CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION OF DATA AND ANALYSIS
•            Introduction            132
•            Structural Layout of the Inaugural Speeches          133
• Inaugural Speeches and Emotions of the Civilian Presidents and Military Heads of State
• Inaugural Speech and Ideological Beliefs of the Civilian and Military Heads of State
• Power Relations in Inaugural Speeches of the Civilian Presidents and Military Heads of State
•   Hidden meanings as Related to Social Structure and Identities of the Speakers Portrayed in both Speeches
• Findings/Discussion
• CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
•   Summary
•   Conclusion
•   Suggestions for Further Studies
•   Contributions of the Research to Knowledge
• References
• Appendices

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

     Background to the Study

 
This researchcentreson Critical Discourse Analysis of Selected Inaugural Speeches of Nigerian Civilian and Military Heads of State. The researcher was prompted to undertake the research by some factors. Firstly, the significance Nigerians attach to inaugural speech despite the fact that it is not enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution for the Head of State to deliver any speech after Oath of Allegiance and Oath of Office.Nigerians eagerly await the president to deliver the inaugural speech for it informs them the focus of the new government. Therefore, the speech is considered paramount and a reference material for gauging the government‘s performance. Secondly, the history of the role of military in the political scene of Nigeria seems to be unknown to upcoming generation.The military intervened in the Nigerian polity since the First Republic and as a result, there were more military heads of state than the civilian presidents. They have also made influenced on the Nigerian political, economic and social systems. The upcoming generation may be obscured of this influence with time. Therefore, it is not only history that should keep the records of the military role in the Nigerian politics but also linguistic research.And thirdly, extensive comparative research between the inaugural speech of the Civilian and Military Heads of State was not carried out. Most of the studies conducted were confined to inaugural speeches of either the military or the civilian heads of state. These factors provoked the researcher to undertake this study.
Inaugural speeches by headsof states all over the world have a long standing history. Historically, according to Williams (2017), inaugural speeches by world leaders date back to the 17^th Century. In America, the first inaugural speech was presented by George Washington in his
 
first tenure in 1789. The speech contained 1, 430 words, seven paragraphs and23 sentences. In countries where monarchy is practised, inaugural speeches is referred to as ―a speech from the throne‖. It is an event in certain monarchies in which the monarch reads a prepared speech to a complete session of parliament, outlining the government‘s agenda for the forthcoming year (Government of Canada, 2015).
It has become a tradition the world over for newly sworn-in presidents to give a speech which is referred to as inaugural speech. According to Alimole (2004), inaugural speeches were given in America in the past before the president-elect took an oath.However, McKinley (1897) requested for change so that he could reiterate the words of the oath at the close of his address. Since then, inaugural speeches are delivered after the president-elect had taken an oath. So is the practice in African countries, particularly in Nigeria, which is the focus of this research.
Inaugural speeches in many countries of the world are justtradition: giving it is not constitutional. For instance, in the Nigerian constitution, the President is only mandated to take an oath of allegiance and oath of office. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 Section140(1) says:
A person elected to the office of the President shall not begin to perform the function of that office until he has declared his assets and liabilities as prescribed in this Constitution and he has taken and subscribed to the Oath of Allegiance and Oath of Office prescribed in the Seventh Schedule to this Constitution.
 
 
Inaugural speechesgiven by presidents have become a tradition in Nigeria because the government‘s agenda are sometimes unveiled in such addresses. Millions of Nigerians get glued to their television, radio sets and social media to listen to the inaugural speeches of the new presidents. In some instances, the speech is used to gauge the performance of the government
 
after sometimes. To this end, the need for Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) is imperative so as to reveal the hidden meaning encapsulated in the speech.
Inaugural speeches are loaded with hidden messages through opaque language use. So the most popular, accurate and suitable approach that uncovers the hidden meaning showcased in the opaque language, particularly in the domain of power, is Critical Discourse Analysis. It is useful in examining how events, practices and texts arise and have been ideologically shaped by power relations and power struggles (Wodak, 2001). Critical Discourse Analysis takes a look at the language and discourse pattern that are embedded in the text and what ittakes to achieve the desired goal in a political speech.Critical Discourse Analysis is relevant in this analysis because  it shares interest and methods with disciplines that study social groups and social structures such as anthropology, history economics etc. that are concerned with human cognition and behaviour. In other words, CDA is multidisciplinary in its approaches and methods in studyingtext and talk.
The inaugural speeches of the Nigeria‘s Heads of State have a lot of antecedents, i.e. they are engineered or influenced by historical, sociological, economic, psychological, religious, ethnological and linguistic factors. Hence, the need for the adoption of Critical Discourse Analysis for the analysis of this study.
Nigeria was under military rule for twenty-seven years through coups and counter coups. It has also been under epileptic democratic rule for thirty years. Both the military and civilian heads of State have had to deliver inaugural speeches on the assumption of power. Brief histories of these makers of Nigeria are provided below:
 

