Politeness in the History of English : From the Middle Ages to the Present Day

The concept of politeness permeates all aspects of modern life and society. However, to what extent has this phenomenon changed over time? This book traces the elusive concept of politeness from its beginnings in the Middle Ages up to the present day. Detailed case studies of mostly literary texts provide insights into historically specific ways of being polite, from discernment politeness in Old English to recent examples, such as non-imposition politeness. Readers will gain a better understanding of both the folk-notion of politeness and specific scholarly definitions, and how these can be applied to historical data. The long diachrony provides a novel perspective both on the concept of politeness and on the history of the English language in its social context, making this essential reading for politeness specialists, cultural historians and historical linguists alike. Politeness emerges as a multifaceted phenomenon that is both culture-specific and history-specific. "The British have a reputation for being excessively polite. A caricature version of this is available as a picture postcard on which two pictures illustrate allegedly incorrect and correct polite behaviour in a British context (Ford & Legon 2003; see also Wierzbicka 2006: 31). In the picture illustrating the 'incorrect' behaviour, a man who is drowning shouts 'Help!' but gets no more than a haughty shrug and a turned shoulder from a passer-by and his dog. In the opposite picture illustrating the 'correct' behaviour, the drowning man politely exclaims, 'Excuse me, Sir. I'm terribly sorry to bother you, but I wonder if you would mind helping me a moment, as long as it's no trouble, of course.' In response, the passer-by immediately comes to the rescue with a life belt, and even his dog changes appearance, puts on a friendly face and wags its tail"-- Provided by publisher 01.0_pp_i_ii_Politeness_in_the_History_of_English 02.0_pp_iii_iii_Politeness_in_the_History_of_English 03.0_pp_iv_iv_Copyright_page 04.0_pp_v_vi_Contents 05.0_pp_vii_viii_Figures 06.0_pp_ix_x_Tables 07.0_pp_xi_xii_Preface 08.0_pp_1_17_Exploring_Politeness_in_the_History_of_English 09.0_pp_18_31_Research_Methods_and_Data_Problems 10.0_pp_32_52_Medieval_Britain 11.0_pp_53_77_Terms_of_Address_in_Middle_English 12.0_pp_78_99_Renaissance_and_Early_Modern_England 13.0_pp_100_116_Terms_of_Address_in_Early_Modern_English 14.0_pp_117_134_The_Eighteenth_Century_The_Age_of_Politeness 15.0_pp_135_159_The_Eighteenth_Century_Educational_Literature 16.0_pp_160_183_The_Rise_and_Fall_of_Non-imposition_Politeness 17.0_pp_184_191_Conclusion_Politeness_Manners_and_Dissimulation 18.0_pp_192_207_References 19.0_pp_208_210_Index Exploring politeness in the history of English -- Research methods and data problems -- Medieval Britain -- Terms of address in Middle English -- Renaissance and Early Modern England -- Terms of address in Early Modern English -- The eighteenth century: the age of politeness -- The eighteenth century: Educational literature -- The rise (and fall) of non-imposition politeness -- Conclusion: Politeness, manners and dissimulation