On-the-Application-of-Indirect-Speech-Act-in-English-Verbal-Communication-on-the-Basis-of-Rhetorical.doc

本科毕业论文

题目
（中文）
从修辞角度论间接言语行为在
英语言语交际中的运用

（外文）
On the Application of Indirect Speech Act in English Verbal Communication
on the Basis of Rhetorical Devices

On the Application of Indirect Speech Act in
English Verbal Communication on the Basis of Rhetorical Devices

Abstract

Communication plays a significant role in people’s daily life. Through communication, people could express their opinions and understand others’ needs. Good communication is conducive not only to present viewpoints properly but also to improve interpersonal relationships. In addition to direct speech, indirect speech is another indispensable part of communication. In order to communicate better, people need to know some basic knowledge about it. So, this paper analyzes the application of indirect speech in English verbal communication on the basis of rhetorical device. In the first part, the author gives a brief introduction to the speech act theory and the indirect speech act. In the second part, the author elaborates on the application of indirect speech, including its classifications and motivations. In the third part, the author probes into types of rhetorical device used in indirect speech. There are three types according to their functions, which are politeness, vividness, and expressiveness. In the last part, the author moves on to a natural conclusion.

Key words: indirect speech act; English verbal communication; rhetorical devices

On the Application of Indirect Speech Act in
English Verbal Communication on the Basis of Rhetorical Devices

Outline

Thesis Statement: This paper discusses the application of indirect speech act in English verbal communication from the perspective of rhetorical devices.

I. Introduction
II. The Application of Indirect Speech Act
A. The Classifications of Indirect Speech
1. The Conventional Indirect Speech Act
2. The Non-conventional Indirect Speech Act
B. The Motivations of Using Indirect Speech Act
1. To Be Polite
2. To Make Requests
3. To Express Refusals Implicitly
III. Types of Rhetorical Devices Used in Indirect Speech Act
A. Politeness
B. Vividness
1. Metaphor
2. Metonymy
C. Expressiveness
1. Hyperbole
2. Pun
3. Irony
IV. Conclusion

On the Application of Indirect Speech Act in
English Verbal Communication on the Basis of Rhetorical Devices

I. Introduction

The main function of language is communication. It not only includes the accurate understanding, but also the appropriate expression. Indirect speech is one aspect of English verbal communication which means “say something indirectly”. The other one is direct speech which means “call a spade a spade”. Just like direct speech, indirect speech is also a common phenomenon in people’s daily communication.
Speech Act Theory was put forward by John Austin in 1950s. It is an important part in the study of pragmatics which includes Locutionary Act, Illocutionary Act and Perlocutionary Act. It is the theoretical basis of the Indirect Speech Act which was presented by John Searle. Searle claimed that “One illocutionary act is performed indirectly by way of performing another.”1 He also proposed the notions of primary and secondary illocutionary act. The primary illocutionary act is the indirect act and the secondary illocutionary act is the direct one. For example, “Could you close the window?” The surface form of this sentence is a question. In fact, the speaker doesn’t ask whether the listener has the ability to close the window or not, while expressing his intention which is a request.
Whether the application of indirect speech act is successful or not has an important impact on people’s communication. For example, in a certain context, when someone asks “What do you think of my new bag?”, the answer “I’m afraid it does not suit you” will be much more proper and polite than “It’s ugly”. Based on the importance of indirect speech, it is necessary to grasp some basic knowledge of it. And it is widely acknowledged that, rhetorical devices are a significant part of the application of indirect speech, thus this paper will probe into this topic through the

viewpoint of rhetorical devices.
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II. The Application of Indirect Speech Act

In social intercourse, the core of communication is appropriateness. Thus the application of indirect speech act is a universal phenomenon. This chapter will discuss the classifications of indirect speech act and the motivations of using indirect speech act.