1.1.1 Brief Profile of the Civilian and Military Heads of State in Nigeria

 
Nigeria has been governed by civilian and military leaders since independence. These set of leaders are the makers and shapers of the present day Nigeria. Since this study focuses on these leaders, there is the need to provide short biographies of each of them. It is hoped that theirprofiles would serve as a springboard for understanding the basis of their linguistic behaviour in the inaugural speeches they delivered when they climbed the mantle of power. We will take them one after the other.
 

NNAMDI AZIKIWE

 
Nnamdi Azikiwe, (born November 16, 1904, Zungeru, Nigeria—died May 11, 1996, Enugu), first President of independent Nigeria (1963–66) and prominent nationalist figure. Azikiwe led the NCNC into the important 1959 federal elections, which preceded Nigerian independence. He was able to form a temporary government with the powerful Northern People‘s Congress. But its Deputy Leader, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, took the key post of Prime Minister. Azikiwe received the largely honorary posts of President of the Senate, Governor- General, and, finally, President.

ABUBAKAR TAFAWA BALEWA

 
Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, was born in 1912. He was from Tafawa Balewa area of Bauchi State. Before joining politics, he worked for the Bauchi Native Authority rising to the position of a Headmaster. He was a member of the Northern Region House of Assembly and the House of Representatives in 1947. He was appointed Prime Minister by the British Government in 1954-1960. He also became the first and only Prime Minister of an independent Nigeria, from
 
1960-1966. A great orator, Sir Abubakar was nicknamed the ―Golden Voice of Africa.‖ He died on 15th January, 1966 following a military coup.

JOHNSON AGUIYI-IRONSI

 
Major-General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi was born on 3rd March, 1924. He was the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Nigerian Army. He was appointed by the Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa in 1965. He was the first Nigerian to be appointed the GOC. He became the first Nigerian Military Head of State in January 1966 as a result of a failed military coup led by some young army officers. Six months after, he was not able to solve the crisis caused by the coup. He lost his life during a counter coup that took place on 29th July, 1966. He was forty-two years old at the time of his death.

YAKUBU GOWON

 
General Yakubu Gowon was born on 19th October 1934. He joined the Nigerian Army in May, 1954 after completing his secondary school education at Barewa College, Zaria. He played a very important role in the history of Nigeria. At the age of 32, he became Head of State following the counter-coup of 29th July, 1975. He fought and won the Nigerian civil war that took place from 1967 to 1970. He was a unifying factor. He was able to win the civil war by the strategic creation of twelve (12) States in 1967 to replace the four Regions of Nigeria. He was removed from office by a military coup on 29th July 1975. He is now actively involved in peace building and conflict resolutions across Nigeria.

MURTALA MUHAMMED

 
General Murtala Muhammed was born on 8th November, 1938. He played an important role in the 1966 military crises. He also played an important role in the fight to keep Nigeria one
 
during the civil war period. He was appointed Federal Commissioner of Communications by General Gowon. He became military Head of State from 1975 to 1976. He is always  remembered as a key player that fought for the liberation of African countries from colonial rule and white settler domination in Southern Africa. He died on 13th February, 1976 as a result of an abortive military coup.

OLUSEGUN OBASANJO

 
General Olusegun Obasanjo was born on 5th March, 1937. He served in various capacities in the Nigerian Army. He became Federal Commissioner of Works in the Government of General Gowon. He was the officer who received the surrender of Biafra in January 1970. Following the coup of 29th July 1975, he became Chief of Staff Supreme Headquarters. Following the death of the Head of State, General Murtala Mohammed in a failed coup of 13thFebruary, 1976; Obasanjo was appointed Head of State. He served in that capacity from 1976 to 1979. He became the first military Head of State to hand over political power to democratically elected civilians. Thus, in 1979, he handed over power to President Shehu Shagari. He made history as the first former military leader to be elected as President of Nigeria. He served for two terms (1999-2007). He has been actively involved in many international organisations.

