Expressions of Politeness and Gratitude: Towards a General Theory

The world is now referred to as a 'global village'. This presupposes the need for us to interact with human beings across innumerable cultures. Politeness which is strongly culture-based, is an important factor to be kept in mind if we are to interact with a wide range of human beings from different social and cultural backgrounds.

This book explores the notions of 'Politeness' and 'Gratitude' through the formulation of certain 'principles' and 'conditions' that characterize and distinguish the two concepts. The theory put forward points towards a need to distinguish the two concepts from each other. It also brings out the fact that various socio-psychological (even cultural) factors play a significant role in determining the use of 'Expressions of Politeness/Gratitude', in true-to-life social situations.

The book runs into five chapters. The First chapter makes a critical analysis of some literature existing in the area of Politeness and gratitude. The critical analysis lays down the premise for the theory developed in the second chapter. The Second chapter is an attempt to answer a very basic question, viz., 'why I one polite at all?' In so doing it views politeness not only from a 'social' angle as some theorists have done, but also from the individuals' angle. This chapter states certain 'principles' (PIE and PSE) and 'conditions' for answering the question stated above. The Third chapter focuses on the empirical study designed to test the principles and conditions laid down in chapter two. Chapter Four, which is divided into three sections, states the results of the empirical study along with their interpretation. Chapter Five puts forth the conclusions drawn from the study. It also makes some recommendations for future work.

I sincerely hope that the clear and lucid style will make the reading well-focused and easy to comprehend.

The book acquaints the readers with the notions of Politeness and Gratitude. Some basic principles are set out which are seen to motivate the use of expressions of Politeness and Gratitude in various social situations in Hindi Urdu speech community. A set of conditions is postulated which characterize these expressions. The theory in general not only clarifies Politeness and Gratitude but it also distinguishes between the two by way of the set of conditions, which characterize each of the two concepts. Ø Theoretical study of the notions of Politeness and Gratitude Ø Empirical study of the verbalisation of the Expressions of Politeness and Gratitude in the urban, educated Hindi-Urdu speech community Ø Empirical evidence to support the arguments presented Ø Lucid and clear style Ø It will serve as a practical guide to researches in clarifying the notions of Politeness and Gratitude, understanding the difference between the two and in understanding some of the basic principles which motivate polite expressions.

From the Jacket

The book acquaints the readers with the notions of Politeness and Gratitude. Some basic principles are set out which are seen to motivate the use of expressions of Politeness and Gratitude in various social situations in Hindi Urdu speech community. A set of conditions is postulated which characterize these expressions. The theory in general not only clarifies Politeness and Gratitude but it also distinguishes between the two by way of the set of conditions, which characterize each of the two concepts.
· Theoretical study of the notions of Politeness and Gratitude
· Empirical study of the verbalisation of the Expressions of Politeness and Gratitude in the urban, educated Hindi-Urdu speech community
· Empirical evidence to support the arguments presented
· Lucid and clear style
It will serve as a practical guide to researches in clarifying the notions of Politeness and Gratitude, understanding the difference between the two and in understanding some of the basic principles which motivate polite expressions.

About the Author

Ibha Kumar is currently an Assistant Professor, in the General Management Area, at Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar where she teaches various courses in Business Communication. She has conducted several training programmes on Communication, Business Etiquette, Public Relations, etc., for a number of organizations and has published many articles in both national and international journals.

Contents:

Preface
Acknowledgement

Chapter 1
Introduction

I.   The Present Study
II.  Politeness and Gratitude: A Retrospect

Chapter 2
Towards a Theory of Politeness and Gratitude 

I.   Principle of Individual Existence
II.  Principle of Social Existence
III. Gratitude and Politeness

Chapter 3
Design of the Empirical Study

I.   The Pilot Study
II.  The Main Study

Chapter 4
Result and Interpretation

Section A 
Section B
Section C

Chapter 5
Conclusion

Appendix
I.   The Twenty-six Expressions with their Rough English Equivalents
II.  Translation and Classification of the Situations
III. Classification of the Situation in Terms of High, Moderate and Low Degrees
IV.  The Questionnaire

Bibliography
Index