A. The Classifications of Indirect Speech Act

Indirect speech act theory tries to solve the problem of how to figure out implied meaning of conversation, that is pragmatic meaning, through literal meaning. This problem can be explained by the following classification of indirect speech acts.2 On the basis of sentence structure or context, indirect speech act could be classified into conventional indirect speech act and non-conventional speech act.

1. The Conventional Indirect Speech Act

The conventional indirect speech act means the indirect speech act that can be inferred from the literal meaning. In other words, the listener could deduce the implicit meaning according to the sentence structure. Hence this act can be regarded as a sort of habitual usage. The reason that people use it is out of the respect to the listener. And to some extent, its main feature is that the illocutionary force is fixed in a standard format and it has been universally accepted. For example:
(1) Could you pass me the paper?
(2) I would appreciate if you could close the window.
(3) Would you mind turning off the light?
These sentences are just two questions and one statement literally, but according to the conventions, the illocutionary force is giving instructions, because the marked word “please” can be put in these sentences which indicate the
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politeness.

2. The Non-conventional Indirect Speech Act

The non-conventional indirect speech act is more complicated and flexible than the conventional indirect speech. The former is mainly depending on the context while the latter is mainly depending on the linguistic forms. The listener deduces the illocutionary force largely on the basis of the mutual background information. And maybe an identical sentence has different illocutionary force in different context. For example, a woman says “the flower is beautiful” to a man.
(1) It can be used to express her favor to the flower.
(2) It can be used to suggest the man that he should buy it for her.
(3) It can be used to remind the man that she will buy it for her mother.
Therefore people need to pay extraordinary attention to this kind of speech act in daily communication and give a proper reply based on the specific circumstances.

B. The Motivations of Using Indirect Speech Act

Although the motivation of the application of indirect speech act is different in different circumstances, the main motivations can be classified as follows:

1. To Be Polite

Not all politeness is about language, but language is the main means for the expression of politeness. The essence of politeness is related to the “face” issue, and it is everywhere in social communication.

The Face Theory is put forward by Brown and Levinson in 1978. According to Goffman’s explanation, the “face” is related to some emotional concepts, such as “embarrassed”, “humiliated” or “losing face”. Therefore, Brown and Levinson held a view that people should keep
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others’ face if they want to cooperate with them successfully. And the best way to keep others’ face is using polite language. Based on Grice’s Cooperative Principle, Leech proposed another pragmatic principle—Politeness Principle.3

The using of inappropriate words may cause misunderstandings, and even give rise to the failure of communication in social intercourse. Hence the politeness is indeed a significant principle for successful communication. For example:
A: How do you like my skirt?
B: I’m afraid I have no eyes to appreciate beauty.
It seems that B gives an irrelevant answer, but it’s so rude to say “I don’t like it at all” directly, so he tries to say in an implied way.
A: Where is your sister?
B: She’s either in the classroom or in the playground.
B can’t tell exactly where his sister is, but out of politeness, he says opaquely to avoid letting A down.

2. To Make Requests

When people want someone else to do them a favor, the imperative sentence is quite stiff and unacceptable, and others may feel undesirable even offensive. But the use of indirect speech could make the tone more mild and courteous. For example:
(1) I order you to turn off the television.
(2) Turn off the television.
(3) I want you to turn off the television.
(4) Will you turn off the television?
(5) Can you turn off the television?
(6) Would you turn off the television?
(7) Would you mind turning off the television?
The first example is the most direct one. In fact, it’s an impolite order rather
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than a mannerly request. But the last sentence is quite opposite. It’s not only courteous, but also respectful. Even though the essence of this sentence is an order, it makes the listener do it willingly. So it could be said that converting an imperative sentence to an interrogative sentence is an excellent way to make requests more indirect. Besides this, people tend to sound out others’ response. For example:
A: Excuse me, do you have an English dictionary?
B: Yes.
A: Could you lend it to me?
B: Sure.
The speaker asks the listener whether he has the dictionary or not before he makes his request. And when he gets the affirmative reply, he then posts his request. By this way, the speaker not only gains his ends, but shows his courtesy to the listener.

