Publisher's Synopsis
Comparatist research on Peninsular Spanish and British English politeness has largely been approached from the viewpoint of pragmatics. In this book, J. A. G. Ardila discusses the linguistic. paralinguistic and semiologic features of politeness in Spain and Britain, and futher presents the social and historical reasons that help to explain Spain's positive politeness. The three first chapters examine the chief linguistic theories on politeness. In addition to discussing politeness according to three different levels of performance, these chapters argue for an analytical understanding of politeness as the result from Leech's principles of interpersonal rhetoric, the situational contextualisation as it is viewed by Lakoff, and the pragmatic phenomena pointed out by Fraser. The author also vindicates the so-called theory of the concentric circles. which encourages the analysis of paralinguistics and semiology by which politeness is embedded in all communicative acts. His discussion of deixis in politeness allows for an analysis of the terms of address, the usage of third-person pronouns, phatic communion and turn-taking in Spanish and English.;Paralinguistic and semiologic uses are also portrayed as being key elements in polite communication as the differences exposed here prove. The general study of linguistics, paralinguistics and semiology in politeness agrees with the thesis that attaches positive politeness to Peninsular Spanish. However. rather than complying with this conclusion, in this book Ardila scrutinises the essence of Peninsular politeness. In proving that face corresponds with the Spanish concept honra, the author illustrates the nature of Spanish politeness with a number of literary texts, in particular Lazarillo de Tormes, as well as with texts by Ortega y Gasset, Unamuno and Larra, and other modem writers, such as Umbral, Javier Marias and Juan Manuel de Prada. Building on William of Ockham's theories, Ardila focuses on the foil individualisation and individualism in order to draw a definition of Spanish and British politeness models that goes beyond those hitherto proposed.