SHEHU SHAGARI

 
Alhaji Shehu Shagari,TurakinSakoto, was born on 25th February, 1925. A teacher turned politician, Shehu Shagari participated in the anti-colonial struggles prior to the formation of political parties in Northern Nigeria. He was a member of the Northern Regional House of Assembly and the House of Representatives. He became a Minister in the First Republic on the
 
platform of the NPC. He was one of the Ministers that were actively involved in trying to resolve the political crisis in Lagos caused by the military coup of 15th January 1966. He served as Minister in the Military Government led by General Yakubu Gowon. With the return to civilian rule in 1979, he contested election as President of Nigeria and won on the platform of the National Party of Nigeria, (NPN). He became the first executive president of Nigeria from 1979 to 1983. His government was toppled by the military on 31st December 1983. Since his release from military detention he has become an elder statesman, by refusing to join any political party. MUHAMMADU BUHARI
Major-General Muhammadu Buhari was born on 17th December, 1942. Buhari joined the Nigerian army on 9th April, 1962. He trained in UK, USA and India. He served in various capacities in the Nigerian Army. He fought in the Nigerian civil war. He was a Military  Governor and Minister of Petroleum Resources in the Murtala/Obasanjo government. He became the NigerianHead of State from 1984 to 1985. This was after the military coup of 31st December 1983, which removed the civilian Government led by President Shehu Shagari. He was democratically elected President of Nigeria on 1st April 2015. He made history as the second former military leader to get elected by the people as President. He also became the first person to defeat a sitting President in an election.
 

IBRAHIM BADAMASI BABANGIDA

 
 
General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida was born on 17th August, 1941. He is popularly known as IBB. Babangida joined the Nigerian Army on 10th December 1962. He was trained in India and the UK and took part in the Nigerian civil war. He held various commanding positions in the Nigerian Army. Babangida became known across Nigeria because of the role he played in
 
getting the 13th February 1976 coup defeated. He was Chief of Army Staff in the military government led by General Buhari. He became Head of State after leading a coup to remove Buhari on 27th August, 1985. He was head of state from 1985 to 1993. He has been actively involved in politics.
 

ERNEST ADEGUNLE OLADEINDE SHONEKAN

 
 
Chief Ernest Adekunle Oladeinde Shonekan (born 9 May 1936 in Lagos, Colonial Nigeria) is a British-trained Nigerian lawyer, industrialist, politician and traditional chieftain. He was appointed as the Interim President of Nigeria by General Ibrahim Babangida on the 26th of August, 1993. Babangida resigned under pressure to cede control to a democratic government. Shonekan’s transitional administration only lasted for three months as a palace coup led by General Sani Abacha forcefully dismantled the remaining democratic institutions and brought  the government back under military control on the 17th of November, 1993.

SANI ABACHA

 
General Sani Abacha was born on 20th September, 1943. He joined the Nigerian Army early in the 1960s. He held many positions in the Army, including Chief of Army Staff and Minister of Defence. He became known during the regime of General Babangida. He led the military to remove the Interim President, Earnest Shonekan and then became head of state from 1993 to 1998. There are several human rights problems during his tenure. He tried to transform from military head of state into civilian president but he suddenly died on 8th June, 1998.

ABDULSALAMI ABUBAKAR

 
General Abdulsalami Abubakarwas born on 13th June, 1942. He served in several capacities in the Nigerian Army and rose to become Chief of Defence Staff in the government of General Sani Abacha. This position helped him to emerge as Nigerian‘sHead of state following the death of General Sani Abacha on 8th June 1998. He was Head of State from 9th June 1998 to 29th May, 1999. He organized a transition programme which ended with handing over of power to an elected President on 29th May 1999.

UMARU MUSA YAR’ADUA

 
Umaru Musa Yar’Aduawas born on 16th August, 1951. Umaru studied Chemistry at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He started as a teacher, then became a businessman and later a politician. In 1999, he won the election as Governor of Katsina State. He served as Governor from 1999 to 2007. In 2007, he was selected by the PDP to be its Presidential candidate. He won the election and became the 13th President of Nigeria. He was the first university graduate to be elected President of Nigeria. He died while being President on 5th May 2010.

GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN

 
Dr Goodluck Jonathanwas born on 20th November, 1957. He started politics from the grassroots, i.e. at the Local Government level. He joined the PDP and became the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State in 1999. He later became the Governor following the removal of the then Governor. From Bayelsa State Governor, he was selected by Umaru Musa Yar‘Adua as his running mate in the 2007presidential election. He then became Vice President from 2007-2010. He later became the President of Nigeria with the death of President Umaru Musa Yar‘adua. He was the first Ph.D holder to be elected President. He served from 2010-2015. He made history as
 
the first President to concede defeat in a Nigerian election. Although out of office, he is still active in politics.
 
