《小镇疑云》中请求和拒绝话语的社会语用研究

A Socio-Pragmatic Analysis of Making Requests and Refusals in Broadchurch

本文从社会语言学以及语用学的角度,采用话语分析的方法,用Brown&Levinson(1987)的面子威胁理论和Grice(1975)的合作原则分析英国电视连续剧《小镇疑云》中请求和拒绝话语的性别差异。研究发现,男性和女性进行请求和拒绝的话语风格有所不同,尽管都会违背合作原则中的数量准则,但男性通常会直接提出请求或者用沉默拒绝别人的请求,以维护说话者的积极面子,威胁听话人的消极面子,女性则倾向于用彬彬有礼的话语进行请求,用委婉拒绝的话语威胁说话者的消极面子,从而避免威胁听话人的积极面子,同时,女性也更容易违背合作原则中的关系准则。了解请求和拒绝的语用性别差异有助于减少男性和女性在日常交流中的矛盾,促进人际关系和谐发展。

This paper employs the method of discourse analysis to analyse the difference between males’and females’speech acts of making requests and refusals in question-answer communications in Broadchurch from the perspective of Brown&Levinson’s(1987)Face-Threatening Acts and Grice’s(1975)Cooperative Principle.The study finds that there are some differences between males and females while making requests and refusals in communication;usually both of them violate the maxim of quantity in Cooperative Principle,but males make requests with direct words and use silence to make refusals so that to protect their positive face while threaten addressees’negative face;while females tend to make requests and refusals in polite ways with indirect words,which threaten addressers’negative face but protect addressees’positive face,at the same time females are more likely to violate the maxim of relation.To achieve a whole picture of verbal differences among males and females while making requests and refusals is beneficial to develop harmonious relationship by reducing misunderstanding in cross-gender communications.