This study examines how a Swedish upper secondary school EFL teacher avoids performing Face Threatening Acts (FTAs) in instances of reprimanding and giving oral feedback to students. The results and discussion show that the teacher evades potential FTAs caused by statements and demands by using indirectness in the form of questions and requests. Moreover, the feedback was delivered in an emphatic manner, primarily consisting of positive reinforcement regarding the students having performed a task, and secondarily on content and students’ skills. The act of causing face impediments was also mitigated in the delivery of performance feedback with the use of hedges to corrections and with the use of plural ‘you’ rather than focusing on individual student’s errors. These findings suggest that teachers can enhance and maintain rapport with their students in instances that are inherently face-threatening, thereby providing further insight into how teachers can strengthen social relations through the choice of appropriate speech acts.

This essay aim to examine face-threatening acts (FTA) during two lessons with a group of students in class 9 in Sweden. The purpose of the study is to identify and analyze sharp face-threatening acts, how they emerge in the classroom and whatkind of strategies the teacher uses to maintain classroom management. The material is based on sound recordings from October 2021 which have been transcribed and analyzed based on Brown & Levinsons politeness theory. Two participants, one student and one teacher, act as front figures to illustrate examples. Results show that sharp face-threatening acts occur during classes due to possible reasons such as impatience, fewer present adults and the structure of the lesson. The teacher is using a variety of strategies to handle the FTA, among which the strategy of ignoring and continue with the lesson seems to be the most successful to assuage the conflicts. Although it is plausible to assume that a variation of strategies is necessary to maintain authority. / Denna uppsats syftar till att undersöka ansiktshotande handlingar under två lektioner i en klass i årskurs 9. Syftet med studien är att identifiera och analysera skarpa ansiktshotande handlingar, hur de uppstår i klassrummet och vilken typ av strategier läraren använder för att upprätthålla klassrumsordning. Materialet är baserat på ljudinspelningar från oktober 2021 som har transkriberats och analyserats utifrån Brown & Levinsons artighetsteori. Två deltagare, en elev och en lärare, fungerar som frontfigurer för att illustrera exempel. Resultaten visar att skarpa ansiktshotande handlingar förekommer under lektionerna på grund av möjliga orsaker som otålighet, färre närvarande vuxna och lektionens struktur. Läraren använder olika strategier för att hantera ansiktshoten, varav strategin att ignorera och fortsätta med lektionen verkar vara den mest framgångsrika för att lindra konflikterna. Det är dock rimligt att anta att en variation av strategier är nödvändig för att behålla auktoritet.

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In order to better identify and understand the differences between Japanese and English, the task of giving walking directions was used. Japanese and American public facilities (10 each) were randomly chosen from which to collect data over the phone in order to examine these differences based on the following five communication styles: 1) politeness, 2) indirectness, 3) self-effacement, 4) back-channel feedback (Aizuchi), 5) and other linguistic and cognitive differences in relation to space and giving directions. The study confirmed what the author reviewed in the literature: Japanese are more polite, English speakers tend to give directions simply and precisely, Japanese prefer pictorial information and most Americans prefer linguistic information, Japanese is a topic-oriented language and also an addressee-oriented language. The information revealed from this study will help Japanese learners develop important skills needed for developing proficiency in the target language and also teach important differences between the two languages.

This study examines levels of politeness in real time instructor responses to classroom incivility behaviors. Student participants were randomly assigned to view a video of an instructor responding to either passive or active student incivility behaviors in various ways. The responses were based on politeness theory conceptualizations of avoidance, mid-level politeness, or bald on record responses. A 2 (i.e., passive, active student incivility) x 3 (i.e., avoidance, mid-level, or bald on record instructor response) experimental design formed six conditions. High quality video simulations of a classroom environment, portraying one of the six conditions, were created to specifically address these dimensions. Participants took a web based survey and evaluated the instructor with respect to effectiveness, credibility, and impact on student motivation. Results demonstrate students had most positive responses to bald on record instructor responses to active student incivility. When responding to passive student incivility, a less harsh response (i.e., avoidance, mid-level), while not significantly different from a bald on record response, indicate better outcomes. Therefore, in accordance with politeness theory, instructors should consider the level of imposition created by uncivil student behavior when calibrating responses, as student perceptions can be greatly affected. Theoretical and practical considerations as well as avenues for future research are presented.

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The focus of this study is the humour in English spoken podcasts which is conveyed through intra-linguistic or dialectal codeswitching. The aim was to define the formal and functional patterns in creating humour in podcasts through intra-linguistic codeswitching, and to analyse how the usage of such codeswitching relates to the identities and relationships between the participants of the podcasts. The analysis was done using a sequential approach to codeswitching, applying both concepts from social identity theory and politeness theory. The results show that codeswitching may be a way to enhance the performance aspect of direct speech, that a sense of shared group identity is important for humour that involves crossing to be seen as non-face threatening, and that imitations can be seen as non-threatening if the target is a celebrity. Based on the results, the study suggests that intra-linguistic codeswitching serves different purposes within humour, whether it is a way to make an anecdote seem more dramatic and engaging to the listener, or to construct an in- versus out-group identity.

This diploma thesis deals with the way to teach politeness in elementary schools. Based on the theoretical literature, in the first theoretical part on the background of the Czech language there are defined basic terms such as pragmalinguistics, politeness principle, politeness strategies, face etc. Considering the didactic character of this work, both verbal and nonverbal aspects of politeness are described in the relation to the teacher-student communication. The practical part of the thesis focuses on the analysis of how the aspects of politeness are taught in Czech language lessons and included in three contemporary textbook series. Other source studied is the analysis of the relevant survey among teachers. On the basis of the survey results there are made up some activities with presumably good influence on practicing examined aspects of politeness.

While the linguistic concept of politeness has been thoroughly analyzed, the same does not apply to its interpreting. The present theoretical-empirical work describes the means for expressing politeness grouped by G. Leechʼs maxims of politeness. The empirical part analyzes recordings of simultaneous interpretation from media and European Parliament settings. This is a quantitative study and the outcome is the number of means for expressing politeness which the interpreters conveyed into Czech. On average and in all of the material 65,7 % of means for expressing politeness were conveyed into Czech in compliance with the maxims. The means analyzed are prosody, non-verbal communication, modality, personal reference, etc. An equivalent interpretation of means of politeness was deemed desirable. The thesis verifies the hypothesis whether the level of politeness significantly increased in comparison with the original speeches. Key words: politeness, pragmatics, illocutionary act, maxims of politeness, face, modality, prosody, non- verbal communication, Czech, English, interpreting, equivalence, US presidential debate, Obama, Romney, Common Agricultural Policy, European Parliament, Catherine Ashton, forms of address

The thesis explores sociolinguistic issues facing pre-adolescent English-as-second-language learners. Topics covered include literacy issues, communicative competence issues at the intermediate and advanced English language development (ELD) levels, language and power relationships that affect pre-adolescent English language learners, politeness as a sociolinguistic tool, and the benefits of students acquiring the language of cooperative learning. The implications of these topics culminate in the development of a social studies curriculum unit designed for the middle-school classroom.