Surprisingly, even the military who got to power in Nigeria through coup de‘tat gave inaugural speeches to usher them into office. However, the first inaugural speech in Nigeria was delivered in October 1st, 1960 by Nigeria‘s first Prime Minister, Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. Other Headsof State that followed after him made it a tradition to offer inaugural speeches.
Despite the fact that inaugural speeches are considered part of inauguration ceremony that is mostly anxiously waited for by the populace, scholars like Bill Steigerwald (themoderate.com) see it pretty much more ceremonial than anything else. Robert Beard (yourDictionary.com) considers it  as ―the key indicator of the goals, tone and demeanor of in- coming administration or how they will continue or change in the case of multiple administration.  ―Therefore, there  is  a  good reason to  contend  that  inaugural speeches are  very vital speeches in which the direction of the new government is identified.
Critical Discourse Analysis is employed to analyse these speeches looking at the biography of each of the head of State. As their biographies differ in various respects so their speeches differ. The historical background of each head of State influenced his cognition, thought, practice, governance and speech. Critical Discourse Analysis has multifaceted approaches and methods that can be employed to conspicuously upturn the meaning hidden in the speeches.
The present research mainly focuses on Critical Discourse Analysis of selected inaugural speeches of Nigeria‘s Headsof State. Specifically, the research intends to compare and contrast the inaugural speeches of the civilian and military Heads of State. It is aimed at comparing how
 
the language used in the speeches reflected the true situation in Nigeria during the two regimes (civilians and military), how the contents of the speeches were used to manipulate the yearnings of the people, how the speeches reflect the power relations and ideological position implicit in the speeches. Also,the research intendsto study how the speeches reflected the social structure and identities of the speakers and the genuineness of the promises and their willingness to take responsibility for what they said in the speeches. The difference of the social structure and cognition of the two groups will be examined through the language used in the speeches.
 

     Statement of the Research Problem

 
Studies on political speeches have been carried outsuch as; Political Speeches of Some African Leaders from Linguistic perspective (1981 – 2013),(Faki, 2014); Political Discourse; A Critical Discourse Analysis of President Muhammadu Buhari‘s Inaugural Speech (Sharndam,2015) A linguistic –Stylistic investigation of the language of the Nigerian Elite, (Ayeomoni,2005), Power of Political Discourse of Barak Obama, (Sheyegh and Wabir, 2012), Linguistic Features in Political speeches –How language can be used to impose certain moral or ethical values on people, (Kulo, 2009)Language Use in Selected Nigerian Presidential Election campaign speeches: A Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective, (Abdullahi – Idiagbon, 2007), Analysis of Experiential Meaning in Selected Inaugural Speeches in Nigeria, (Chinwe, 2013), A Critical Discourse Analysis of Language use in selected political speeches of Dr Kayode Fayemi Ekiti State Governor, (Bamisaye and Omotunde, 2015); Nigerian Politicians, Linguistic Rascality and Security Implications, Daniel (2015), A Pragmatic Analysis of Political Discourse Using Cooperative Principle: A Case Study of Bashorun Abiola‘s Political Campaign, (Bdliya, 2012). The Speech Acts and Rhetoric in the Second Inaugural Address of Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo and American President, George Bush, (Adetunji, 2009) etc. The analysts
 
have lost sight of the political symbiotic relationship between the inaugural speeches of the heads of state that built the present Nigeria through linguistic manipulative strategies. None of them attempted to compare the speeches of the military headsof State and civilian presidents who shaped the presentday Nigeria with their actions and speeches.In Nigeria, inaugural speeches delivered by either executive presidents or military Heads of Stateare beyond mere ceremonial speeches. They usher in new governments and new agenda of the new government are sometimes mentioned in the speeches.
It is however, unfortunate that these speeches are only documented after the particular government would have completed its tenure. From time totime some historians take the pain of documenting these speeches. Many scholars like Alimole (2004), Idris (2009), Angwonye (2013), Epele (1993), and some government agencies have only tried to collect, collate and compile the speeches.However, few linguistic analyses have been carried out on those speeches.
Political speeches are significant data for linguistic analysis. According to Beard (2000), it is important to study the language of politics because it enables us to understand how language is used by those who wish to gain power, those who wish to exercise power and those who wish to keep power. Beyond this advocacy, the study of the inaugural speeches of the past and present Nigerian leaders and leaders from other countries and continents creates a marriage between history and linguistics, and that will help to shape the ideology and cognition of the citizens when the obscurity in the speeches are made clear by the linguist.
Presumably,language is used by the two groups of leaders to subdue and shape the cognition of Nigerians. Both the Military and the Civilian Heads of State achieved their political ideology manipulations through the language in their political speeches at various fora. In this sense, language has played a very important role in manifesting their political wills and
 
