Politeness in Language

Politeness in Language
Author: Richard J. Watts
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 453
Release: 2008-08-22
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 3110199815

The second edition of this collection of 13 original papers contains an updated introductory section detailing the significance that the original articles published in 1992 have for the further development of research into linguistic politeness into the 21st century. The original articles focus on the phenomenon of politeness in language. They present the most important problems in developing a theory of linguistic politeness, which must deal with the crucial differences between lay notions of politeness in different cultures and the term 'politeness' as a concept within a theory of linguistic politeness. The universal validity of the term itself is called into question, as are models such as those developed by Brown and Levinson, Lakoff, and Leech. New approaches are suggested. In addition to this theoretical discussion, an empirical section presents a number of case studies and research projects in linguistic politeness. These show what has been achieved within current models and what still remains to be done, in particular with reference to cross-cultural studies in politeness and differences between a Western and a non-Western approach to the subject. The publication of this second edition demonstrates that the significance of the collection is just as salient in the first decade of the new millennium as it was at the beginning of the 1990s.

Politeness

Politeness
Author: Penelope Brown
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 364
Release: 1987-02-27
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9780521313551

This book studies the principles for constructing polite speeches, based on the detailed study of three unrelated languages and cultures.

Broadening the Horizon of Linguistic Politeness

Broadening the Horizon of Linguistic Politeness
Author: Robin T. Lakoff
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
Total Pages: 358
Release: 2005-10-27
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027294119

This collection of 19 papers celebrates the coming of age of the field of politeness studies, now in its 30th year. It begins with an investigation of the meaning of politeness, especially linguistic politeness, and presents a short history of the field of linguistic politeness studies, showing how such studies go beyond the boundaries of conventional linguistic work, incorporating, as they do, non-language insights. The emphasis of the volume is on non-Western languages and the ways linguistic politeness is achieved with them. Many, if not most, studies have focused on Western languages, but the languages highlighted here show new and different aspects of the phenomena.The purpose of linguistic politeness is to aid in successful communication throughout the world, and this volume offers a balance of geographical distribution not found elsewhere, including Japanese, Thai, and Chinese, as well as Greek, Swedish and Spanish. It covers such theoretical topics as face, wakimae, social levels, gender-related differences in language usage, directness and indirectness, and intercultural perspectives.

Politeness in the History of English

Politeness in the History of English
Author: Andreas H. Jucker
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 223
Release: 2020-04-16
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1108499627

From the Middle Ages up to the present day, this book traces politeness in the history of the English language.

Linguistic Politeness Across Boundaries

Linguistic Politeness Across Boundaries
Author: Ar?n Bayraktaro?lu
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
Total Pages: 462
Release: 2001
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9781588110404

This volume includes 14 papers investigating politeness phenomena in Greece and Turkey, the cultural cross-roads of Europe, Asia and the Middle East. It reflects current research and provides observations of and findings in patterns of linguistic politeness in a geographical area other than the much studied English speaking ones. The book appeals to professionals and students interested in a broader perspective of language use in its social context.Articles in the collection are empirically rather than theoretically oriented and examine realisations of politeness in relation to social parameters. The chapters have been arranged in pairs (Greek/Turkish), treating the following related issues: firstly a more general ethnographic picture of the two societies, the variables of power/status in classroom and other interaction, solidarity in advice-giving and the use of approbatory expressions, service encounters and the differential use of language by males and females, the use of interruptions in television talk, and finally compliments.

