Abstract

The thesis primarily probes into potential conflict talks in Chinese and American talk show programs via an integrative perspective of Cooperative Principle and Politeness Principle. By recording dialogues between hostess and honorable guests faithfully, 927 turns collected from two programs are analyzed from a discourse analysis perspective marked with a unique language transcription system. Typical conflict turns in both Chinese and American talk shows are chosen as samples to be revealed and their initiating, maintaining and terminating are carefully described. Special attention is directed to the maintaining stage in which the speaker’s employment of conflict strategy, tactics and result is examined in detail. Next, a thorough comparison between conflict turns in two talk shows is made, indicating that the two’s conflict origin and components of the two programs are similar, but differ greatly from each other in conflict focus, participant’s attitudes towards compliments and emphasis on Face. In the concluding part, the thesis summarizes Chinese conflict talk as harmony-oriented and conducted in an implicit manner, while American conflict talk as standpoint-oriented and is completed in a rather direct way based on previous data and explanation.

Key Words: conflict talk; talk show; Cooperative Principle; Politeness Principle

摘要

   本论文主要着眼于在合作原则和礼貌原则的整合视角之下，对比研究中美两国谈话节目中的潜在冲突话语。通过转写节目中主持人和嘉宾的对话，共收集了927个有效话轮，并在专门的转写系统指导下详尽分析了典型冲突话轮的起始，发展及结束三个阶段：着重探究了在发展阶段中，说话人所运用的冲突策略、技巧和达到的效果。通过对中美两个谈话节目中的冲突话语进行系统对比分析后发现：两国节目中产生冲突话语的起因和组成阶段大体相似，但在冲突焦点、对待正面评价的态度和对“面子”的重视程度上大相径庭；在即时谈话节目的语境下，中国式冲突话语一般是以和谐为导向、并以较为含蓄的践行方式来展开的，而美国式冲突话语似乎更多以表明观点为己任、通过相对直接的方式来表达的。

关键词：冲突话语；即时谈话节目；合作原则；礼貌原则

1. Introduction
    Most people agree that daily oral exchanges under the influence of personal interests, knowledge and understanding are vital to shaping social relationship in human society. Of all forms of oral exchanges, conflict talk, a seemingly destructive process of discourse, occupies a major part in effect. Ranging from business negotiation, news conference, political debate to dispute between households, conflict talk has branded human’s life with profound marks of desirable effects. Sound use of discourse strategies in conflict talk controls the result of debate to a large extent, like a case study of two oppositional parliamentary speeches is proved to be influenced by effective use of language marks.