A Study Of Chinese Mock Politeness From The Rapport Management Perspective

A confusing but intriguing linguistic phenomenon has attracted more and more attention in recent years.Some ostensibly polite utterances unexpectedly make the addressee feel unhappy or uncomfortable,which is called mock politenessMost studies of mock politeness are conducted against the backdrop of western culture.This thesis is intended to study mock politeness in Chinese culture,including its conceptualization,realization modes and pragmatic functions.In addition,how social distance,power and culture affect mock politeness is also explored.The data are picked out from the classic TV series Love Story in Countryside(Ⅱ)which vividly presents the local culture of rural areas in the northeastern part of China.Under the theoretical underpinnings of Leech’s(1983)Politeness Principle and Spencer-Oatey’s(2000,2002,2005,2008)Rapport Management Theory,this study argues that influenced by context,mock politeness can be conceptualized as relative impoliteness or relative politeness.It also identifies four realization modes of mock politeness,i.e.,"offence hidden in politeness","mock empathy","oblique accusation"and "flattering".Among them,"flattering" very often occurs in Chinese culture What’s more,pragmatic functions of mock politeness are studied.Mock politeness fulfills both relatively impolite pragmatic functions such as "ironizing" and "teasing"and relatively polite pragmatic functions like "giving hints" and "creating an atmosphere of conversation".In addition,this thesis does research on how social distance and power affect mock politeness.The speaker takes social distance and power into consideration when s/he performs mock politeness.Chinese politeness cultures such as "refusing/denying others by belittling self" and "accepting an offer after declining it n times" are vividly presented,which show that there are differences between Chinese politeness and western politeness.This systematic exploration of mock politeness in Chinese culture provides a solid foundation for future projects.The potential areas of mock politeness are stated with the aim to extend the understanding of mock politeness.