What is
politeness?
When asked to define politeness, one would usually reply, “Oh, well
isn’t it simply being kind and considerate of others?” or, “Saying please and
thank you.” Politeness is much more than a simple definition; it is a concept. Let’s
analyze two approaches to politeness. In Culpeper’s, et. al. (2009) English Language, he describes the
social-norm view of politeness and the pragmatic view of politeness. (524-525)
The prescriptive social-norm view assumes that each society has a
certain set of social norms enforced by society. “Politeness subsumes notions
such as ‘good manners’, ‘social etiquette’ and ‘minding your Ps and Qs.’”
(Culpeper, et. al, 2009: 524) Experimental or descriptive social norms are
based off an individual’s experiences in social situation. Experience of social
situations might lead someone to know how to expect certain things, be able to
read someone by hypothesizing what his or hers expectation are. Social
experiences lead us to know what is “socially positive” and what isn’t. For
example, the use of the word ‘please’ is considered socially positive. However,
using the world please does mean politeness will be achieved. If you say to
someone, “Fall off a cliff please,” that means you would want to get rid of
that person. This would be considered ‘socially negative’. Politeness always
involves a contextual judgment. (Culpeper, et. al, 2009: 525)
Politeness theories are focused on how we use communicative strategies
to maintain social harmony. (Culpeper, et. al, 2009: 525) For example, if you
were having Thanksgiving dinner with your family, you would use words such as
‘please’ or ‘excuse me’ to achieve something and maintain social harmony.
What is
Face?
Face, defined by Brown and Levinson (1987), is the public self-image every
person shows. There are two aspects to face: positive face and negative face.
Positive face is to want to be liked and appreciated. Negative face is the want
to have freedom. The University of Sheffield explains that this can relate to
politeness by being contextually appropriate, following social norms, and being
socially positive. Also, this can relate to impoliteness by engaging in
aggressive face to cause social disruption. (2012)
In order to save face, people have the option to use politeness strategies
(Brown and Levinson, 1987). 1.) Bald on
record is trying to lessen the face threat. 2.) Positive politeness is showing you showing value someone. 3.) Negative politeness is not impeding on
someone. For, example if a student walks into a class in session would say to
the teacher, “Sorry, I don’t mean to bother you but, __________.”
Impoliteness strategies would include 1.) Bald on record: an intentional face attack. 2.) Positive impoliteness: not showing you
value someone. Criticism and disagreements would make good examples of positive
impoliteness. 3.) Negative impoliteness:
imposing on someone by making orders, treats, or requests. (University of
Sheffield, 2012)
First Order Impoliteness in the African American Speech Community (AASC)
First order impoliteness is defined as an individual's interpretation of politeness based on experience. One of the main problems with first order impoliteness is that some people believe the way politeness is for them would be the same way politeness is for everyone. For example, many people think that the type of speech used mainly in the AASC would be impolite. If a young black woman were to say, "My momma be working," it would be dismissed as 'ignorant' or 'improper English'. What people do know is that they are truly the ignorant ones if they say that. The young black woman was speaking Ebonics, or African American Vernacular English. "My momma be working," is a habitual statement. The young black woman was would be saying that her mother is currently employed. The reason why this would be a problem is because African Americans exists in a white privileged institution. The idea that 'being/acting white' is considered normal in this country is why people would dismiss Ebonics as 'ignorant'. In actuality, Ebonics is actually systematic and considered a language. (Rickford, n.d.)
What is the 'right' way to speak English?
