Implementation of Positive and Negative Politeness Strategies in Kazakh and Russian Family Discourse Talk Show

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Introduction

Politeness strategies have continually attracted the attention of scholars in the fields of semantics, pragmatics, sociolinguistics, and intercultural communication [1–15]. They explain and reflect the norms of particular speech communities and provide important information about their social structure. The strategies which people use to address each other play an important role in determining their relationships [10. Р. 2]. Comparative studies on the implementation of speech strategies in the aspect of politeness and studies on intercultural communication in the aspect of politeness 2 show that in addition to the social context, the cultural context also has a significant impact on the set of politeness forms and their functioning [7; 12; 13]. In addition, the choice of politeness strategy to perform a communicative task is an important means of conveying cultural messages and contains information about the norms, values, and social practices of a given society. This study aims to reflect the peculiarities of the implementation of positive and negative politeness in Russian and Kazakh talk shows on the YouTube platform.Positive politeness seeks to enhance social connections through displays of warmth, agreement, or thanks, while negative politeness respects others’ privacy by employing formality or indirect language. While Russian conversations typically employ more straightforward modes of communication and exhibit negative politeness, which entails maintaining a certain level of distance or formality, Kazakh talk shows emphasize hospitality and reverence towards elders, thereby exemplifying positive politeness. In Kazakh broadcasts, it is customary to address guests by their first and middle names or use formal language. However, in Russian broadcasts, it is more typical to discuss private and sensitive topics with a certain level of straightforwardness. Traditionally, linguistics did not consider the study of politeness and its usage as distinct scientific fields. However, researchers have determined that during speech, certain social behaviors that are essential but not instinctive to the human body are encouraged and influenced by the concepts of “appropriate,” “inappropriate,” “polite,” and “impolite”.

Politeness reveals itself as a social, psychological and speech construct. It is always built on the basis of dialogue and is implemented on the basis of the requirements of a certain behavior.

L.P. Yakubinsky highlights the significance of the words and phrases used by the speaker to initiate dialogues, examining how language functions in dialogical speech, such as the use of terms like “guilty” and phrases like “tell me please”. Through this, the speaker lays the foundation for achieving their communication objective. The study of politeness was examined within the context of classical linguistics, focusing on the utilisation of consistent terminology associated with recognised norms of speech. In his work, L.P. Yakubinsky highlights the phenomenon of certain phrases that are linked to stereotypical life events, which can give rise to intricate grammatical structures and clichés [17].

Within the realm of semantic-­grammatical categories, V.V. Vinogradov identifies a distinct subset of interjections which he labels as “original expressive sound gestures that are exchanged by friends or acquaintances in various social situations as dictated by social norms”. These words depict an intricate sequence of commonplace emotions and behaviors. Thank you! For instance Thank you; obsolete: Greetings!; regrets; et cetera. The reference is provided in [18. Р. 593]..

An essential aspect of effective intercultural communication is a thorough understanding of the cultural dimensions of concepts. The works of researchers on intercultural communication contribute to the establishment of this field of study [7; 11; 12; 15]. We will talk about politeness specifically in the sphere of communication channels, of which there are a large number today. Each of these channels has its own requirements for politeness and is implemented in the context of its own ideas about the correctness of the narrative and the construction of a dialogue.

The members of the second direction study behavioral trends across cultural boundaries. Researchers in the field of cross-­cultural pragmatics analyze communication practices from different cultures in a comparative manner. The concept of civility is highly emphasized in this context. P. Brown and S. Levinson [1] conducted a thorough examination and proposed a distinction between two primary types of politeness: negative politeness, which involves maintaining a physical distance between the speaker and the listener, and positive politeness, which is rooted in a sense of solidarity with the communication partner. The basis of this classification is the notion that every individual possesses a “social facade”, which communication channels risk revealing. Following the framework proposed by P. Brown and S. Levinson, we characterize polite conduct as a collection of tactics designed to achieve the most effective communication outcomes. However, we do not consider the preservation of the interlocutor’s “face” to be at stake in every communication scenario.

