The function of politeness in English and Japanese literature

2020 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K02292
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Literature in English
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: ABE Masahiko 東京大学, 大学院人文社会系研究科(文学部), 教授 (30242077)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: ポライトネス / 英文学 / 日本文学 / 言語学 / 言語教育 / 英語教育

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The aim of this project was to examine the function of politeness in the context of the narrator/reader relationship in literary texts. The idea of politeness has inspired cross-disciplinary investigations in linguistics, sociology and anthropology in the past decades, but quite often such approaches prioritize oral communication, with emphasis on concepts such as 'face' and 'distance'. In my research I tried to reveal that politeness is in operation even in written texts, particularly in literary works, where the attitude of the narrator could be seen as part of an attempt to stabilize relationships with the reader. Close readings show how the narrator tries to avoid offence and make the reader comfortable through various 'polite' behaviors, though sometimes deliberate 'impoliteness' is applied to create effects, too. The outcome suggests that more attention to politeness will deepen our understanding of the mechanism of written texts.

Free Research Field

人文学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

ポライトネス研究はもともとは言語学と社会学、文学人類学などの学問分野をつなぐ形で発展してきたが、今回の研究はこれをさらに文学研究の領域に押し広げ、そのことを通して、さまざまな言説の中で潜在的に機能している書き手と読み手の間の関係性に新しい角度から光をあてることを可能にする。この研究の延長上で、公に流通している文書の適切なあり方を検討することが可能になるとともに、言語教育の現場にも示唆を与えることができると考える。