Kinship terms are a way for the speaker to refer to themselves or others. For example, two brothers may call each other anh (older brother) and em (younger sibling). However, kinship terms do not have to be used solely with people who are related. It is normal for a couple to call each other em and anh. When kinship terms are used in direct address, they add both an increased formality and level of personal concern (Thompson, 1965). The topic of my paper will be on the usage of kinship terms and how these terms influence Vietnamese politeness in different ways. Specifically, how do kinship terms interact with various supporting verbs and modal particles in Vietnamese politeness?
Supporting verbs Supportive verbs include performative verbs …show more content…
One view under this theory comes from Brown and Levinson (1978) and the idea of a face-saving approach. They postulate that there is a negative and positive face. Negative face is the want of people to be independent and autonomous. Positive face is the want of every person to be desired by and connect with others. Speakers must use various phrases such as xin lôi (excuse me) or làm ơn (please) to mitigate any potential face-threatening acts. Although Brown and Levinson (1978) state that politeness is universal, Nguyen and Le Ho (2013) argues that their theory hardly applies to Vietnamese. Rather than based on an individual standpoint, Vietnamese politeness is more group-oriented (Nguyen & Le Ho, …show more content…
Politeness is a matter of etiquette and following social norms of behaviour. This particular theory lacks the consideration of an individual’s role in politeness.
Synthetic Approach
The third theory, synthetic approach, combines the previous two theories together. This newly developed theory involves both individualism (Instrumental theory) and socialism (Normative theory) in forming the concept of politeness. Vu (1999) argues that Vietnamese politeness follows the synthetic approach which combine principles of indirectness alongside markers of social order.
Non-familiar usage of Kinship terms
Aside from the typical uses of kinship terms with family members, there are situations where kinship terms can be used in a non-familiar way. Chew (2011) suggest that kinship terms can convey positive/negative nuances, humour and irony when status and choice of personal reference are not compatible. For example, (adapted from Vu 1999):
(2) A wife A talking to her husband: A: Ông ra đây, tôi nhơ ti! Grandpa come here, subject ask- [for favour] a-little ‘Come here, I need to ask you a
Supporting verbs Supportive verbs include performative verbs …show more content…
One view under this theory comes from Brown and Levinson (1978) and the idea of a face-saving approach. They postulate that there is a negative and positive face. Negative face is the want of people to be independent and autonomous. Positive face is the want of every person to be desired by and connect with others. Speakers must use various phrases such as xin lôi (excuse me) or làm ơn (please) to mitigate any potential face-threatening acts. Although Brown and Levinson (1978) state that politeness is universal, Nguyen and Le Ho (2013) argues that their theory hardly applies to Vietnamese. Rather than based on an individual standpoint, Vietnamese politeness is more group-oriented (Nguyen & Le Ho, …show more content…
Politeness is a matter of etiquette and following social norms of behaviour. This particular theory lacks the consideration of an individual’s role in politeness.
Synthetic Approach
The third theory, synthetic approach, combines the previous two theories together. This newly developed theory involves both individualism (Instrumental theory) and socialism (Normative theory) in forming the concept of politeness. Vu (1999) argues that Vietnamese politeness follows the synthetic approach which combine principles of indirectness alongside markers of social order.
Non-familiar usage of Kinship terms
Aside from the typical uses of kinship terms with family members, there are situations where kinship terms can be used in a non-familiar way. Chew (2011) suggest that kinship terms can convey positive/negative nuances, humour and irony when status and choice of personal reference are not compatible. For example, (adapted from Vu 1999):
(2) A wife A talking to her husband: A: Ông ra đây, tôi nhơ ti! Grandpa come here, subject ask- [for favour] a-little ‘Come here, I need to ask you a