For our project, we chose materials from talk shows that were categorized thematically as entertainment. We selected these discussion programmes because the conversations in them closely resemble those in everyday communication. The discourse of talk shows plays a crucial role in our analysis of speech behavior, as it provides distinct speech standards and limitations for every participant.

The talk show’s structure and format dictate the extralinguistic factors that impact the speech of each participant throughout an episode. As a result, the features of talk show discourse are tightly linked to the talk show speech genre. The talk show genre necessitates that each participant in the conversation will undertake a distinct role. The phrase “talk show” refers to a style of performance characterized by conversation and spectacle, which in turn determines its unique qualities as a genre of speech (such as “talk” referring to discussion or argument, and “show” referring to a spectacle).

The primary indications of a talk show being a vibrant and energetic production are the host’s creative prowess, the ease of conversation, and the requirement of an audience’s presence. The central figure of the talk show is the host, a talented orator who possesses the ability to turn the conversation into an authentic spectacle. The talk show guests are temporary participants in the programme, and the studio discourse focuses on their individualities and life experiences. The inherent discourse limits of talk programmes are directly influenced by their format, which consists of a beginning, climax, and conclusion.

The show opening often consists of a concise introduction where the host or hostesses discuss recent and pertinent societal events, while also setting the main theme of the programme. The central element of the talk show consists of one or more dialogues with specifically chosen guests, usually concentrated their own attributes, accomplishments, or life experiences. Entertainment discussion presentations often have prize draws, comedy sketches, and appearances by sports, magicians, or musicians.

These elements are often employed as a climax or denouement. The structure of the talk show episode and the studio communication guidelines define the boundaries and constraints of the talk show conversation. Talk show discourse is an interactive form of speech interaction between the telecommunicator and the television audience. It is characterized by specific national-and-cultural features which are evident in the context of interpersonal communication. Additionally, it is influenced by the complexities of mass communication and the institutional status of the telecommunicator.

Verbal apologizing is a widespread expression of bad politeness observed in various cultures worldwide. This strategy of displaying politeness is commonly utilized in the Kazakh and Russian discussions of Kazakh talk shows. Talk show participants can utilize this method to limit the scope of discussed subjects, while talk show hosts can employ it to reduce the chances of feeling embarrassed due to an uncomfortable question or a poorly delivered joke.

As a result, we discovered that specific tactics, such as offering apologies, showing respect, expressing pessimism, avoiding questions, downplaying, and engaging in face-­threatening behaviour, are commonly used. Furthermore, the frequency of these strategies is similar in both Kazakh and Russian talk show discussions. The Kazakh discourse is characterized by the utilization of strategies such as acknowledging indebtedness to the listener and adopting standard indirect terms, which are applied with greater frequency. The discussion on talk programmes in Russia often involves the application of tactics such as nominalization and personalization of the speaker or viewer.

The first show to investigate is “Male and Female” and the issue of termination of parental rights of an SWO participant.

Adelina Murtazalieva, 22, from Makhachkala, wants to establish the paternity of her ex-­husband Marat Kulaev for the twin children and get alimony from him. But Marat and his current wife Heidi Magomedova have their own plans — to deprive Adelina of parental rights and formalize custody over the twins. Adelina believes that Marat and Heidi simply do not want to pay alimony for the girls: since Marat is a member of the SWO, the amount of alimony will be huge. The girl says that she saw how Heidi brings up her one-­year-old child: she did not wash him, did not look after him, went out for a walk at night and left him alone.

In turn, Marat and Heidi claim that Adelina is a bad mother. According to them, she leaves her children alone at home, and at the same time she rests in clubs, has a promiscuous sex life and uses drugs.

