{"title":"A culture of “pleasing”?","authors":"G. Held","doi":"10.1075/jhp.00065.hel","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.00065.hel","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 This paper seeks to explain the development of European politeness as a result of courtly behaviour where\u0000 “complaisance” played an important role. As traces left in the so-called “language of politeness” of numerous European\u0000 linguacultures show, mutual “pleasing” determined social performance in hierarchically organised societies by merging aesthetic\u0000 concepts of form and order with ethical values of benevolence and charity. An analysis of the lexical item\u0000 placere (‘to please’) in Early Modern Italian and French documents highlights the existence of six different\u0000 formulaic usages, characterised by a high consistency in frequency, evolution and diffusion all over Europe. Appearing mainly in\u0000 connection with interactive moves where will is at stake, placere-formulae represent co-operative means, which\u0000 ease social relationships by conditioning and “embellishing” directives with different elements of social\u0000 decorum. As acts of submission originating in the Medieval ars dictandi, they became integrated\u0000 over time into the French dogma of “polished” conversation as an elitist “art de plaire” (Faret 1665). From France they spread into the European courts establishing a conception of politeness that has been\u0000 underestimated in pragmatics so far.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-03-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46302223","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"German and Romance civility in contact","authors":"Linda Gennies","doi":"10.1075/jhp.00061.gen","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.00061.gen","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 In this paper, I argue for a systematic study of the role that language contact has played in the development of\u0000 German, French, Italian and Spanish address systems. While the current state of research clearly points to contact-induced changes\u0000 in Early Modern European polite address, some important desiderata concerning the precise direction, nature and scope of contact\u0000 influences remain. Against this background, I present historical foreign language manuals as a promising source for the\u0000 comparative study of historical European address practices and their development. Through an explorative analysis of metapragmatic\u0000 comments and model dialogues in selected foreign language manuals, the increasingly dynamic pressures experienced by interlocutors\u0000 both to distance themselves from one another and to express solidarity come to light, as multi-level address systems emerge and\u0000 mixed styles of address gain in importance.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47320683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The informalisation of address practice in Swedish in a historical perspective","authors":"Maria Fremer","doi":"10.1075/jhp.00067.fre","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.00067.fre","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 In the 1960s, Swedish address practices underwent a change from an intricate system of honorifics to universal\u0000 use of the informal second-person singular du. This study challenges the common characterisation of this so\u0000 called “du-reform” as very quick and straightforward. Previous studies, relying on reported usage and written\u0000 language, suggest that the formal pronoun ni was considered impolite, while the informal du was\u0000 restricted to use amongst family and close friends. I used advertising films to trace diachronic usage patterns in dialogue and in\u0000 addressing the viewer. My study shows evidence of change over a period of fifteen years. It also shows that the formal address\u0000 pronoun ni and informal address by du were both used in addressing the viewer long before the\u0000 du-reform. The du-reform is a noteworthy change in European politeness behaviour. Today, the\u0000 informal du is the unmarked address form in Swedish.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49576205","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A European model of polite conversation?","authors":"G. Alfonzetti","doi":"10.1075/jhp.00066.alf","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.00066.alf","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000This paper reconstructs the model of polite conversation that is outlined in two Italian conduct books, Della Casa’s Galateo (1774 [1558]) and Gioia’s Il Nuovo Galateo (1802–1827), a model which will then be compared with one detailed in the German text Über den Umgang mit Menschen by Adolph Knigge (1788). The main aim of this study is to highlight the similarities and differences in texts from different historical time periods and geographical areas, in order to identify a European model of polite conversation, whose roots lie in classical, humanist and Renaissance traditions, and which has some features that are still relevant today. There are some clear similarities between this European model and first-generation theories of politeness, despite the different intent that should distinguish “normative texts” and “descriptive models”. This raises an interesting theoretical question: when studying a social and ethical issue such as politeness, to what extent is it possible to advocate a clear separation between description and prescription?","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-02-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42765051","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Diplomatic letters from the Republic of Ragusa in the fifteenth century","authors":"Anja Lalić","doi":"10.1075/jhp.00060.lal","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.00060.lal","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 In this paper, I study the ways in which (im)politeness strategies are used in letters sent by the Republic of\u0000 Ragusa to its ambassadors in the Bosnian Kingdom during the fifteenth century. The corpus for this research comprises the\u0000 \u0000 Lettere di Levante\u0000 collection, today kept in the Dubrovnik\u0000 State Archives, Croatia. I aim to determine the politeness strategies that were used in the letters based on the Brown and\u0000 Levinson framework. The paper focusses on mitigating strategies used when making requests, expressing condolences, offering\u0000 congratulations and making threats. The research reveals patterns in conversational and written exchanges, whose goal is to be\u0000 conventionally polite and diplomatic. This research aims to offer insights into intercultural communication in Europe,\u0000 inter-European influence, and communication patterns in diplomatic discourse and might be of interest to political scientists,\u0000 historians and diplomats.