Emic Perspectives on the Positive-Negative Politeness Distinction

Abstract

By resorting to the comparative analysis of oriental and western languages (Chinese, Japanese, American English, Australian English) Haugh questions the universal nature of positive / negative face, which he describes as ethnocentricoriented, and thus should be reconceptualized. To do so, he proposes a dialectic approach based on connectedness-separateness which may transcend the divisions into binary oppositions, and account for both the universal and culture-specific elements inherent in the phenomenon of politeness.