Since this show is built on the need to scandalize, to bring the viewer to emotions, the predominant type of politeness in this program is negative. Let us turn to specific examples.

Let us consider some of the strategies that, in our opinion, are most characteristic of everyday communication situations.

• Notice the listener, pay attention to him/her, his/her interests, desires, needs. This strategy is widely used in conversational dialogs.

— ДОБРЫЙ ДЕНЬ. Вот родила, а отца в свидетельство о рождении не вписала. И вдруг в какой-то момент проснулась и решила. Да, он наконец может стать отцом. Что же такого произошло? И почему здесь суд, алименты.
— Я думаю, просто у мужика зарплата выросла (in Russian).

It should be noted that this strategy also includes such speech acts as greeting, farewell, apology, gratitude.

Since the talk show genre is aimed at emotionalization, we can say that hyperbole plays a very important role in filling the characters’ statements. The exaggerated assessment of the characters’ actions and qualities given in the talk show is one of the most important ways to create interest in the audience.

— Вам 22?
— 22 года.
— Двое детей?
— Двое.
— А возраст какой?
— 4 года.
— А, ну то есть Вы достаточно в юном возрасте стали мамой.
— Я вышла в 16 лет, родила в 17 двоих детей и буквально 2 года назад развелась (in Russian).

The speaker seeks to ensure that the addressee is left with no shadow of doubt about their sincerity (in Russian):

я выросла и поняла, что человек не мой! А дети, получается, поскольку брак был религиозный, но не официально зарегистрированный, в свидетельстве о рождении детей стоял прочерк.

On the other hand, hyperbolic statements violate the truth postulate of P. Grice. The given communication does not hinder communication in any way, but has the greatest impact on the emotional perception of the research material: the research material given in the text indicates that the direct meaning of the statement is not enough, therefore the viewer must look for a hidden meaning [1].

— Вы остались одна, с двумя маленькими детками, без работы, естественно,
—Ну, да!
— А он помогал?
—Он не помогал
— Вообще?
— вообще
• Demonstrate an emphasized interest in the listener
— As you can see, this strategy overlaps with the previous ones and differs little from them.
— Давайте мы от прошлого отвлечемся. Что сейчас изменилось? Он вписан?
— Пока нет.
— Я узнала, что он на СВО, и контракт у него заканчивается в декабре этого года. И в итоге …
— Обратились в суд?
— Да. (in Russian):

Showing care can be focused on the vital needs of loved ones, such as maintaining health:

The purpose of this strategy is to harmonize communication, demonstrating unity of views, feelings, attitudes, reciprocity and mutual understanding.

— Вы от него ушли?
— Да, я от него ушла.
— То есть Вы от него ушли.
— Знаю-знаю, иди давай!
• Seek agreement
— Conversational discourse often uses thematic picking up to maintain agreement:
— А он то в курсе Ваших планов?
— Я ему отправила заказное письмо. Положила все документы, заявление…
— А Вы куда его отправили?
— По его адресу.
— Я знала, что он должен был приехать.
— В отпуск?
— Да. Но письма я ему отправила. (in Russian):

Clear indicators of agreement are such answers as “Yes. Of course. Absolutely. Of course. Don’t say (those). You bet.”

During a dialogue, we expect, if not acceptance, then the communication of our own point of view to the interlocutor. Often the purpose of this statement is to attract the attention of a person, to evaluate the event from the point of view of different sides. The result is the attraction of the audience to your side.