accompanying political actions. It is therefore, necessary to study the inaugural speeches of those Heads of Statefrom both sides to understand the role of language in shaping the Nigeria of the past and the present.
This is for the fact that language is not powerful in itself.Rather, it gains power by the use the powerful make of it. On the other hand, language gives power to those who wish to give it. It is this social roles of language that the research wishes to analyse the inaugural speeches of the Civilian and MilitaryHeads of State and make comparison between the two groups in relation to their social structure.
 

     Research Questions

 
The study will attempt to answer the following questions as we do a Critical Discourse Analysis of the inaugural speeches of the Civilian and Military Heads of State of Nigeria:

1. What are the structural patterns of inaugural speeches of the Civilian and Military Heads of State?
2. How do the inaugural speeches convey feelings/emotion of both Civilian and MilitaryHeads of State in Nigeria?
3. What are the ideological inklings expressed in the speeches of both Civilian and Military Heads of State?
4. How is power manifested in both speeches through language in both the inaugural speeches of the Civilian and Military Heads of State?
5. To what extent are hidden meanings related to social structure and identities of the speakers engraved in the speeches of both sets of rulers?

     Aim and Objectives of the Study

 
This study aims at analysing the inaugural speeches of the past Nigerian leaders. The objectives of the study are to:

1. determine the structural pattern of the speeches of the Civilianand Military Heads of
2. identify how the speeches convey the feelings/emotions of the Civilian andMilitaryHeads of State;
3. gauge the ideological inklingsof the civilian and military Heads of State in their speeches;

4. establish how power is manifested through language in the speeches and

5. measure how hidden meanings relate to social structure and identities of the military and civilian Headsof State in the

     Significance of the Study

 
Given the focus of this work, the research is intended to awaken the consciousness of scholars/readers of political discourse to read between the lines. Since politicians do not use language in vacuum. They use it to gain power, exercise and keep it.
Also, the study will be useful for researchers who would benefit from the analysis and findings of the research in the area of how language plays role in emotion, ideological manipulation, persuasion and power relations such as threat and appeal.
On the other hand, scholars in the field of Psychology, History, Sociology and Geography stand to gain from the insights of the research because of the multidisciplinary focus of the study. The study will also illuminate on the language of the Executive and MilitaryHeads of
State in Nigeria thereby uncovering hidden meanings in their inaugural speeches in relation to social structure, identities and power relations in the speech.
 

     Scope of the Study

 
This study is delimited to analysing Selected Inaugural Speeches of the Nigeria‘spast heads of State. There were sixteen Heads of State that have ruled Nigeria from independence to 2015. They include Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (1957 – 1966), General Aguyi Ironsi (1966 – 1967), General Yakubu Gowon (1967 – 1976), General Murtala Mohammed (1976 – 1977), General Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo (1976 – 1979), Alhaji Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari (1979 – 1983), Major General Muhammadu Buhari (1983 – 1985), General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (1985 – 1993), Chief Ernest Shonekan (1993 – 1993), General Sani Abacha (1993 – 1998),
General AbdussalamiAlhaji Abubakar (1998 – 1999), Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (1999 – 2007), Malam Umaru Musa Yar‘adua (2007 – 2010) and Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (2011 – 2015).
However, only the inaugural speeches of eleven (11)Heads of State are the focus of the study. The Heads of State include: five (5) Executive Presidents and six(6) Military Heads of State. The Executive Heads of State include Prime-Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (1957), Alhaji Shehu Aliyu Shagari (1979), Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (1999), Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar‘adua (2007)and Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (2011). Themilitary Heads included, General Yakubu Gowon (1967), General Murtala Ramat Mohammed (1976), Major General Muhammadu Buhari (1983), General Ibrahim Badamasi Babaginda (1985), General Mohammed Sani Abacha (1993) and General Abdulsalami Abubakar (1998).
The number of Military Heads of State outweighsthat of the civilian presidents studied in the research because there were more military Headsthan civilian presidents. The choice of Obasanjo‘s inaugural speech of 1999 was informed by the period of eight (8) years he spent as civilian President. The inclusion of Dr Goodluck Jonathan is to have a representation from other parts of the country because there were more leaders from the Northern part of Nigeria.

