Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage

Studies in Interactional Sociolinguistics #4

by John J. Gumperz (Foreword), Penelope Brown, Stephen C. Levinson

This study is about the principles for constructing polite speeches. The core of it first appeared in Questions and Politeness, edited by Esther N. Goody (now out of print). It is here reissued with a fresh introduction that surveys the considerable literature in linguistics, psychology and the social sciences that the original extended essay stimulated, and suggests distinct directions for research. The authors describe and account for some remarkable parallelisms in the linguistic construction of utterances with which people express themselves in different languages and cultures. A motive for these parallels is isolated and a universal model is constructed outlining the abstract principles underlying polite usages. This is based on the detailed study of three unrelated languages and cultures: the Tamil of South India, the Tzeltal spoken by Mayan Indians in Chiapas, Mexico, and the English of the USA and England. This volume will be of special interest to students in linguistic pragmatics, sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, anthropology, and the sociology and social psychology of interaction.

Genres: Linguistics, Nonfiction, Language, Anthropology, Psychology, Academia

345 pages, Paperback

First published February 27, 1987

Reviews

[Shelliebean]

Linguistics was a hugh component of my graduate work, and this book is very interesting if you are at all intriqued by how language functions in context.

[Minh Trang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Required textbook for Pragmatics course in Master.
Classic and academic book for those in linguistics field. Easy to understand (without any old language) and apply for today's politeness situation.
This is a must-read book for those who love language use in different contexts. However, for nowadays lives, it is a futile attempt to overgeneralize the concept of politeness among diverse culture. Brown distilled the culture down into Western culture and observe this multi-facet concept from a Western mind, entailing limitation and overgeneralization.
For Asian readers, I recommend Politeness in East Asia by Kadar and Mill (2011).

[Hồ Uyên · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's really useful and interesting!

[Claris ✨🧚🏼💛 · Rating 3 out of 5]

pues muy interesante la verdad

[Sergei Moska · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book. I "only" gave it 4 stars for purely idiosyncratic reasons; at times it was kind of a slog. People with a stronger background in ethnography and/or linguistics may enjoy it more.

Incidentally, this book is both a good complement and critique to Goffman's work. It situates his insights in a framework that is more sensitive to political power and social hierarchy.

[Lilamedusa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm rating this, not according to quality or however it is that I rate my other books, but according to its usefulness for me.

And, sometimes as an example, sometimes as a counterexample of very importan points, this book has been incredibly useful for me.

[Laurel Perez · Rating 3 out of 5]

In some ways this was a little more accessible than some linguistic texts, and in other ways I felt that as a non-linguist trying to get the gist, it onlf half did the job. If you are interested in politeness, then I don't think you can escape it.

[Alung]

this is very popurar book.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

A seminal work in linguistics, and the foundation of politeness theory in discourse analysis, sociolinguistics, etc.

[Renaldo Gaspie]

excellent

[Arnold Brand · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want it free

[Sheila Nanda]

this book is very helpful for my thesis