— Вы от него ушли?
— Да, я от него ушла. Сначала мы с ним договаривались, что он будет помогать по возможности. В итоге он ничем не помогал. А, когда я его спрашивала «слушай, может ты хотя бы в этом месяце отправишь? 10 тысяч, 5 тысяч, он говорил, что у него долги, что вот он сам пытается что-­то заработать.
— Слушайте, давайте так. Смотрите, сейчас статус отца не установлен. Он сдал материал?
— Он ничего не сдал и сказал, что в суд он тоже не пойдет, поэтому суд отложили
— Если он не придет в суд, его могут же просто так признать отцом?
— Потому я и подала на алименты
— Often such phrases are supplemented with examples of negative politeness.
— Возможно, Вы тут свою выгоду ищете. Сейчас, когда у него заработок вырос в 10 раз.
— Да даже если она сейчас ищет свою выгоду, она больше нарушает закон, когда не требует с него алименты, нежели, когда она не требует с него. Потому что она действует в интересах детей..
— Согласен, но парадокс сегодняшней передачи заключается в чем. Он вроде, как и не отказывается от детей. Мало того, он хочет, чтобы дети с ними были. (in Russian):

Be optimistic

For Russian conversational discourse, exaggeratedly optimistic answers — Great! / Beautiful! / Wonderful! — are not so typical. They are often used ironically. Neutral answers are more typical: Good, thank you / Everything is good / Everything is fine / Not bad / Normal / Nothing.

Showing politeness towards the interlocutor becomes a way of building a dialogue. Evaluative remarks, which are implemented as a reflection of the attitude towards the interlocutor, act as a kind of expression of support, which is implemented as a reflection of not only the view of what is happening, but also the desire to emphasize that the person is heard. Let’s give an example in Russian.

— Отлично выглядишь!
— Спасибо.

The second stage of the analysis was the use of positive and negative politeness strategies in Kazakh shows. The show “ Астарлы ақиқат: Әке іздеген егіз қыз”, which can be translated as “The Basic Truth: Twin Girl Seeks Father”, was chosen for analysis.

In the case of Kazakh shows, the emphasis is not on the aggressive delivery of information, but on the desire to understand all the participants of the talk show. Hence, when characterizing Kazakh talk shows, we relied on two types of politeness — positive and negative.

The goal of positive politeness is to hide the threat to the positive face [1. Р. 216]. The speaker is as attentive as possible to the feelings of the Other, trying to maintain a “positive face” for him. There are over 15 positive strategies, but their main purpose is to respect the importance of information for the interlocutor, the desire to understand him and support him in any situation.

1. Expressing a need, a request.

— У всех людей есть отец и мать. Они ищут своего отца. А где их мать?
— Сразу после 40 дней с рождения внучек я взяла их к себе. Когда девочкам исполнилось 3 года, я отправила дочь работать в «Казахмыс», она жила в общежитии. Она была в стрессе, и я отправила ее работать, чтобы она наладила свою жизнь. Она познакомилась с парнем из села Енбек Каркаралинского района и вышла за него замуж.
—  Значит мать была с дочерями до 3 лет?
— Да, работала и жила с нами.
— Или она уехала сразу после 40 дней?
— Нет, уехала, когда внучкам было 3 года (in Russian).

2. Group solidarity.

— В нашем обществе бывают разные случаи. Некоторые дети не знают, кто их мама. Вы сказали, кто их мама, но они называют Вас мамой?
— Да, я очень рано объяснила им, что Гульсин их мама.
— Сколько у Вас детей?
— 13 детей, 9 из них живы.
— Ваша дочь вышла замуж и начала новую жизнь?
— Да. (in Russian).

3. Expressing a optimism.

—— Если она уехала, когда дочерям было 3 года, то прошло 10 лет. Она общалась с дочерьми 10 лет, навещала их?
——Она работает в «Казахмысе» по вахтовому графику. 15 дней на работе, 15 дней у себя дома. Сейчас у нее двое детей. Один ребенок учится во 2 классе, а второму 9 месяцев.
——Мать видится с дочерьми после замужества?
—— Да.
——Покупает все необходимое?
—— Да. Помогает.
——У меня шесть дочерей, они все помогают. Есть три сына. Покупают все, что нужно.
——Огромное спасибо Вам, что Вы вырастили своих детей. А сейчас воспитываете красивых внучек (in Russian).

