從禮貌理論分析中英寒暄語文化起源

摘 要：隨著全球化進程的推進，跨文化交際活動變得愈加頻繁與重要。作為社交言語的重要組成部分，寒暄語成為當今社會熱門話題，且不同文化有不同寒暄語這一現象已為人熟知。然而雖然在翻譯理論研究領域這一現象已被深入討論，針對該現象在文化起源方面的深入探討確實少之又少。從禮貌理論角度出發分析中英寒暄語差異的文化原因，并指出中英對于“臉面”的不同態度正是差異的決定因素。

關鍵詞：寒暄語；文化；禮貌理論

中圖分類號：H0 文獻標志碼：A 文章編號：1673-291X（2012）12-0238-02

一、Introduction

Phatic communion is an informal type of discourse that does not cover any functional topics of conversation or any transactions which need to be addressed. It is universal and exists both in eastern and western culture. Although seeming to have little useful purpose，phatic communion is a bonding ritual and a strategy for managing impersonal distance.

Different nations and countries have different ways to perform the phatic communion，and the cultural reason is that different civilization has different ethnical characteristics. As a carrier of culture，speech manifests this difference most. And analyzing and explaining the phatic communion from the view of “face” is the primary approach in the pragmatics. The politeness theory established by Brown and Levinson is the most influential one.

二、A Comparison between English and Chinese phatic communion

Phatic communion rules and topics can differ widely between cultures. Questions about the family are usual in some Asian and Arab countries，while weather is a common topic in regions where the climate has great variation and can be unpredictable，such as England.

1.English Phatic Communion

In English-speaking communities，besides the commonly-used greeting words such as“hello”，the selected topic of phatic communion usually depends on any pre-existing relationship between the two people，as well as the circumstances of the conversation. In either case，someone initiating phatic communion will tend to choose a topic for which they can assume shared background knowledge，to prevent the conversation being too one-sided. And the level of detail offered should not overstep the bounds of interpersonal space. There are some common topics:

* The weather

* Television and films

* Sports

2.Chinese Phatic Communion

In Chinese-speaking community，a smile，good eye contact and politeness are expressions of sincerity. These are the beginning of communication. Just like westerners，the Chinese usually pass the time of day with one another as a precursor to getting to the point of a conversation or presentation.

Different conditions require different styles in which conversational greetings may be exchanged. When you meet someone for the first time，the most commonly-used words are:

For greeting acquaintances，the words will be more informal and friendly like the following:

三、Politeness Theory and the difference between Chinese and English Phatic Communion

1.Politeness Theory and Phatic Communion

Politeness theory is first formulated in 1978 by Penelope Brown and Stephen Levinson. Politeness here is the expression of the speakers’ intention to mitigate face threats carried by certain face threatening acts toward another. Analyzing and explaining the phatic communion from the view of “face” is the primary approach in the pragmatics. And the politeness theory established by Brown and Levinson is the most influential one.

2.Politeness Theory and Chinese Phatic Communion

In Chinese-speaking communities where phatic communion is very important，when people gather，they will use some conventional phatic communion words to show their regards for each other’s life. This is because Chinese culture emphasizes “the positive face”，which requires Chinese to take a positive part in communication. What’s more，Chinese often pay highly attention to the wholeness of their interpersonal relationships. And this kind of attitude can only be expressed through showing care and giving help. Thus Chinese usually tend to ask some private question about salary and heath to show their concern about your situation.

3.Politeness Theory and English Phatic Communion

Different from people in China，masses in English-speaking communities value their privacy very much，and what they appreciate is the negative face. In medieval time，people in Europe suffered a lot from the church’s repression. Therefore，nowadays people in English-speaking countries usually value freedom and their personal life very much，and they believe the behavior which may hinder others is impolite. Besides，the purpose of English phatic communion is to create a comfortable atmosphere. Thus they prefer to talk about the weather.

四、Conclusion

One of the major characteristics identifying us as human is our ability to use language. Language plays a very important role in people’s daily life，and it has close relations with culture which determines the way the people consider ‘face”. It is impossible to separate language from culture. As an important part of language，phatic communions also have close connections with culture. Since topics of them vary from different speech communities，one should pay more attention to the cultural factors. What’s more，with the process of integration of global civilization，only the cultural factors are concerned，communicators can have a satisfactory communication.

References：

[1] Lian Jie. Negative Face: A Difference in Polite Language between Chinese and Western Culture. Journal of Ningbo University (Liberal

Arts Edition) Vol 9 No.1.

[2] Wang Yinan，Yang Zhongfang.A Literature Review of Face.Journal of Psychological Science 2005.

[4] Lim T.S.Facework and interpersonal relationships In: The Challenge of Facework: Cross-Cultural and Interpersonal Issues，New York:State University of New York Press，Albay，1994:209-229.

[5] Mills，Sara.Gender and Politeness.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.2003.

[6] Brown，Penelope and Stephen C.Levinson.Politeness: Some universals in language usage.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.1987.

Cultural Origins of the Differences Between Chinese and English Phatic Communion

in the View of the Politeness Theory

WANG He-yao

（The English Department， Sichuan International Studies University，Chongqing 400031，China）

Abstract:As an intimate part of socializing speech， phatic communion is an important subject today.This thesis analyses the differences in Chinese and English phatic communion， then studies the cultural reason why English and Chinese phatic communion differs from each other from the angle of politeness theory and points out the attitudes about“face” in Chinese and English culture is the determiner.culture is a whole way of life， therefore cultural diversity determine the difference of the discourse of greetings.

Key words:phatic communion; culture; politeness theory

[責任編輯 王玉妹]