‘Successful linguistic communication depends on participants’ capacity for rational, purposeful... - page 6
Keywords: Sociolinguistics; talk; language; politeness theory; face; communication
By sth202 on 25/09/2008
Level: Bachelor Honours Degree (BA, BEng, BSc etc)
Page Number: 6 of 7 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
to face and the preservation of such. It may come as no surprise, then, that, equal to the notion of face, there exists also positive politeness and negative politeness, and that negative politeness is also wrongly named in that it is given unfavourable implications. Positive politeness comprises using language to indicate liking and approval – one would pay compliments and use informal language to suggest friendship, as well as expressing doubt (e.g. by the use of tag questions: “Sure is hot in here, isn’t it?” (Lakoff 1990 in Cameron 1990: 231)) (Wardhaugh 1998, Cameron 2001, Holmes 2001). It is based strongly on solidarity and accentuates common beliefs and ethics, therefore reducing differences in status (Holmes 2001) and working on the listener’s positive face (Foley 1997). Negative politeness aims to avoid imposing on people and pay respect, in terms of articulating oneself appropriately concerning social distance and difference in status (Holmes 2001, Cameron 2001). One should be indirect, pessimistic, apologise and ask forgiveness, while employing the use of formal language and distancing oneself from the listener, that is to say one should impersonalise the interaction (Wardhaugh 1998, Foley 1997, Brown and Levinson 1987, in Jaworski and Coupland 1999). This is designed to appeal to the hearer’s negative face and to his or her wish to remain independent.
There is only one logical conclusion we can reach, and I am confident that I have demonstrated it well in this essay. I have explained the inescapable importance of keeping face in interactions, linguistically speaking as well as the conventional meaning, and of politeness. Although these are both rules which need to be obeyed if linguistic communication is to be successful, we must remember that many other factors come into play in a conversation and there are many other unwritten guidelines which should be followed if an exchange is to be efficacious. To this end, the claim that ‘Successful linguistic communication depends on participants’ capacity for rational, purposeful and […] co-operative action.’ can be strongly supported by the concept of face and politeness theory combined. The only disagreement I would have with the statement that the notion of face and politeness theory are essential to this kind of interaction is that they themselves are based on other factors. Nevertheless, the ideas of face and politeness discussed in this essay are definitely key factors in successful linguistic exchange.
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Bibliography
Brown, P. and Levinson, S. C.
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