Abstract
This paper aims to investigate the use of disclaimers in interpersonal interactions from a metapragmatic perspective through a corpus-based study. Two types of disclaimers are discussed in this paper: meta-negation disclaimer and meta-prohibition disclaimer. The meta-negation disclaimers follow formulaic pattern of bùshì + wǒ + V (I don't mean to, but…), and serve as face-threatening mitigation devices when criticising the hearer. The meta-prohibition disclaimers follow formulaic patterns of bié + guàiwǒ + V (don't blame me for…) and nǐ bié + bù + ADJ (don't feel… if…), and disclaim the speaker's negative identity when flouting the face of the hearer. Both meta-negation disclaimers and meta-prohibition disclaimers are related to an aspect of Chinese culture called lǐ (politeness) that stresses attentiveness to others and avoidance of conflict and confrontation. To some extent, the findings presented in this paper will enrich our understanding of indirect criticism from a metapragmatic perspective and contribute to rapport management in interpersonal interactions.
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