“Being your son is rather tiring”: Assessments and assessment responses in initial interactions in Mandarin Chinese

Abstract

In this paper, initial interactions in which Mandarin Chinese speakers are getting acquainted are investigated, with a particular focus on the assessment sequences. Drawing on approximately 18.5 h of audio(visual) recordings, I examine a particular sequential practice in which self-disclosures are found to be followed by assessments sequences, either positive or negative, by other speakers, which then trigger diverse responses by the assessment recipients. From the analysis it emerged that both positive and (implicated) negative assessments are deployed to establish relational connection with the unacquainted recipients, that is, to index solidarity and familiarity. Relational connection is accomplished, on one hand, through initiating positive assessment that the recognition and approval of one’s “face”; on the other hand, it can be also accomplished through launching (implicated) negative assessment with which assessors presuming one’s knowledge about the other and projecting their epistemic authority, i.e., claiming their independent knowledge with respect to the recipients, and thereby establishing familiarity with their counterpart. These findings suggest that assessments and assessment responses are crucial to the negotiation of new interpersonal relationships in initial encounters.