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-02-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47325734","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Coherence in translation","authors":"J. Sanders, J. Evers-Vermeul","doi":"10.1075/jhp.18011.san","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.18011.san","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 When comparing old and new Bible translations, differences are striking at all discourse levels. This paper\u0000 concentrates on variations in the representation of subjective cognition and reasoning of subjects in the discourse. A\u0000 corpus-based analysis was conducted that compared the domains of use of causal fragments in Dutch Bible translations that were\u0000 either old, contemporary and loyal, or “easy”. In a close comparison of Bible translations, differences between domains of use\u0000 are analysed in more detail. In old translations, the character’s subjective reasoning is clearly separated from the narrator’s\u0000 utterances. By contrast, in modern translations, causal reasoning is more intertwined between character and narrator, resulting in\u0000 shared reasoning.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47631149","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of Napoli & Ravetto (2017): Exploring Intensification: Synchronic, Diachronic and Cross-linguistic Perspectives","authors":"Zeltia Blanco-Suárez","doi":"10.1075/jhp.22019.bla","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.22019.bla","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-01-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45186520","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"On the use of sì? (‘yes?’) as invariant follow-up in Italian","authors":"Lorella Viola","doi":"10.1075/jhp.18007.vio","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.18007.vio","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 Follow-ups are elliptical interrogative forms typically constituting an utterance in their own right. They are\u0000 used to signal attention to the interlocutor, to encourage them to continue or as a reply to a call. This paper investigates the\u0000 invariant follow-up sì? (‘yes?’) in Italian and it argues that it represents a case of pragmatic language change.\u0000 To this end, it investigates the diachronic distribution, collocation and contexts of usage of sì? in a variety\u0000 of language sources in relation to plausible, equivalent expressions (i.e., dimmi and dica\u0000 [‘tell me’]). The analysis will show that since its earliest record of use in films in 1960, the frequency of occurrence of this\u0000 form has dramatically increased to the point that, today, it is the preferred device. The study will also provide solid evidence\u0000 of positive correlations between the use of yes? in English language audio-visual products and the use of\u0000 sì? in scripted and real-use Italian, strongly suggesting that the marker would in fact be a case of\u0000 pragmatic borrowing from English.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47608831","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The combinative use of “imperative + final particle” in Tokyo language in the Meiji period","authors":"Huiling Chen, Jianying Du","doi":"10.1075/jhp.18006.che","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.18006.che","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Honorifics in Japanese as a rare linguistic system has received consistent attention in social and cultural linguistic studies. A typical linguistic structure of honorifics is “imperative + sentence-final particles (shuu-joshi)” (henceforth, “final particle”), which has been studied mainly as a compound expression in Tokyo language. Different from previous studies with separated attention towards imperative expressions and sentence-final particles in the Edo era as well as in modern Japan, this paper investigates the combinative use and diachronic changes of “imperative + final particle” during the Meiji period – a period of upheaval in the Tokyo dialect. The investigation takes multiple views including the positions and relations (social and psychological) between the interlocutors, and the context of the utterance. Results of the investigation lead to an insight into pragmatic norms and diachronic changes of the modern Tokyo dialect, specifically the tendencies, characteristics and the driving force.\u0000This study finds the particular expressive effect accomplished by the combinational use of “imperative + final particle” in the modern Tokyo dialect. The speaker shapes the degree of respect or politeness with the selective use of imperatives, and signals the communicative attitude by adding sentence-final particles. This linguistic form manifests the demand for “acting upon”, unveils the social construct and cultural norms embedded in inter-personal communication. The analysis on the developmental trend of “imperative + final particle” suggests that the prototype of the Tokyo dialect brings to prominence the across-status expressions as a result of social, political and educational reforms.","PeriodicalId":54081,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Historical Pragmatics","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41276057","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}