Abstract
This study examines (politeness) strategies employed by a group of English-speaking Canadian University students when responding to gratitude expressions. Based on data collected by means of a Discourse Completion Task (DCT) questionnaire, the quantitative and qualitative study addresses functional, formal and situational aspects of responses to thanks. With regard to speakers’ strategies, the study reveals that the participants mostly preferred “minimizing the favour” and “expressing appreciation” in their responses. This finding suggests that native speakers of Canadian English seem to make the same choice as speakers of Irish English, American English and British English. In terms of the realization forms of responses to thanks, the results indicate that the participants mostly employed constructions with no problem, welcome and pleasure. With regard to the length of responses, it was found that the informants favoured simple responses to thanks much more often than complex responses. Also, social and power distance was found to play a role in the choice of the semantic strategies and the realization forms as well as in the move-structure and the length of the responses.
Highlights
It is very common to express gratitude for any type of help or verbal gifts
With regard to speakers’ strategies, the study reveals that the participants mostly preferred “minimizing the favour” and “expressing appreciation” in their responses. This finding suggests that native speakers of Canadian English seem to make the same choice as speakers of Irish English, American English and British English
The present study examines strategies used by native speakers of Canadian English when responding to expressions of gratitude
Summary
It is very common to express gratitude for any type of help or verbal gifts (advice, compliments, offers, etc.). The strategies used to express appreciation and to respond to thanks are language and culturally specific. A response to thanks follows a gratitude expression. By expressing appreciation the speaker enhances the positive face of the addressee. Gratitude expressions are used to indicate that the speaker is appreciative for and approved of what the addressee has done. The addressee may either focus on the face-enhancing aspect of the appreciation token or feel obliged to minimize the speaker’s indebtedness and “ to restore the imbalance in the relationship between the interactants caused by the thankee’s action in favour of the thanker” (Schneider, 2005: 107). Using Brown and Levinson’s (1987) framework, it is plausible to indicate that responses to gratitude expressions may target either the positive or the negative face of the speaker and/or the addressee.
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