Rosie Mc Andrew Positive Negative Politeness Cultures A

Positive & Negative Politeness Cultures A presentation by Rosie Mc. Andrew © Rosie Mc.

POSITIVE NEGATIVE POLITENESS Cultures VALUE Solidarity, closeness, sharing Distance, separateness, privacy Respect the other

You are on a train; a stranger asks you to close the window. Which

In a positive politeness culture, the first sounds: Can you shut the window? I

In a positive politeness culture, the first sounds: Can you shut the window? a)

Can you shut the window? I was wondering if you would mind shutting the

I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? Can you shut the

Look at these sentences: Repeat, please. You’re wrong Let me speak That wasn’t clear

Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say something here? Repeat,

And between these? Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say

Now, let’s examine all the more ‘Negative Politeness’ forms: © Rosie Mc. Andrew

Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say something here? I’d

And now, look at thetypical intonation patterns for each: © Rosie Mc. Andrew

You’ll notice that most of them use a fall-rise (referring) tone, which adds to

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Positive & Negative Politeness Cultures A presentation by Rosie Mc. Andrew © Rosie Mc. Andrew

POSITIVE NEGATIVE POLITENESS Cultures VALUE Solidarity, closeness, sharing Distance, separateness, privacy Respect the other person’s basic need not to be imposed on Respect the other person’s basic need to be involved and relied on SO REQUESTS, IMPERATIVES, INVITATIONS tend to be very direct, tend to be indirect; with lots of softeners © Rosie Mc. Andrew

You are on a train; a stranger asks you to close the window. Which of the following would you feel most comfortable with? To you, does the first sound: a) friendly, direct, straightforward? Can you shut the window? b) rude, presumptuous, aggressive? And does the second sound: I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? a) respectful, considerate? b) patronising, hypocritical? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

In a positive politeness culture, the first sounds: Can you shut the window? I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? a) friendly, direct, straightforward. b) rude, presumptuous, aggressive. a) respectful, considerate. b) patronising, hypocritical. © Rosie Mc. Andrew

In a positive politeness culture, the first sounds: Can you shut the window? I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? a) friendly, direct, straightforward. b) rude, presumptuous, aggressive. a) respectful, considerate? b) patronising, hypocritical? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

In a positive politeness culture, the first sounds: Can you shut the window? a) friendly, direct, straightforward. b) rude, presumptuous, aggressive. In a negative politeness culture, the second sounds: I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? a) respectful, considerate? b) patronising, hypocritical? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

In a positive politeness culture, the first sounds: Can you shut the window? a) friendly, direct, straightforward. b) rude, presumptuous, aggressive. In a negative politeness culture, the second sounds: I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? a) respectful, considerate. b) patronising, hypocritical. © Rosie Mc. Andrew

Can you shut the window? I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

I was wondering if you would mind shutting the window? Can you shut the window? Would you mind shutting the window? You couldn’t shut the window, could you? Could you possibly shut the window? Whichever form we use, we are concerned with protecting our own or the other person’s positive or negative ‘face’ - the need to be involved and relied on, or the need not to be imposed on. © Rosie Mc. Andrew

Look at these sentences: Repeat, please. You’re wrong Let me speak That wasn’t clear You’ve misunderstood me Which culture do you think they belong to? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say something here? Repeat, please. I’d just like to come in here, if I may You’re wrong Could you say that again, please? I didn’t quite grasp that Let me speak I didn’t quite catch that That wasn’t clear There may be another way of looking at that Perhaps I didn’t make myself quite clear You’ve misunderstood me I’m not quite sure what you mean I’m not sure that’s the whole story Match each one with 2 versions on the right: © Rosie Mc. Andrew

Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say something here? Repeat, please. I’d just like to come in here, if I may You’re wrong Could you say that again, please? I didn’t quite grasp that Let me speak I didn’t quite catch that That wasn’t clear There may be another way of looking at that Perhaps I didn’t make myself quite clear You’ve misunderstood me I’m not quite sure what you mean I’m not sure that’s the whole story Now, what is the key difference between these three? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

And between these? Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say something here? Repeat, please. I’d just like to come in here, if I may You’re wrong Could you say that again, please? I didn’t quite grasp that Let me speak I didn’t quite catch that That wasn’t clear There may be another way of looking at that Perhaps I didn’t make myself quite clear You’ve misunderstood me I’m not quite sure what you mean I’m not sure that’s the whole story © Rosie Mc. Andrew

Well, that wasn’t quite what I meant. Could I just say something here? I’d just like to come in here, if I may Could you say that again, please? I didn’t quite grasp that I didn’t quite catch that There may be another way of looking at that Perhaps I didn’t make myself quite clear I’m not quite sure what you mean I’m not sure that’s the whole story Can you identify the ‘softeners’ in this group? © Rosie Mc. Andrew

You’ll notice that most of them use a fall-rise (referring) tone, which adds to the sense of deference, and the wish not to impose… © Rosie Mc. Andrew

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