Learning the culture of interpersonal relationships: Students' understandings of personal address forms in French
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Anthony J Liddicoat
Anthony J. Liddicoat Perspectives on Europe: Language Issues and Language Planning in Europe (Melbourne: Language Australia, 2002) with K. Muller, and ofTeaching Languages, Teaching Cultures (Melbourne: Language Australia, 2000) with Chantal Crozet.
Abstract
The French pronoun system presents a particular difficulty for English-speaking learners of French with the distinction between the second person pronouns tu and vous. In textbooks, these pronouns are typically described in terms of politeness or formality but the reality is much more complex. In addition, the pronouns interact with address terms such as first name, title + last name and title + first name, which give the system further complexity. While the language structures involved are simple, the cultural context in which they are deployed is complex and involves an understanding of how interpersonal relationships are constructed and communicated through the French language. This paper will explore students' learning of aspects of the French address system from an intercultural perspective and examine the ways in which learners come to construct their own personal understandings of interpersonal relationships as they are represented in and through French.
About the author
Anthony J. Liddicoat is Associate Professor in the Research Centre for Languages and Cultures Education and the School of International Studies at the University of South Australia. His research interests include the teaching and learning of culture in languages education and language policy and planning. He is co-editor of Perspectives on Europe: Language Issues and Language Planning in Europe (Melbourne: Language Australia, 2002) with K. Muller, and of Teaching Languages, Teaching Cultures (Melbourne: Language Australia, 2000) with Chantal Crozet.
© Walter de Gruyter
Articles in the same Issue
- Interactional adjustments in humorous intercultural communication
- English or Spanish?! Language accommodation in New York City service encounters
- Learning the culture of interpersonal relationships: Students' understandings of personal address forms in French
- More issues in neo- and post-Gricean pragmatics: A response to Robyn Carston's response
- Some thoughts on pragmatics, sociolinguistic variation, and intercultural communication
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- Book reviews
Articles in the same Issue
- Interactional adjustments in humorous intercultural communication
- English or Spanish?! Language accommodation in New York City service encounters
- Learning the culture of interpersonal relationships: Students' understandings of personal address forms in French
- More issues in neo- and post-Gricean pragmatics: A response to Robyn Carston's response
- Some thoughts on pragmatics, sociolinguistic variation, and intercultural communication
- On the other hand: A response to some reflections on a recent handbook
- Book reviews