A STUDY OF THE MISUSE OF ADVERBS IN THE WRITTEN ENGLISH OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

ABSTRACT

The study “A Study of the Misuse of Adverbs in The Written English of the Undergraduate of the Kogi State University, Ayingba” was carried out to determine the major areas of difficulty experienced by the one hundred (100) level students of the Kogi State University. One hundred (150) samples of composition written by the one hundred (100) level students of the Kogi State University were analysed. These samples were selected from the Departments of English Language, Biochemistry and Business Administration. Four questions were raised and the simple percentage formula was used to answer the four questions. The findings show the following grammatical errors as common: omission of the –ly suffixes, wrong syntactic usage, wrong order of adverbs, misuse of preposition of place and time, wrong use of pronouns for adverbs e.t.c. The study suggests that Students should read standard books in the target language after normal classroom teaching in order to improve their writing skills. Teachers should try and use adequate and suitable learning materials. This will help students have a better understanding and good mastery of the language.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Pages
• Title
• Cover Page
• Declaration
• Certification
• Dedication
• Acknowledgements
• Abstract
• Table of Contents
• CHAPTER ONE: GENERAL INTRODUCTION
• 1.1 Background of the Study
• 1.2 Statement of the Research Problem
• 1.3 Research Questions
• 1.4 Aim and Objectives
• 1.5 Justification of the Study
• 1.6 Scope and Delimitation
• CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
• 2.0 Introduction
• 2.1 Previous Studies
• 2.2 Conceptual Review
• 2.2.1 Classification of Adverbs
• 2.2.2 Adverb Placement
• 2.2.3 How to Recognise Adverb
• 2.2.4 How to Recognise Misused Modifiers
• 2.3 Theory of Errors
• 2.3.1 Contrastive Analysis
• 2.3.2 Error Analysis
• 2.3.3 Causes of Errors
• 2.3.4 L1 Interference
• 2.4 Types of Error
• 2.4.1 Inter-Lingual/Transfer Errors
• 2.4.2 Intra-Lingual/Developmental Errors
• 2.4.3 Over-generalization
• 2.4.4 Ignorance of Rules Restriction
• 2.4.5 Incomplete Application of Rules
• 2.4.6 False Concept Hypothesized
• 2.5 Gross Errors
• 2.5.1 Delicate Errors
• 2.5.2 Break down Errors
• 2.5.3 Non Break down Errors
• 2.5.4 Critical Errors
• 2.5.5 Persistent Errors
• 2.5.6 Transient Errors
• 2.6 Teacher‟s Attitude towards Correcting Students Written Errors and Mistakes
• 2.7 Techniques for Correcting Errors and Mistakes
• 2.8 Theoretical Framework
• CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
• 3.0 Introduction
• 3.1 Sources of Data Collection
• 3.2 Method of Data Collection
• 3.3 Sampling Procedure
• 3.4 Method of Data Analysis
• CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION OF DATA AND DATA ANALYSIS
• 4.0 Introduction
• 4.1 Discussions
• 4.2 Findings
• CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
• 5.0 Introduction
• 5.1 Summary
• 5.2 Conclusion
• 5.3 Recommendation
• References
• Appendix
• List of Tables
• Table 1.0: Adverb of Manner
• Table 2.0: Adverb of Time
• Table 3.0: Adverb of Place
• Table 4.0: Adverb of Frequency
• Table 5.0: Conjunctive Adverb
• Table 6.0: Type of Adverbs usually Misused
• Table 7.0: Extend of Errors Committed by the Students
• Table 8.0: Comparison of Errors by the Students

