No doubt politeness systems intersect w/ genre. Politeness can perhaps be
said to be all about the re-cognition of power relations (absent or present?
if present, to what degree? -- and, of course, who defers to whom?) My point
is just this - that genres can't be defined without accounting for the
social relations they implicate.
(Social relations, or the interpersonal dimension of a situation, are
actually defined by 2 axes, as Hasan has pointed out: formality/informality
and social distance/closeness. Moreover, I'm grossly oversimplifying, since
what is at stake are co-occuring patterns/trends... Any semioticians want to
pinch hit here?)
And since what is impolite in one setting (by 'setting' I assume an
activity, a purpose and a mini-system of social relations) is appropriate
for another, genres can be invoked by recruiting resources specific to theie
interpersonal dimension.
I'm still unsure if the issue I'm addressing is what you're answering to;
since you are not confused, perhaps you can clear this up?
Judy
At 10:12 AM 2/4/00 -0800, you wrote:
>Judy,
>But I do wonder whether culturally general patterns, such as what is
>considered polite, what rude, what neither but appropriate, can be said to
>constitute a genre at all. And if so what is the community to which it
>corresponds.
....
What counts as politeness might even be considered an indicator of
>other intersecting sub-communities within the system that have more clearly
>bounded genres and the corresponding identities.
If we consider the genre
>in relationship to the community which it pervades (for whom it is
>appropriate, natural, etc.) politeness might even be seen to be one of the
>least malleable of genres.
Judith Diamondstone (732) 932-7496 Ext. 352
Graduate School of Education
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
10 Seminary Place
New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1183
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