3. To Express Refusals Implicitly

Sometimes, people have to refuse others’ requests which are beyond their ability or their willingness. But when they express their refusals, they should pay attention to the speaking manner and the mood choosing, because the refusals are easy to make others feel embarrassed and even harm the interpersonal relationships. Thus, people need to express their refusals indirectly as much as possible. For example:
(1) A: Can you lend your notebook to me?
B: No way.
(2) A: Can you lend your notebook to me?
B: I’m afraid I can’t.
In the latter example, as compared with the former, the speaker does not hurt the listener’s feeling as well as achieves his communication goal. Apart from the above examples, there are some other common ways to give indirect refusals.
The first one is giving the reasons of refusals. Compared with the personal
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reasons, the impersonal and uncontrollable reasons are more acceptable and convincing. For example:
A: Could you do me a favor?
B: I’d like to, but I’m cooking dinner.
The second one is expressing regret. “I am sorry” is the best expression for this. For example:
A: We need your help.
B: I am sorry. I’m very busy now.
The third one is offering an alternative. Besides the refusal effect, it’s also saving the listener’s face. For example:
A: Can I use this computer?
B: There are two computers in the room, use that one.
The fourth one is using acceptance as a refusal. Its literal meaning is acceptance while the implied meaning is refusal. For example:
A: Can I use your washing machine?
B: If my wife isn’t going to use it, of course you can.
Actually, B’s real meaning is that his wife is going to use the washing machine and he couldn’t lend it, but he expresses in the opposite way. Through this strategy, the speaker could express his interest or willingness to this matter, but he is restricted by other factors.

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III. Types of Rhetorical Devices Used in Indirect Speech Act

Rhetoric is the skill of using language in speech or writing in a special way that influences or entertains people.4 To some extent, a few rhetorical devices are parts of the indirect speech act which can strengthen the speaker’s tone and make the expression more vivid through the implicit language, such as irony, euphemism, metaphor, hyperbole, pun and so on. This chapter will divide them into three categories according to their function and elaborate on them one by one.

A. Politeness

Euphemism is one form of indirect speech and its main purpose is to be courteous. The word euphemism is derived from Greek, and its original form is euphemismos. The prefix “eu” means good or well and “phemism” means speech, so the whole word means word of good omen. In daily communication, in order to avoid those unpleasant situations, people are inclined to use the unobjectionable and elegant words to replace the vulgar or offensive expressions. The function of the euphemism is to adorn the language and to make it mild and acceptable. Euphemism is a common social phenomenon. Besides, with the development of the society, euphemism plays an increasingly significant role in human relations.
According to the relationship of the taboo, the euphemism could be divided into two categories: the traditional euphemism and the stylistic euphemism. The former is closely associated with the taboo. Typically, there are six situations as follows.
The first one is death. Over the centuries, death is a serious subject. To show the respect to the dead and their relatives, people need to pay special attention to the election of their words. There are a large number of implicit expressions of death in English, such as “return to dust”, “to answer the final summons”, “go to the other world”, “be gone to a better land”, “to be gathered to one’s father” and so on.

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The second one is disease. Some certain diseases are horrible or may cause the mental burden and psychological pressure. Therefore, it is necessary to use euphemism when they are mentioned. “Cancer” could be replaced by “Ca” or “the big C”; “insane” could be replaced by “mentally ill”; “AIDS” could be replaced by “social disease”.
The third one is physical disabilities. The handicapped is a special disadvantaged group. They are sensitive and have strong self-esteem. In addition, they care about others’ comment and are easy to be hurt. Thus the use of euphemism is quite important. For example, people could replace “the crippled” with “physically inconvenienced”. And “deaf” could be replaced by “hard of hearing”; “blind” could be replaced by “visually retarded”.
The fourth one is the