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Unspoken evaluation of impoliteness

The Javanese linguistic interaction example

ORCiD logo with link | Universitas Islam Negeri Salatiga
Published online: 30 April 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/ps.22031.nor
Abstract
This study aims at examining the evaluation of impoliteness not manifested in utterances or actions. The focus is on how speaker-hearers conceal their negative evaluation and the reasons underlying their behavior. The data were collected from a WhatsApp group conversation, from a Focus Group discussion with WhatsApp group members, and through questionnaires. The study approaches the data using relational work and rapport management theories. The study shows that hearers conceal the evaluation of impoliteness by affiliating with the topics evaluated positively instead of negatively evaluated utterances. The behavior can cause contested meanings of unmarked utterances between the hearers and the speakers. Although speakers perceive their utterances as politic or appropriate, the hearers observe them negatively. Furthermore, the Focus Group discussion showed that the WhatsApp Group members conducted the unspoken evaluation of impoliteness to maintain the equanimity of social relationships. The questionnaires indicated that concealing negative evaluation is a recurrent action of native speakers of Javanese.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Relational work
  • 3.Im/politeness evaluation
  • 4.Rapport management
  • 5.Related studies
  • 6.Method
  • 7.Result and discussion
  • 8.Conclusion
  • References
References (62)
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