petcfKe you need to know the culturally acceptable ways of communkafinf fa f relish, fo put it differently, you should have a good command of conversions "maxims" or rules of communicative competence that would enable you to interact wrth Fmdtsh natives naturally.

What are the basic conventions that govern conversation in English? The priority rule is the extensive use of certain words and phrases wfttcli contain no information but show the speaker's attitude and the relationship to the other person. Very often text-books call them "politeness phrases" which is a bit misleading, because that can easily give you the idea that they are only used when people are being espe­cially polite. That's quite wrong. The fact is the British use these words ail the time in normal situations. So, if you don't use them a native speaker will certainly miss them and probably react negatively, especially if your English is good. In this case he's sure to think that a foreigner who sounds aggressive and angry is angry. That's why these words and phrases are so important. Remember: speaking English is not just giving information - it's showing how you feel as a person.

Here are the words and phrases that a native English speaker misses most if you don't use them: "Thankyou. Sorry! Oh! That's quite all right "

Task 2.2. Give the title to the text.

Task 2.3. Answer the following questions:

1. Are there "politeness phrases" in your language?

2. Are people in your culture sensitive about "politeness phrases"?

3. Is the language of the family and the language you use at work or to strangers the same?

4. Is the language used by older people the same as that used by the younger genera­tion? If they're different, can you say something about how they're different?

5. In your language can you use very short answers - for example, "Yes" or "No", on their own?

Task 3.1. Read the text to find out the main rules governing a conversation in English.

Text 3 How Conversation Works

A s it is generally known, conversation often depends on questions. The person Who xVasks questions in a conversation usjually controls it. Various techniques may be used to get different sorts of information from different people. The British are gener­ally polite in the way they ask a stranger about something

.tlteft P dtl important rule for you to remember: don't risk a stranger direct mti^fJS fH®y appear to be rude. Personal questions should be expressed facltullv asking questions of this kind the British generally use: fixeus® me for asking

fetus? me asking / my asking, do you speak French?

Notice thai on the whole English-speaking people (whether American, British or | 'ommonwealth) do not usually ask or give exact information about their age. It's usual to say that someone is in his/ her early twenties/thirties, etc. To make a general enquiry about somebody's job the British use: Whai do you do?1 lWhai s your job? ' What do you do for a living?'

Each of the phrases is a clear indicator to the other person that you don't want to dis­cuss something. If he or she goes on and discusses it| he/she is being gauche, and then you can insist by saying: 'No, if you don 7 mind, I really don 7 want to talk about it (at the moment) (This is very strong, particularly without the words "at the moment".)

The British generally end a conversation with people or a person they know by an excuse and saying someting nice after the topics the speakers have in common iiave been discussed. Some other useful ways may be: summing up a conversation by using OA",c Well \ etc. or/and making arrangements to speak to the person at a later time. It is common to end a conversation at a natural break in it, such as the end of a story or a topic, or when someone else joins it. A speaker who wants to wind down a conversa­tion may also show that by looking at his watch, gathering his things together and so on. However in a business conversation where there is a specific point to be discussed the British generally get to the point quickly. In this case the conversation winds down after the point has been discussed and an excuse is not necessary.

Task 3^Re-read the text to answer the following questions:

E Why do they say that a conversation often depends on questions? 2, What language do the British use to ask personal questions? To speak about age? I Somebody's job?

11 What are the most useful phrases for describing somebody's job? What language do the British use to avoid discussing something? How can a person develop a conversation in English? | What are the ways of terminating a conversation in English?

li)ok through the text again to discuss these questions:

do people get attention, change topics, clarify topics, terminate topics, lake (void topics and interrupt in your native language

?offer S§ tarn down help in a pleasant and polite way. If someone offer* kti > # tWy \\tm4 as a commitment If a person cannot give help, he or she 'm^ ]1 mdmmettmes an excuse or reason is given. Sometimes the British turndown m m help In order not to inconvenience the offerer. A person may offer help twice m P show a sincere desire to help. If an offer is turned down twice, it generally rr***1* that the person genuinely does not want help. Sometimes British people offer help vV?th some hesitancy, such as 4 / could help you but... (+ a reason)'. Whenever or not10 ttt&pt a hesitant offer of help may depend on how much it is needed

