English theorys

There are four maxims which can either be adhered to or flouted:

• Quality -  do not relay false information during a conversation
• Quantity - be as informative as necessary, do not give too much or too little information.
• Relevance - relate clearly to the purpose of the conversation and do not suddenly change the topic or start talking about something else.
• Manner - be clear, orderly and brief, avoid obscurity and ambiguity.

• Leech - minimise the cost and maximise the benefit to othes lives, e.g. give them something in return for their help.
• Goffman - 'face' e.g. forms of address, formality, turn-taking, interruptions etc..
• Brown and Levison - There are two types of politeness - positive politeness (which is experessed by satisfying 'positive face' either by indiciaing simarlarities amonst interactants or by expressing an apprecation of the others self image). Negative politeness (is saving the others face, either negative or positive, by avoiding face threatening acts or by satisfying negatie face by indicating respect fr the addressee's right not to be imposed on.
• Lakoff - don't impose, give your opinions and make the reciever feel good.

• Convergence - speech moves closer to that of the other person to decrease social difference (this can be upwards or downwards).
• Divergence - speech moves further away to that of the other person to isolate yoursef socially (this can be upwards or downwards).
• Mutual convergence - both participants moving towards eachother.

• Women - talk more, talk too much, more polie, indecisive or hesitant, complain and nag, ask more questions, support each other, more co-operative.
• Men - swear more, don't talk about emotions, talk about sports more. talk about women and machines in the same way, insult each other frequently, competitive in conversation, dominate conversation, speak with more authority, give more commands, interrupt more.

• Women don't tell naughty stories, men tell stories involving embarrassing moments more, women present a world where problems can be shared, women's narratives bind women together.
• Females engage in this more than men, it is considered to assert social unity, a form of social control, makes it clear what is acceptable behaviour.

• Hedges, super-polite forms, tag questions, speak in 'italics', empty adjectives, hypercorrect grammar and pronounciation, direct quotations, special lexis, question intonation in declarative statements, imperatives, speak less frequency, over-use qualifiers, apologise more, modal constructions, avoid coarse language/ expletives, indirect commands and requests, more intensifiers, lack a sense of humour.