Interpersonal Functions of Hedges in Political Discourse
Many researchers have focused on the study of the hedges in conversation analysis and discourse analysis. The lack of sufficient attention to and research of government press conference from the perspective of interpersonal functions indicates the necessary of the present study. This paper aims to construct a functional model of interpersonal meaning of government press conference and explores the interpersonal functions of hedges in government press conference. It categories hedges in the data into four types-adaptors, rounders, plausibility shields, and attribution shields based on Princes taxonomy of hedges, and analyzes four major interpersonal functions of these hedges-showing objectivity, maintaining negative politeness, enhancing the expressive effects and flexibility, protecting spokesmen and reducing their responsibility. The study shows that hedging has a considerable significance to spokespersons, journalists and audiences in government press conference.
political discourse hedges interpersonal functons
WU Shujing
Foreign Language Department, Bin Zhou University
国际会议
The 36th International Systemic Functional Congress(第36届国际系统功能语言学大会暨第十一届全国功能语言学研讨会ISFC36)
北京
英文
109-118
2009-07-14（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）