4. Including the speaker and listener in a collaborative activity.

— Мы посмотрели по какой причине вы здесь. Слезы девочек не оставили равнодушными гостей и экспертов студии. Расскажите все с самого начала. Откуда вы приехали? (in Russian).

5. Empathy, understanding, or participation.

— Как Ваша дочь познакомилась с этим парнем? Я, думаю, она получила достойное воспитание от Вас.
— Как познакомились родители Ваших внучек? (in Russian).
— Я не знаю, когда он работал в нашем регионе. Все произошло в 2010 году. Дочь рассказала мне в ноябре 2010 года, когда была на 5 месяце беременности. Я встретила Дархана вечером, когда тот шел на работу. Он сказал, чтобы я не переживала, сказал, что заберет ее в Караганду в конце ноября после окончания вахты.
— Вашу дочь? Да, я согласилась. Сказала ему, чтобы решили этот вопрос.
— Он сказал, что женится. Ваша дочь была ранее замужем?
— Нет. Моя дочь скромная. Ранее не была замужем (in Russian).

All the listed data indicate that the goal of this politeness strategy is to support the interlocutor as much as possible and express one’s own respect for him.

II. The specificity of negative politeness is that it seeks, on the contrary, to insult the interlocutor [1. Р. 74]. It reflects the speaker’s attitude to events and seeks to “hurt” the interlocutor as much as possible and express the attitude towards him in a negative way. As a rule, the negative politeness strategy is implemented either as an insult strategy or as a distancing strategy. The material we are analyzing makes extensive use of the distancing strategy.

— Дархан приехал ночью 31 ноября и забрал мою дочь в Караганду. Они 2–3 дня были в городе. Когда вернулись, я спросила у дочери что решили. Дархан выпил чаю и сказал, что ему нужно ехать, отец ждет его.
— За те дни они зарегистрировали брак.
— Нет.
— В Караганде они сходили на узи, узнали, что будет двойня. Они переночевали в доме его брата и сестры. Сестра сказала, чтобы он не расставался с ней, что она воспитанная. Дочь сказала, что Дархан заберет ее через 5 дней. Но он не приехал. Приехал через 15 дней. Дочь была обижена, что он не приехал в обещанное время. Мы с мужем поехали в Енбек и нашли дом Дархана (in Russian).

Expression of pessimism

— Мы обижены на них. Им нужно было пожениться. В 3м классе была одна девочка, с которой мы дружили. Мы поругались с ней, и она сказала, что нас некому защитить. Было тяжело это слышать. Сказала, что у нас никого нет и мы никому не нужны. Он был слабым, не смог переступить через волю отца (in Russian).

Direct aggression

— Мы не хотим тебя видеть. Тебе сказали, чтобы ты женился. А ты не смог этого сделать. Из-­за тебя нас называют сиротами. Изначально нужно было думать. Пусть алименты платит и все. Мы жили без него 13 лет и дальше сможем.

Conclusions

Positive and negative politeness allows reveal the peculiarities of attitude towards communication participants. It is especially important to establish trusting relationships between people, readiness to listen to the other one and create positive communication. Politeness strategies are directly determined by the peculiarities of communication in the language environment, which leads to the fact that both common and different language codes are observed in Russian and Kazakh talk shows.

About the authors

Nazerke Yergazy

RUDN University

Author for correspondence.
Email: naz_erke9898@inbox.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0003-4346-983X

PhD student, the General and Russian Linguistics Department, Faculty of Philology

6, Miklukho-Maklaya Str., Moscow, Russian Federation, 117198

Anastasia V. Denisenko

RUDN University

Email: denisenko_av@pfur.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-0222-5460
SPIN-code: 9567-3407
ResearcherId: D-7770-2019

PhD in Philology, Associate Professor of the Russian language department № 4 of Russian Language Institute

6, Miklukho-Maklaya Str., Moscow, Russian Federation, 117198

References

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