4.

2 Speech functions, politeness,

and cross-cultural
communication

D r . P h u o n g N g u y e n
4.2.1. The functions of speech

4.2.2. Politeness and address forms

4.2.3. Linguistic politeness in different cultures

 4.2.1. The functions of speech
• GREETINGS:
• may or may not be followed by conversation
• may also function as a summons;
• mainly social function: establishes the proper level of interaction
• Affective and referential functions of speech: there are several categories relating
to these functions
1. Expressive - utterances express the speaker’s feelings.
2. Directive - utterances attempt to get someone to do something
3. Referential - utterances provide information.
4. Metalinguistic - utterances comment on language itself.
5. Poetic - utterances focus on aesthetic features of language
6. Phatic - utterances construct solidarity, rapport and empathy with others
 4.2.1. The functions of speech
• any utterance may in fact express more than one function
• any function may be served by a stretch of discourse - doesn’t exactly coincide with
an utterance.
• fundamental functions of language
• the speaker (expressive)
• the addressee (directive)
• the message (referential)
• The phatic function
• an affective or social message
• Other speech function categories have been identified
• “tell me why” function- utterances seemed to be aimed at learning more
about the world.
• commissives function - promises and threats
• performatives or declarations function - marriage vows, bets and declarations
of war
4.2.1.1 Directives
 4.2.1.1 Directives

• The directive function - getting people to do things.

• Vary in strength
• suggesting or inviting them to do
• ordering or commanding
• expressed in imperative form.
• Polite attempts - use interrogatives or declaratives
• Intonation, tone of voice and context
• Social factors affect a speaker’s choice of the appropriate form of
directive
• social distance
• relative status and roles
• gender and age
• formality of the context
 4.2.1.1 Directives
• close friends or intimates - more imperatives
• superiors use imperatives to subordinates
• clear- cut rules - use minimally explicit forms and be confident they
will be interpreted accurately
• Formality and status - choice contributes to constructing dimensions
of interaction.
• Expressing directives less directly and more politely
• The required action - a subordinate clause of the declarative
sentence
• directives upwards - indirect forms, hints
• Relative influenced by age and size.
• Routineness or reasonableness of the task
4.2.1.1 Directives
• the addressee’s gender girls and women tend to
favor more polite and less direct forms of directives
than males
• male doctors typically used imperatives (e.g. eat
more fruit), while female doctors tended to use
less direct forms (e.g. maybe you could try fresh
fruit for dessert).
• women use less direct forms of directive -
receive less direct forms.
• Relative power or status and social distance
• we - pronouns can be used to balance solidarity
with power.
 4.2.1.1 Directives
• Exception a community of lower- class male migrant agricultural
workers on the eastern coast of the USA
• all the directives took the form of imperatives
• the insecure and unpleasant work conditions - antagonism
evident in many of their social interactions.
• Relations workers - bosses - mistrust and tension -Unhappy social
relationships
• a threat can sometimes be more effective
• considerations of politeness - using terms of address for
exemplification.
4.2.1.1 Directives
Identity construction: a more abstract function of interaction

• Identity construction influenced by

• the social setting
• one’s social role
• particular goals and responses to others
• a specific situation
• macro- level social categories constructed by
• linguistic features
• interactional and local identity categories
• When online may construct rather different identities
 4.2.2. Politeness and address forms
• Being polite – complicated
• involves understanding the language, the social and cultural
values
• What is politeness?

“…politeness involves contributing to social harmony and avoiding social

conflict”.
• A summons is used to get someone to attend to the summoner;
greetings may be used phatically
• linguistic politeness
• discourse strategies
• linguistic devices
 4.2.2. Politeness and address forms
• Inappropriate linguistic choices may be considered rude
• assessing social relationships, dimensions of social distance
or solidarity, and relative power or status in a specific social
context.
• understand the social values
• 2 different types of politeness
• Positive politeness
• solidarity or rapport oriented
• emphasizes shared attitudes and values.
• Negative politeness
• based on power relations
• Expressing oneself appropriately in terms of social
distance and respecting status differences.
4.2.2. Politeness
and address
forms
 4.2.2. Politeness and address forms
• type of relationship involved.
• in Britain- Doctors and patients similarly tend to use mutual TLN
• put the emphasis on the social distance dimension even long-
standing
• Transactional relationships are usually one-dimensional
• Age
• Adults use FN to children
• Young people to receive FN in any context; often be expected to use TLN
back
• the use of familiarizers
• such as mate, dude, babe, bro, sis, cuz, love, etc.
• depend on the context of a conversation
 4.2.2. Politeness and address forms
• Getting the linguistic expression of social distance “right” as far as
your addressee is concerned.
• British - mutual TLN (Mrs Landy, Mr Duncan) the norm
between upper working- class neighbors
• In North America, the first names (FN) to people you work with
• In earlier centuries, Status was the major consideration
• used TLN (or an appropriate kin- term) upwards to superiors
• FN downwards to subordinates,
• Equals used mutual TLN with people they did not know well,
mutual FN to friends.
• Today, more complicated
• a conflict of norms in two situations
• (1) high status with high solidarity
• (2) low status with low solidarity
• solidarity dimension tends to win out
 4.2.2. Politeness and address forms
• norms of address usage have changed over time -> more
emphasis on solidarity and less on status.
• NOT in many Asian societies
• remains on status differences.
• recognizes relative status explicitly - constructs both the
speaker’s and the addressee’s identities
• that interaction is NOT static
• what is considered polite or impolite may emerge, change
and develop throughout an interaction…
• people unintentionally offend others as - different norms and
expectations about how to express friendliness or respect.
 4.2.3. Linguistic politeness in different
cultures
• cross- cultural communication
• misunderstanding relates to different assumptions deriving from different “normal” environments
• Need to learn what the words mean in the cultural contexts
• involves some understanding of the cultural and social norms
 4.2.3. Linguistic politeness in different
cultures
• Sociolinguistic norms for polite acceptance and refusal
• Western culture – plausible, reasonably and specific excuse
• In some cultures - general vague formulas
• in Britain and New Zealand - more specific reason
• solidarity is the dominant  privacy is reduced and vagueness about one’s activities is seen as
evasive.
• How do you get enough to eat
• parts of India and Taiwan, parts of the Arabic-speaking world - impolite to accept food when it is
first offered. Only on the third offer is it appropriate to accept
• Plying someone with food is - positively polite behavior, sharp economic differences culture
• In many countries, being forced to repeatedly refuse offers of food - embarrassing.
 4.2.3.1 Greetings
• Greeting
• an affective function of establishing non- threatening contact and
rapport
• culture specific.
• The Māori ritual of encounter- complex procedure.
• rules governing which particular elements occur on any particular
occasion.
• The more formal and important the occasion, the more speeches
there are, and the longer they are
4.2.3.1 Greetings
Discussion 11
• Think and write down 3 obvious and 3 less
obvious verbal ways of telling people to keep
silent
• Analyze what social factors affect speakers’
choice of the appropriate form of the 6 directive
forms for “keep silent” including
• social distance
• relative status and roles
• gender and age
• formality of the context
Class Discussion 11

1 2 3
Go to your class
Voicethread
Complete Don’t forget to
Discussion include your
• 12:30 -15:00 name and
• 15:10-17:40
11 tasks student id.
Homework

Complete Class
Read Chapter 12
Discussion 11
THANK YOU