Speech Etiquette, its Functions and Communication Formulae

Every nation establishes standard norms of social behaviour (including speech behaviour) determined by behaviour patterns. As a complex social system society creates behaviour frames for individuals. These frames are etiquette – the system of rules of person’s external culture, his/her behaviour, dignity, good manners, etc. Etiquette exists in two forms of behaviour: verbal (speech) and non-verbal, which are closely connected and interdependent.

If etiquette regulates the external behaviour according to social rules, SE regulates speech behaviour.

SE is a constituent part of etiquette, rules of speech behaviour depicted in the system of ‘communicative formulae acknowledged by a society and used with the purpose to establish speech contact of interlocutors, to give a conversation an expressive tonality according to their social parts and role position in formal and informal circumstances’.

These stable communicative formulae, or stereotypes of communication, are typical constructions used in different everyday situations.

The totality of all etiquette formulae builds up a system of speech etiquette of every nation. These formulae are used in communicative situations familiar to all language users, peculiar to all spheres, namely: addresses, greetings, farewells, requests, apologies, gratitude, invitations, congratulations, refusals.

The etiquette formulas can be used:

@ to establish the contact (formulae expressing greeting and address);

@ to make the contact go on (formulae expressing apology, gratitude, invitation, request, etc.);

@ to break the contact (formulae expressing farewell, apology, refusal).

SE as a social-linguistic phenomenon is functionally determined by special functions:

1. Contact (fatic) function deals with establishing, keeping, or fixing individual or social (mass) relations. This function concerns all SEF groups because even parting we arrange the possibility of further contact.

2. Politeness (connotative) function is connected with polite behaviour between interlocutors.

3. Regulative function concerns all spheres of SE because the choice of the SEF regulates the relations between the speaker and the hearer.

4. Imperative (voluntary) function foresees the interlocutor’s reaction – verbal, gesture, activity reaction.

5. Appealing function is closely connected with the imperative one since to attract somebody’s attention means to make an impact on the interlocutor.

6. Emotive-expressive function is facultative, for it is not characteristic of all SE units.

All SE functions operate based on the communicative function of the language. Whether in the work place or in private life communication is a form of behaviour requiring special skills. In the past, they were applied only to some kinds of spoken language – typically the kinds of formal oratory, including, for instance, courtroom advocacy and debating – that were traditionally taught under the heading of ‘rhetoric’. But the prototypical object of contemporary communication is ‘ordinary’ conversation, a sort of informal interaction with family, friends and workmates. The standards that define a ‘good communicator’ have to do more with the ethic of interpersonal behaviour than with traditional linguistic value judgements: valued qualities include clarity, honesty, openness, directness and readiness to listen, but not correctness, elegance and wit.

There is a significant cultural variation in such areas as the meaning of silence, expression of politeness, use of directness and indirectness, or appropriateness disclosing one’s experiences and feelings to others. Values like ‘assertiveness’ and ‘openness’ are persistently presented as if were transcultural ideals.

Among the obstacles for successful intercultural communication are not only and not so much language mistakes but mistakes in communicative behaviour. Native speakers are likely to take no notice of phonetic, grammar, or lexical mistakes of an interlocutor, but they painfully react to the speech and behaviour etiquette violence [2].

SEF (Speech Etiquette Formula) serve to represent in the first place politeness of the interlocutors, since it is a kind of universal device of establishing contact between interlocutors belonging to different cultures. In most societies there are specific ways of behaving and speaking which are considered polite (the word ‘ polite ’ means having or showing good manners, sensitivity to other people’s feelings and/or correct social behaviour.) But these are not the same in all societies. Forms of behaviour and language, which are considered to be polite in one society, can sometimes seem strange, insincere or even rude in another. For instance, requests, which are an imposition on the listener, are mitigated by being made indirectly as questions (e.g. Could you possibly pass me the salt?), or as statements (e.g. I think that is the salt beside your plate.), or by adding formulas like Please and If you would be so kind. The most common kinds of politeness formulae are involved in greetings. In English, for instance, greetings range from an informal Hi! through neutral Good morning to a slowly disappearing formal How do you do! It is common to add a second part of greeting, a purely phatic How are you! to which no reply is expected.

Sometimes, the English express politeness in the ways, which are not commonly used in other languages. For example, speakers of British English often use indirectness or tentativeness in order to be polite in situations where other languages are more direct. Speakers of American English tend to be more direct in similar situations.

Another example is the way in which speakers of British English tend to say Thank you for small or important things in situations where speakers of other languages would not consider this to be necessary. For example, when a shop assistant is giving change to a customer, both people will often say Thank you. Speakers of American English do not usually do this.

On the other hand, in some situations it is possible in British English not to reply when somebody thanks you, but in American English, as well as in some other languages, it is necessary to respond, for example, by saying You are welcome.

Sometimes English does not use forms of politeness which are common in other languages. In certain languages, for instance, it is polite to respond to a compliment by refusing to accept it and by saying something bad about yourself or the thing which has been complimented. In English although it is possible to hesitate a little before accepting it. It is usually considered impolite to reject a compliment too strongly [15, 4-11].

The conventions of politeness are based on universal considerations, among which are respect and concern for the partner.

The twin principles of concern and respect for the partner are reflected in two kinds of politeness: positive and negative. ‘Positive’ politeness is shown by respecting interest in partners’ interests, activities, opinions, beliefs, etc., congratulating them on their achievements, praising their qualities, etc., and also by sympathizing with their troubles and sharing one’s own. It may go together with physical closeness and contact and sharing of emotional signals. Positive politeness contrasts with ‘negative’ politeness, in which the speaker tries to avoid embarrassment, distress or displeasure by showing awareness of the partner’s demands. In this way the possibility of overt conflict with a contingent hurt or offence is avoided or at least reduced.

SEF, as a universal device, is used in most communicative situations to establish, keep on and close contact and based on the principle of politeness, are one of the most important features of successful cross-cultural communication.

So, today’s etiquette began more than three hundred years ago when the need of behaving correctly in social situations appeared. The term etiquette sometimes is used synonymously with the word manners. Depending on the sphere where certain type of behaviour is used etiquette can be of different types. Within the speech etiquette it is distinguished two more subtypes which are in sight of the paper study. Speech etiquette is the reflection of speech behaviour of a nation, consequently, speech behaviour depends on social behaviour with its norms established by every nation. Speech etiquette is the system of communication formulae which are used in every day situations. These formulas can be used to establish the contact, to make the contact go on or to break the contact. SE as a social-linguistic phenomenon is functionally determined and its functions are based on communicative function of the language.

CHAPTER II. CELL PHONE TYPES OF SPEECH ETIQUETTE