PAPER 1 - Q1

Question 1

THEORY
- Goffman Face Theory

Answer 1

• face is how we present ourselves in a conversation

1. maintaining face - maintaining our reputation
2. losing face - loss of internal emotional support which protects us in social situations
3. saving face - defend ourselves to prevent losing face
4. positive + negative face
   - face - threatening acts - damage one’s identity and is when an individual is inappropriate to a point of their reputation being compromised.

use when :
- speaker is saving face or mitigating threats to someone else’s face
- analysing politeness, rudeness or apologies
- conversation is based around roles or status

Question 2

THEORY
- Grice’s Maxims

Answer 2

1. Quantity - provide necessary information and do not say anything in excess of
2. Quality - say information you believe to be true, don’t say anything which you lack adequate evidence
3. Relevance - be relevant
4. Manner - avoid obscurity, ambiguity and remain brief and orderly

use when :
- analysing cooperative vs non cooperative conversations
- analysing humour, sarcasm or evasion ( maxims are flouted )

Question 3

THEORY
- Giles Accomdation Theory

Answer 3

• mutual convergence - both speakers adapt their accents, formality or idolects to ccomodate each other
• upward convergence - speaker tones down their idiolect
• downward divergence - speaker keeps their idolect / formality
• mutual divergence - both speakers keep their idiolect and are hostile

use when :
- there are adaptations in tone, pronocuniation, vocab etc
- when a speaker is trying to align or distanced themselves to build or resist rapport
- when analysing power dynamics, social groups etc

Question 4

THEORY
- Lakoff’s Politeness Principles

Answer 4

1. Don’t impose
2. Give options
3. Make receiver feel good
   - Positive Politeness - Make the receiver feel liked by valuing them in the conversation
   - Negative Politeness - Don’t impose etc

use when :
- speaker is softening their language to avoid conflict
- there is an attempt to maintain social distance or be considerate
- when analysing politeness, power or tone

Question 5

THEORY
- Bernsteins Code

Answer 5

1. Elaborated Code - used by richer, more educated, upper class people - have more complex syntax, context-independent references and precise reasoning
2. Restricted Code - used by lower class, less fortunate people - shorter sentences, context-dependent references and standard grammar

use when :
- analysing a speakers education, culture or class identity
- informal vs formal speech
- when analysing why someone may be excluded because of their linguistic differences
- when there are tensions between two speakers because of different backgrounds

criticism :
- too classist or simplistic
- people can adapt their code ( code - switching )

Question 6

types of interruptions

Answer 6

1. rapport - to build relationship
2. competitive - be intimidating or show dominance
3. neutral - correct someone

Question 7

THEORY
- Labov’s Narrative Structure

Answer 7

• process of when a person tells a story
  1. Abstract - story beginning
  2. Orientation - who, what, where
  3. Complicating Action - what happened during the event
  4. Resolution - what happened at the end
  5. Coda - signals end of story
  6. Evaluation - what i / you think

use when :
- analysing spoken stories or anecdotes
- show how identity is built through storytelling

Question 8

Asking Questions

Answer 8

1. Leading - questions speaker asks to manage conversations
2. Tag - emphasis on end of statement
3. Open - requires complex answer
4. Closed - yes or no - used by people in power often
5. Rhetorical - doesn’t need an answer - flouts maxim of relevance

Question 9

THEORY
- Functions of speech

Answer 9

• Referntial - provide basic info
• Expressive - show opinions, wants and needs
• Transactional - language has an end result / goal
• Interactional - maintains relationships
• Phatic - initiates convo, small talk, typical reply
• Metalinguistic - about language itself

Speech Act Theory - Austin / Searle
- breaks down functions of speech into :
1. locutionary act - literal utterance
2. illocutionay act - intended function
3. perlocutionary act - effect on listener

Question 10

charles goodwins story structure

Answer 10

• speakers use techniques to build narratives together
  1. Story Preface - signal that speaker wants to tell a story, invitation for others to respond
  2. Story Solicit - response from someone else that they want to listen to
  3. Preliminary - background information
  4. Story Action - main body of narrative
  5. Story Climax - conclusion iof narrative
  6. Story Appreciation- parenthesis, signals that speakers are active

Question 11

IRF Structure - Sinclair & Coulthard

Answer 11

• extended adjacency pairs become three - part exchanges
  1. Initiation
  2. Response
  3. Follow up / Feedback