CHAPTER ONE/GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

The research focuses on the misuse of adverbs in the written work of the undergraduate students of Kogi State University. Various works have been done in the area of study referred to as Error Analysis, some of which examined the students spoken errors and inappropriate structure of language. Attention has also been paid to wrong choice of words with particular interest in the spoken ability. This work however, investigates the misuse of adverbs among the undergraduate students in their written work.
Adverbials are morphologically and syntactically the most diverse grammatical structures in English, (Freeman, 1999:491). They can perform a wide variety of purposes: show time and space relationship, emphasize or de-emphasize information, indicate frequency or manner, or link ideas together. They can occur initially, medially and finally in sentences and before nouns, adjectives or verbs. Observing such a variable word class gives the researcher the opportunity to observe variability in the language development of the one hundred (100) level students of the Kogi State University. How they choose and place adverbs in their sentences, gives the researcher a valuable insight into their language proficiency.
Altenburg (2010:103) states that “if you don‟t know what else a word is, then it is probably an adverb” by implication, adverbs are one of the most difficult word classes to define as different grammar books examined have slightly different definitions and focuses for adverb. Larsen-freeman (1999), Biber (1999), Azar (2002).Freeman (1999:491). For the purpose of this study, adverbs are words or phrases that modify adjectives, verbs, other adverbs, or whole clauses. They show relationship such as time, place, manner or certainty. However, the scope of this study is somewhat pre-limited to the conservative form that is, single word adverbs that can occur only as adverbs for the purpose of expediency. For example, adverbial clauses, multi-word adverbs and any adverb that could also function as another part of speech are excluded.
In determining if these students under investigation make errors in choosing and placing adverbs, it is necessary to look at error analysis as this would help in indicating what the students get right, what they underuse and what they overuse. Learners accuracy should not only be measured by their grammatical accuracy but also by the way their lexical choices align with those of the native speakers. It is unrealistic to reckon on language learning without errors. However, it shows that errors do occur in the second language learning and for this reason, it should be acknowledged and dealt with.
The interest in error analysis has been awakened by the need to correct deviant, ill formed sentences, in the sense that they are not fully describable in terms of the grammar of the mother tongue or target language. Since languages are dynamic and productive, inferences drawn from linguistic researches would remain ineffective if new vistas are not opened in the areas of Applied Linguistics. Furthermore, the poor performance of students taking English Language examinations has continued to impact negatively on the nation‟s educational objectives. This is predicated on the fact that the English Language occupies a central position in Nigeria, Banjo (1981), Bamgbose (1982), Odumuh (1985).
Error analysis means deviation from the expected models that should be aimed at or against which constructions can be viewed. The written and spoken English of second learners (L2) of English Language are full of grammatical errors of different types. The misuse of adverbs as modifiers in speech or writing is not an exception; second language learners from different linguistic backgrounds make similar errors in learning the target language. The possible general sources of errors include: language transfer, transfer of learning, strategies of second language learning, strategies of second language communication and over generalization.
It is unrealistic to reckon on language learning without errors. However, it shows that errors do occur in the second language learning and for this reason, it should be acknowledged and dealt with. The second language learners (L2) are never competent in the target language, this is on the premise that languages are different and because of these differences, the second language learner will encounter language difficulties. The brain seems to have difficulties in storing the data of different languages separately, if there is a degree of overlapping between the languages in bilingual communities (Lado, 1970:8). The inter-language hypothesis of second language acquisition, error analysis lies with the second language learners in the process of trying to produce the target language. The errors made are analysed and classified to see if there is any commonality between them. If the cause of errors can be explained, then one can adopt this information to the second language pedagogy. For errors to be prevented, they have to be identified, classified, explained and plan strategy to eliminate them. Errors are bound to occur in one form or the other depending on the varying degrees of frequency. In the analysis of Omujowa (1979:178), errors could be classified linguistically and psycho-linguistically. The errors classified linguistically look at the language usage, to what area does the error belong, is it tense agreement, spelling infinitive or other misuse of grammatical rules such as the one the work is looking at, „The Misuse of Adverbs‟. Errors classified psycho-linguistically look at what stage the errors occur in the process of language learning, is it the hypotheses formation stage, hypotheses testing stage or application stage? This is because some errors occur because the learner has not yet understood the appropriate grammatical rules that generate the correct form.
Linguistic classification is essential for error correction and most language teachers are familiar with this method. For instance, some language teachers underline the faulty language item or items (identification) and in the left or right hand margin of the paper, put a symbol to signify the language area which the errors belong. Symbols generally vary from one teacher to the other and it is not important that they are uniform just as long as both the teacher and the pupils know what the particular symbol adapted means. Psycho-linguistic classification is essential for error explanation which in turn determines the instructional strategy required for the error to be distinguished. The need for a psycho-linguistic classification of error quite often escapes the attention of the majority of the language teacher, with the result that marking becomes unnecessarily wearisome and correction unrewarding and time wasting for both learner and the teacher.
Corder (1977), error analysis is the study of learner‟s inter-language in order to improve understanding of the processes of the second language learner acquisition. Error analysis further differentiates between errors, mistake and lapses. The difference in these categories lies in the ability of the native speaker to make correction. Such errors are seen as transposition, substitution or addition of speech sound word, complete phrase or some sort of blend of these. Some ill-formed utterance appears to be false starts of restructuring of what the speaker wants to say, since these lapses could be as a result of stress, indecision or fatigue. It is also presumed that the second language learner will demonstrate similar lapses during pronunciation.
Corder also opines that “errors are seen as a breach: if we regard a language as a set of rules for generating syntactically, phonologically and semantically well-formed sentence”. As one sees, native speakers do not normally commit such breaches but however, commit errors in the use of the code. By this, we mean that they may produce well-formed utterances which are contextually or situational inappropriate. Error of appropriateness may however, be generally classified into referential errors, where the speaker uses a term with intention of referring to some features of the world to which it is conventionally inapplicable.
Researches have shown that studying learner‟s errors help to provide learning processes which helps teachers, curriculum planners and developers know which area of the target language, learners have most difficulties and provide possible solution to alleviate the problems,(Ajayi 1998). This consequently informs the emergence of this work.