The Pragmatics of Politeness

The Pragmatics of Politeness
Author: Geoffrey N. Leech
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2014
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0195341384

This readable book presents a new general theoretical understanding of politeness. It offers an account of a wide range of politeness phenomena in English, illustrated by hundreds of examples of actual language use taken largely from authentic British and American sources. Building on his earlier pioneering work on politeness, Geoffrey Leech takes a pragmatic approach that is based on the controversial notion that politeness is communicative altruism. Leech's 1983 book, Principles of Pragmatics, introduced the now widely-accepted distinction between pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic aspects of politeness; this book returns to the pragmalinguistic side, somewhat neglected in recent work. Drawing on neo-Gricean thinking, Leech rejects the prevalent view that it is impossible to apply the terms 'polite' or 'impolite' to linguistic phenomena. Leech covers all major speech acts that are either positively or negatively associated with politeness, such as requests, apologies, compliments, offers, criticisms, good wishes, condolences, congratulations, agreement, and disagreement. Additional chapters deal with impoliteness and the related phenomena of irony ("mock politeness") and banter ("mock impoliteness"), and with the role of politeness in the learning of English as a second language. A final chapter takes a fascinating look at more than a thousand years of history of politeness in the English language.

Speech Acts and Politeness Across Languages and Cultures

Speech Acts and Politeness Across Languages and Cultures
Author: Leyre Ruiz de Zarobe
Publisher: Peter Lang Gmbh, Internationaler Verlag Der Wissenschaften
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2012
Genre: Language and languages
ISBN: 9783034306119

Speech Acts and Politeness are among the main areas of interest in pragmatics. These communicative phenomena can be considered universal and at the same time language and culture-specific. It is this latter dimension that has been at the centre of recent developments in pragmatics, and it is also the focus of this book. The aim of this book is to reflect this development, providing evidence from four main areas crucial to pragmatics across languages and cultures: a description of a variety of speech acts and politeness strategies in different languages and cultures, a cross-cultural comparison of several speech acts and patterns of politeness, an in-depth analysis of issues concerning the learning and teaching of speech acts and politeness in second/foreign languages, as well as some methodological resources in pragmatics. This book is intended for researchers, scholars and students interested in the field of pragmatics, in general, or in the fields of cross-cultural and second/foreign language pragmatics, and specifically for those interested in speech acts and politeness. It will also be useful to any scholar interested in how communication and culture are related.

Impoliteness in Language

Impoliteness in Language
Author: Derek Bousfield
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 357
Release: 2008-09-25
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 3110208342

The volume addresses the enormous imbalance that exists between academic interest in politeness phenomena when compared to impoliteness phenomena. Researchers working with Brown and Levinson's ([1978] 1987) seminal work on politeness rarely focused explicitly on impoliteness. As a result, only one aspect of facework/relational work has been studied in detail. Next to this research desideratum, politeness research is on the move again, with alternative conceptions of politeness to those of Brown and Levinson being further developed. In this volume researchers present, discuss and explore the concept of linguistic impoliteness, the crucial differences and interconnectedness between lay understandings of impoliteness and the academic concept within a theory of facework/relational work, as well as the exercise of power that is involved when impoliteness occurs. The authors offer solid discussions of the theoretical issues involved and draw on data from political interaction, interaction with legally constituted authorities, workplace interaction in the factory and the office, code-switching and Internet practices. The collection offers inspiration for research on impoliteness in many different research fields, such as (critical) discourse analysis, conversation analysis, pragmatics and stylistics, as well as linguistic approaches to studies in conflict and conflict resolution.

Politeness in Professional Contexts

Politeness in Professional Contexts
Author: Dawn Archer
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Total Pages: 334
Release: 2020-08-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027260850

Much like in everyday life, politeness is key to the smooth running of relationships and interactions. Professional contexts, however, tend to be characterised by a plethora of behaviours that may be specific to that context. They include ‘polite’ behaviours, ‘impolite’ behaviours and behaviours that arguably fall somewhere between – or outside – such concepts. The twelve chapters making up this edited collection explore these behaviours in a range of communication contexts representative of business, medical, legal and security settings. Between them, the contributions will help readers to theorize about – and in some cases operationalize (im)politeness and related behaviours for – these real-world settings. The authors take a broad, yet theoretically underpinned, definition of politeness and use it to help explain, analyse and inform professional interactions. They demonstrate the importance of understanding how interactions are negotiated and managed in professional settings. The edited collection has something to offer, therefore, to academics, professionals and practitioners alike.