, however. After the offer has been accepted* ►vhen he/she performs the service. Quite often u are' (e.g. on bringing some food), or ' There

'May / help you?' is used by people who work in offices, shops, or other types of business. Van I help you?' is a more general offer of help. 'No, thank you' is some­times not considered a polite way to turn down an offer of help because it is too abruP1

It is used to turn down an offer of fooc the other person need not say anything British people just smile, or say 'Hereyc you are (e.g. on opening a window, bringing a chair, etc.).|

Task 5.2. Re-read the texts to discuss the fo lowing questions:

1. What principle are the British guided by when dealing with people in everyday situations?

2. Why do the British tend to offer help in a polite and pleasant way?

3. What ways do people in your own culture use to express a willingness to help?

4. In what ways are these different from the British ones?

Task 6.1. Read the text to find out why the British prefer to use tentative ways when speaking about their personal interests.Text 8 Personal Interests

5 W

r ?/

nPhe British are known to have a cult of privacy. They generally prefer to keep to X themselves and hate to intrude oh other people's privacy. As a matter of fact, they don't particularly like to speak about their personal matters and interests. And when they do they always tend to use tentative and apologetic ways. Apart from that they generally avoid direct questions and strong dogmatic questions. To help negotiate a conversation they use "comment words" like as 'a matter of fact \ actually. quite:

'I'm quite interested in tennis, what about you? ■ 'As a matter of fact I quite like to go tc the theatre myself what about you?'

ftscuss the following questions:

What cult do the British have

?

6

| according to the text, do the British keep to themselves? ymi use the same language with a friend as you do with a complete stranger'?

ftead the texts to find out:

wliv the British hate to ask personal questions in a formal situation;

the most common phrases the British use when stating likes, dislikes and prefer

onecs.

How to Ask Someone About His /Her Problem %

As it was said earlier, the British always tend to mind their own business. They prefer not to interfere in other people's affairs. They respect privacy. The accepted code of be­haviour doesn't allow one to ask other people about their personal matters in a direct way. When the British have to do it they always do it in a sympathetic and apologetic way.

Likes and dislikes

The British are known to be reluctant to speak about themselves and their personal affairs. They protect their privacy and wish equally for other people to protect theirs. In fact, they have an overriding respect for the privacy of other people, a feeling that, in the long run, people's likes and dislikes are their own concern and nobody else's. That's why they generally avoid stating likes, dislikes and preferences in a straightfor­ward way, but rather use polite, tentative and pleasant techniques instead. Of course, situations vary. In formal situations, the British use more direct ways of expressing likes, dislikes, preferences. Nevertheless notice: the grammatical negative "Idon't like ...w sounds too strong and dogmatic. It's never used in a conversation as the natural negative by native speakers. You may say something else instead, e.g.'I don't particu­larly like etc. It's important to choose appropriate ways of saying things according to the situation you're in, the relationships you have with the people you're talking to; the mood of the people you are talking to.

^Advice I

They say the British do not particutMyllke to give advice. In everyday life they "guided by the principle of non-interfering in other people's affairs. There is an old lish saying: "Give not counsel nor salt till you're asked" . So, if the British give i they do it in an apologetic and polite manner. The degree of politeness depends situation they are in. As you know, people are formal and polite when they dis- lething or argue. When people are angry or when they know each other very are often informal and less polite. Here are some helpful things for you t

o

Giving advice is not comparable to telling someone what to do. When giving advKe it it important to avoid forms such as 'To« must...

Suggestion expressions such as "You might apologize for being rude to your mo/^, er " and Why don't you eat more vegetables? " are both common and appropriate. advice "IV/ recommend you to work less " is more formal than listed below and it \ generally not used among friends.

Task 7.2. Look through the texts again to answer the following questions: