Conversation theory

• Mode - writing 


  writing is:

  • planned
  • permanent
  • formal
  • highly structured
  • a monologue
  • concerned with the past and future
  • grammatically complex
• Mode - spoken


  speech is:

  • spontaneous
  • temporary
  • informal
  • loosely structured
  • a dialogue
  • concerned with the present
  • grammatically simple
• Grice's Maxims 


  1975 -Grice formulated a number of maxims which he claims speakers operate at.

  These are where speakers follow certain unspoken rules.

  They are never spelt out but are understood as part of the process of language acquisition and early socialisation.

  Is called the co-operative principle, and the associated maxims are:

  • quality - speakers try to tell the truth
  • quantity - speakers give the right amount of information
  • relevance - speakers try to stick to the point
  • manner - speakers try to present their material in an orderly fashion
• Adjacency pairs


  When one speaker's utterance makes a particular kind of response likely.

  • question and answer
  • statement and acknowledgement
  • complaint and reply
  • greeting and response
• 3 part exchange

  • initiation
  • response
  • follow up
• Insertion sequence

  • A - Shall I wear the blue shoes?
  • <B - You've got the black ones
  • A - They're not comfortable>
  • B - Yeah they're the best then, wear the blue ones

  <bullet point 2 and 3 = insertion sequence>
• Discourse Markers

  Words which normally mark boundaries between one topic and the next - or signal the relationship between utterances
• Flouting the cooperative principle

  Grice argues that people have 2 options - to cooperate with the principle or deliberately flout it.

  The result of rule-breaking is known as conversational implicature.

  It includes all the language we might call 'non-literal' (EG. metaphors, hyperbole, and much of our humour - irony)
• Question types

  • Closed questions - questions that require a yes or no answer
  • Open questions - questions that begin with 'how' or 'wh' words and require a more involved response
  • Tag questions - turns a statement into a question. They are the 2 word questions at the end of the statement. Can be used tentatively, aggressively, or to get support.
  • Commands hidden as questions - used to save the face of the listener
  • Known answers/ display - a speaker asks when they already know the answer
• Observers Paradox

  The vernacular speech of a person being studied is altered by the presence of the observer.

  It compromises the accuracy of the observation.
• Politeness and Face theory

  Sometimes a speakers role gives them authority to challenge others (eg. teacher student, talk show host to participant)

  Presenting a challenge is difficult, but there are ways to present it that are more or less acceptable to the person being challenged.
• Politeness Theory - Brown and Levinson - 1978

  Studied politeness and have concluded that all participants of a conversation must acknowledge.

  All speakers have 2 faces in conversations:

  • negative face - the want to not be imposed upon
  • positive face - the want to be enthusiastic and respected
• Face supporting/ threatening

  • face supporting - supporting their face
  • face threatening - not supporting their face/ disrespecting their want

  Two ways you can challenge someone's face:

  • challenge a person's negative face by telling them what to do
  • challenge a person's positive face by showing you disagree with or do not appreciate their values and beliefs

  Indirect message - protects negative face

  Direct message - threatens negative face
• Robin Lakoff

  Robin Lakoff summarised politeness in 3 maxims:

  • don't impose
  • give options
  • make your receiver feel good
• Speakers support

  In cooperative conversations, speakers work together to reassure and help each other.

  Listeners can show agreement, encourage further speaking and can check they have been understood and modify what they have said if necessary.

  In conversation, people can share mutual presuppositions and can join in joint evaluation.
• Back-channelling

  Making noises for support

  EG. mmm
• Politeness features

  • open questions
  • closed questions
  • tag questions
  • questions with built-in options
  • commands
  • interruptions
  • overlaps
  • pauses
  • refusal to take up topic
  • Grice's Maxims
  • repetition
  • Discourse markers
  • finish utterances for others
  • please/thank you
  • hedges
  • provisional language (if,could)
  • vague language
  • inclusive support
  • in group vocabulary
  • adjacency pairings
  • Lakoffs Maxims
• Phonetics

  • phonemes - the smallest units of sound you use to make a word
  • monopthong - a simple/pure vowel sound
  • dipthong - a vowel sound that changes during articulation

  Voiced/unvoiced

  • voiced - sounds made when the vocal chords are drawn together, creating a vibration
  • unvoiced/ voiceless - sounds made when the vocal cords are spread apart so air can pass without obstruction
• Places of articulation

  • Hard palate (roof of mouth)
  • Soft palate (velum)
  • Glottis
  • Alveolar ridge
  • Upper teeth
  • upper and lower lips
• Articulation

  • manner - the manner of articulation tells you how a sound is made
  • place - the place of articulation tells you where a sound is made
• Plosive


  When the air flow is completely blocked, causing a small explosion of sound. The nasal cavity is not involved.
• Fricative

  The nasal cavity is still not involved, air causes friction over the tongue, the flow is not blocked
• Affricate

  Combines the blocking of a plosive with the friction of a fricative
• Nasal

  Uses the naval cavity to release some of the pressure of blocking the flow
• Approximant

  Sometimes called semi-consonants or semivowels.

  Less closure of the air flow, so they sound more like vowels but appear in the consonant position of words