Conversational Practices as Evidence for Taking Request as a Face Threatening Act

doi:10.12002/j.bisu.227

Abstract

Abstract:

Face is a deep-rooted concept for interactants to consider in interactions, and it is even more inportant when interactants are involved in a face-threatening act, such as request. Request could threaten the face of the requester and/or the requestee, considering the fact that a request could infringe or impose on the freedom of action of the requestee and threaten the requestee’s negative face while the requestee’s refusing a request could damage the requester’s positive face. Many pragmatic researches have probed into the strategies that communicators could adopt to do face threatening acts. The present research, taking conversation analysis as the research methodology, investigates the conversational practices that interactants could adopt to make requests. For example, requests could be accounted for by the requester, turns can be designed to discount the cost to the requestee, something could be given in return, and pre-sequences might be used to delay the occurrence of a request or even trigger an offer. The conversational practices that a requester adopts sufficiently explain that requests are endogenously understood by both the requester and requestee as a face-threatening act which is a dispreferred initiative action in nature. The present research is based on the interactional concept of politeness and the procedural approach to face.

Keywords: request; negative face; conversational practice; procedural approach; discourse analysis

摘要：

面子是交际者在言谈应对过程中考虑的社会因素之一,当交际者执行伤面子行为的时候更是如此。作为社会行为的请求在本质上是一种侵害交际对方消极面子的起始行为,那么请求者是否会在话轮设计方面有具体的考量和体现?区别于现有的传统语用学对执行伤面子行为语用策略的探讨,本文采用会话分析的研究方法,探究请求者在执行相邻对前件时展现出来的侵害交际对方消极面子的具体言语表现。这些言语表现是交际者在交际过程中执行请求的会话常规,如通过讲述困难而获得对方的给予或帮助、通过前序列确认请求前提的存在、权衡请求行为背后的损益关系、对请求作出解释、以给予的方式执行请求等。这些会话常规是请求者对请求行为损害被请求者消极面子属性的自我适应,是请求者对请求行为社会属性的构建。从会话分析视角研究面子体现的是面子的互动观和步骤过程法。

关键词: 请求, 消极面子, 会话常规, 步骤法, 会话分析

CLC Number:

H030

Guodong Yu. Conversational Practices as Evidence for Taking Request as a Face Threatening Act[J]. Journal of Beijing International Studies University, 2019, 41(4): 3-19.

于国栋. 请求作为伤面子行为的会话佐证[J]. 北京第二外国语学院学报, 2019, 41(4): 3-19.

Figures/Tables 1

References 36

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	Agent of future action	Beneficiary of future action
Proposal	Self & Other	Self & Other
Offer	Self	Other
Request	Other	Self
Suggestion	Other	Other

	Agent of future action	Beneficiary of future action
Proposal	Self & Other	Self & Other
Offer	Self	Other
Request	Other	Self
Suggestion	Other	Other