british conversation rules
DESCRIPTION
British conversation rules . An ethnographic approach to teaching English . Simon Parker Sharing One Language. Cheers!. TOP 20 WAYS TO SAY THANK YOU: . 1. Cheers 2. Ta 3. That's great 4. Cool 5. OK 6. Brilliant 7. Lovely 8. Nice one 9. Much appreciated 10. You star - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
British conversation rules An ethnographic approach to
teaching English
Simon ParkerSharing One Language
Cheers!
TOP 20 WAYS TO SAY THANK YOU: 1. Cheers 2. Ta 3. That's great 4. Cool 5. OK 6. Brilliant 7. Lovely 8. Nice one 9. Much appreciated 10. You star 11. All right 12. Fab 13. Awesome 14. Wicked 15. Merci 16. Danke 17. Gracias 18. Super 19. Ace 20. Thank you
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/7959915/Britons-abandon-thank-you-in-favour-of-cheers.html
Ethnographer?
participating ...in people’s daily lives
watching
listening to what is said
asking questions
collecting whatever data is available
M. Hammersley & P. Atkinson
A rule: a fact or the statement of a fact, which holds generally; the normal state of things
• Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behaviour
• Kate Fox• Publisher: Nicholas
Brealey Publishing (April 2, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 18 578 850 82
“The Ultimate Gap Fill”A: “_____ _____ _____ _____ you?”B: “_____ _____ _____ _____ please” A: “_____ _____ _____ _____”B: “_____”
what cheers two can that'll I packets be£1.10 of get crisps please
Answer
A: What can I get you?B: Two packets of crisps, please
A: That'll be £1.10, pleaseB: Cheers
Weather speak
Reciprocity rule: response ALWAYS required from B
Form: question, question tag or interrogative intonation.
Context rule: simple greeting OR ice breaker (the weather is only an excuse to talk!)
Weather - as - family rule: foreigners can not make negative comparisons (“What? You call this cold? I come from Knezha and....”) But you can make positive one – if you say you prefer the weather in the UK.
Weather hierarchy rule: “but at least it’s not......” sunny and warm rainy and cold
Agreement rule: positive ‘social response’ required from B – you agree even if you really disagree!
A. Oh, it’s cold today, isn’t it?
B. Yes, but at least it’s not raining again
Female bonding
• A: Your hair looks great. Mine’s so boring and mousey
• B: Oh no, it’s terrible! It gets so fizzy – I wish I could have it short like you
but I just don’t have the bone structure; you’ve got such good
cheekbones • A: No way, they’re far too high. I look
like Donald Duck especially with my neck. Your neck is so elegant.
Counter compliment rule: compliment + self-critical remark
Response: self depreciating denial +counter complement
2nd Response: more self depreciating denial +counter complements
Extra ‘social points’ for witty, amusing self depreciating remarks
Use in class: (1) show the students this dialogue (2) get them to identify the rules/pattern (3) discuss what it
‘might’ tell you about English people (4) get the students to write their dialogues in pairs which
follow this pattern .
Male Bonding
• A: I see your company chose your car again. Not even someone with your bad taste would buy a Kia
• B: Sod off – it least it won’t spend half its time in the garage like yours. I bet your mechanic’s bought himself a new
house with the amount you spent fixing that German pile of rubbish
• A: He’s been tuning it, you idiot. It’s something you do with
performance cars – who the hell would tune a bloody Kia?
The ‘Mine’s Better Than Yours Game
Start: boast or attack on other person’s ‘theirs’ . Topic is immaterial.
Response: statement is challenged (even if they agree with it)
The ‘no earnestness’ rule: seriousness or zeal are both unmanly and un-British
Use in class: Same as female bonding but you will problem
need to change some of the words for students in any class lower than XI.
Social Class Rules
The 7 deadly class sinspardon sofa serviette pudding
sweet loo dinner afters
settee tea couch toilet
lavatory living room sorry supper
lounge dessert napkin sitting room
(1) Find the 7 groups of synonyms (up to 4 words in each group)
(2) Decide which word(s) are (a) upper + upper middle class (b) middle middle to working class words
1. Pardon, sorry2. Settee, sofa, couch (US) 3. Living room, lounge, sitting room (not in ex. drawing room
(mainly upper class)
4. Sweat, pudding, afters, dessert (American – sort of acceptable!)
5. Tea, dinner, supper6. Toilet, Lavatory 7. Serviette, Napkin,
Red = middle middle to working class, blue = upper middle to upper class
Use in class? (1) Discuss class in Bulgaria– is there are class
structure here? What are the classes?(2) Ask if the different classes/groups they have
identified speak differently? Do they use different words?
(3) Do the exercise (4) Wider discussion – is it right to judge people
based on their class? Can language/accents be a barrier to a good job in Bulgaria?
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