Communicative distance as a norm of speech cooperation

The article is devoted to the analysis of communicative social distance expression modes in thespeech and its correlation with geometrical distance between communicants.In modern anthropology four types of space relations and four varieties of social co-operation aredescribed: 1) intimate distances with the possibility of body contact; 2) personal distances that determinephysical contacts limits; 3) official relations distances and 4) public distances that make it possibleto address many people simultaneously. Each of distances is a geometrical quantity and responds toexact measuring. Varied types of social relations presume a choice of language means for one of communicantsto address another one, including forms of address by name, by name and patronymic, bysurname. All these forms may be experienced in their correlation with one or another geometricaldistance between communicants.The second person pronouns are one of the means to fix the dimensions of any distance in national-cultural traditions. The choice of one of the pronouns in addressing one person and the choice ofgeometrical distances are conditioned, first of all, by relations between communicants; those relationsmay be termed as communicative distance. The imperative character, quantitative definiteness, socialcause and regular means of expression in the language make it possible to regard communicative distanceas one of the speech-behaviour norms and to study their influence on speech behaviour.The communicative distance is a many-sided category. It depends on the degree of intimacy ofpeople in everyday dealings (horizontal relations) and their place in social hierarchy (vertical relations).Moreover, communicative distance is a vector category and may be changed by communicants.Any communicant having equal social status may reduce communicative distance using ты-address.Under other conditions communicative distance may be changed only by initiative of the communicantwith a higher status. The lower-ranked communicant is in the position to create obstacles to reducingthe distance using вы-address.Communicative distance is a field of interaction of various social and psychological norms includingetiquette rules, national-cultural traditions and emotional contact of communicants.

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