Abstract

Politeness is the practical application of good manners or etiquette. It is a culturally defined phenomenon, and therefore what is considered polite in one culture can sometimes be quite rude or simply eccentric in another cultural contest. This thesis attempts to make a comparative study on different ways of expressing politeness between English and Chinese. It gives the readers a general idea of some pragmatic studies of politeness previously carried out by Western and Chinese scholars, and it gives several comparisons of current practices between Chinese and English ways of expressing politeness in different situations. By understanding cultural differences, many misunderstandings can be avoided.

Key words: Chinese; English; politeness; comparison

摘要

礼貌是文明和礼仪的一种表现形式。礼貌与文化紧密联系，因此，某种文化中的礼貌行为在另一种文化中可能并不礼貌。本文从中英学者观点和中英礼貌表现差异两方面做比较，旨在研究中英文化中礼貌的不同表现形式，以便使读者了解中西方文化差异，从而避免跨文化交际中的语言歧义和误解。

关键词：汉语；英语；礼貌；比较