1.2 Statement of the Research Problem

Although many studies on the use of English among students have been carried out by different writers in order to improve the students‟ proficiency in English Language, however not all the loopholes leading to grammatical errors have been dealt with. This therefore has motivated this research on the misuse of adverbs among the 100 Level students‟ of the Kogi State University. It was discovered that many of the 100 Level students do not have the barest notion of how to place adverbs in their written work. It is the poor attitude and orientation from the secondary school that probably account for the poor placement of adverbs the students present, judging from their essays. Over the years, scholars have focused attention on the weaknesses in the communicative ability of the learners, such as in the areas of poor spoken grammar, wrong choice of words, and inappropriate structures. Hence, this study focuses on the difficulties of the use of adverbs in the students‟ written work. This identifiable problem prompted the work to investigate the extent and types of error made by the one hundred (100) level students of Kogi State University.

1.3 Research Questions

The research therefore seeks to answer the following questions:

1. To what extent is the misuse of adverb rampant?
2. What type of adverbs do the students usually misuse?
3. To what extent do the adverb errors committed by the students of English Language differ from the Biochemistry students?
4. To what extent are the adverb errors committed by the Business Administration students differ from the Students of English?

1.3 Aim and Objectives

The aim of this research is to analyse the students‟ adverbial errors in their written work in order to find out the extent to which they could identify and place adverbs correctly in a piece of writing. The specific objectives of the study are to:

1. ascertain the extent of the misuse of adverbs among the select first level students of Kogi State University.
2. investigate the type of adverbs misused by these students.
3. investigate and document the differences in the adverb errors made by the students of the
4. English Language and the Business Administration students.
5. investigate and document the differences in the errors made by the students of the English Language and the Biochemistry students.

1.4 Justification of the Study

The need for this research came up when it is observed that the rate of grammatical errors being committed by Nigerian students is growing. With the subjects in focus who would become useful to the society in future, if these students cannot construct grammatical sentences containing the use of correctly placed adverbs then, there is a problem. The students need to master the rules guiding the application of English adverbs in sentences so as to use the knowledge in their written English. Although, other studies may have been carried out on grammatical errors of this kind in either secondary or tertiary levels, there is a need to be carry out the work in a tertiary institution like Kogi State University, particularly among the one hundred (100) level students.
Nevertheless, it is hoped that this research will help teachers in knowing how to eliminate many errors that pertain to the use of adverbs among students and also stimulate teachers to adapt new methods geared towards improve teaching and learning of the target language.

1.6 Scope and Delimitation

This research focuses on grammatical errors as it applies to the “study of the misuse of adverbs among the First Level Students of Kogi State University”. Arguably, modifiers such as „Adverb‟ exist in almost all the open class system (Nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs). Nonetheless, for the purpose of this study, for empirical and objective analysis, this work is concerned with “adverbs”, thus, this research does not intend to investigate all kinds of grammatical errors. As a result, this work is delimitated to examining the study of the misuse of adverbs in the selected written essays of one hundred and fifty (150) First Level Students of Kogi State University. The subjects for the study are limited to students from three Departments of the University namely: Department of English in the Faculty of Arts, Biochemistry Departments, in the Faculty of Sciences and the Department of Business Administration in the Faculty of Social Sciences. As a result of this delimitation, the generalisation of the result is limited to the First Level students of the University.