Across all languages there are more or less conventionalized linguistic means to be found, e.g. to form a question, make a request, express gratitude or utter an apology. The crucial question is how these conventions look, what kind of language behavior is adequate in a certain situation and if it is understood in the context; these conventions differ interculturally.
The speech act theory, whose pioneer is clearly John Austin (1955 “How to do things with words”), is an adequate approach to gain a deep insight in speech acts like greeting, promising or apologizing. This paper deals with the speech act set of apology. Apologies are clearly performative and expressive. They establish and maintain social contacts. All speakers of a language know certain patterns of speech act sequences, i.e. they know what has to follow after an apology and what is inappropriate. The ability to apply these patterns constitutes a part of communicative competence.
In my paper I will focus on apologies made in an American soap opera, trying to find out the structure of this speech act also considering factors like social relationships and afterwards compare it to the dubbed German version. The aim of this paper is to draw a conclusion on whether cultural factors play a significant role for the translated edition and if the genuine is a prime example for this culture.
Table of Contents
1 Structure
2 Introduction
3 Relevance
4 Overview on the speech act of apology
5 Basic data for my analysis
6 Method of analysis
7 Apology strategies by Aijmer (1996)
7.1.1 Explicit Emotional
7.1.2 Implicit emotional
7.1.3 Implicit Non-emotional
8 The structure of an apology in the American genuine
9 Differences in the dubbed German version
10 Conclusion
11 Bibliography:
12 Appendix – Transcripts
Research Objective and Scope
This paper examines the linguistic structure of the speech act of apology within the American soap opera "Smallville" and compares it to the dubbed German version. The research aims to determine how social relationships, cultural factors, and context influence the realization of apologies in scripted versus natural language settings.
- Analysis of the Illocutionary Force Indicating Device (IFID) and responsibility strategies.
- Comparison of native American English apologies with their German dubbed counterparts.
- Evaluation of non-verbal cues and social factors like authority and power.
- Investigation into the impact of translation on the communicative sincerity of apologies.
- Exploration of whether soap operas serve as valid corpora for speech act research.
Extract from the Book
The structure of an apology in the American genuine
Most apologies in this data were realized via the use of an IFID (table 2) which undermines the statement of Maeshiba et al (1995), for whom a direct apology is the most highly preferred form of redress. Table 2 shows the distribution of IFIDs (used in 13 out of 18 situations) in the examined data:
A striking matter is the fact that only two kinds of realizations are used in this data. These forms seem to have formulaic character and are in some way used automatically by native speakers of American English. However, other forms like “excuse me” or “pardon” were not found, mainly due to the fact that situations that require these forms did not come up (like invading or harm the personal space of another person, e.g., step on somebody’s feet). It must also be taken into consideration that this is not recorded natural talk but a soap opera, where characters have a script with the conversation, including speech act sets like apology. Therefore it is quite usual that situations invading personal space are very seldom because these do not promote the further action. In summary, the IFIDs seem conventionalized and used automatically, the range of variation is quite narrow.
Summary of Chapters
1 Structure: Outlines the sequential organization of the research paper.
2 Introduction: Defines the speech act of apology and establishes the focus on American soap opera dialogues compared with German dubbing.
3 Relevance: Discusses the necessity of understanding intercultural differences in apology strategies to maintain social harmony in a globalized world.
4 Overview on the speech act of apology: Explores theoretical frameworks, including IFIDs, responsibility, and intensification strategies.
5 Basic data for my analysis: Describes the corpus consisting of eight episodes from the second season of "Smallville".
6 Method of analysis: Explains the use of conversation analysis (CA) and the GAT transcription system to evaluate 18 specific apology scenarios.
7 Apology strategies by Aijmer (1996): Categorizes the identified apologies into explicit emotional, implicit emotional, and implicit non-emotional strategies.
8 The structure of an apology in the American genuine: Details the findings regarding IFIDs, responsibility levels, and the role of social context in the American source material.
9 Differences in the dubbed German version: Examines shifts in connotation, register, and sincerity level observed in the German translation.
10 Conclusion: Summarizes that while the structure is similar, cultural nuances and translation constraints lead to differences in the perceived sincerity of apologies.
Keywords
Speech Act, Apology, Smallville, IFID, Conversation Analysis, Intercultural Pragmatics, Translation, Dubbing, Responsibility, Intensification, Sociolinguistics, Soap Opera, Social Relationship, Sincerity, Discourse Analysis
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary goal of this research paper?
The paper aims to analyze the structure of apologies in the American soap opera "Smallville" and investigate how these apologies are translated and perceived in the German dubbed version.
What is the central theme of the work?
The work focuses on the pragmatics of speech acts, specifically how the act of apologizing functions to restore social harmony in various contexts.
What methodological approach is used?
The author employs conversation analysis (CA) and the GAT transcription system to examine the sequential patterns and linguistic realization of 18 selected apology situations.
Which linguistic strategies are highlighted as key to apologies?
The study focuses on the Illocutionary Force Indicating Device (IFID), expressions of responsibility, intensification, and situation-specific strategies like explanations and offers of repair.
What does the main body of the paper cover?
It provides a comparative analysis of American source dialogues and their German dubbed equivalents, focusing on shifts in connotation, formality, and the use of linguistic modifiers.
How are the results of the research characterized?
The results highlight the heavy reliance on formulaic IFIDs in American soap operas and the occasional loss of communicative nuance when translated into German.
Why was "Smallville" chosen as the corpus for this analysis?
The series was chosen due to its accessibility, high-quality audio, and the presence of characters in close, often complex, relationships that frequently require apology speech acts.
Does the translation process impact the sincerity of the apologies?
Yes, the author notes that certain German translations, such as the use of "bedauern" versus "entschuldigen," alter the perceived intensity and sincerity of the apology compared to the original English.
- Quote paper
- Claudia Wipprecht (Author), 2006, The speech act of apology in an American soap opera and the German equivalent , Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/75512
