4:11 Alan Cowan : He knows what he did. He didnt realize how
serious it was. Hes eleven years old. Penelope Longstreet: Eleven is not a baby.
Michael Longstreet
: Its not an adult either. We didnt ask you, you want some coffee or tea? Is there any cobbler left,
Penny
? PPC011
Penelope and Alan were arguing about Alan’s son, Zachary. She
thought that Zachary should feel sorry since he beat Penelope’s son. Alan
thought that Zachary was still an eleven years old kid, while Penelope thought that eleven years old was not a baby. Thus, Michael tried to make the situation
better by offering coffee or tea to his guests. Then, he asked his wife by saying “Is there any cobbler left, Penny?” It is clear that he employed positive
politeness by using in-group identity markers strategy in this sentence. “Penny” as the identity marker was used to show an intimacy. Therefore,
Penelope’s positive face was saved because she has been respected by Michael.
e. Seeking agreement in safe topics
The fifth strategy of positive politeness is seeking agreement in safe topics strategy. It appears 4 times from the whole dialogue and has percentage
of 5.97. The following examples give clear descriptions about the phenomenon of seeking agreement in safe topics strategy.
4:12 Michael Longstreet : A good cobbler isn’t easy to make.
Nancy Cowan : True.
PPC013 Michael stated a safe topic about food. He said that it was not easy to
make a good cobbler. He told this because he thought th at his wife’s handmade
cobbler was very delicious. In respond to Michael’s statement, Nancy said
“True”. It indicates that Nancy sought an agreement from Michael’s statement. She employed a positive politeness strategy named seeking agreement in safe
topics strategy. She showed this strategy to share the same opinion that it was not easy to make a good cobbler. It may also indicate that she appreciated
Michael who had served the cobbler to her. The other example of seeking agreement in safe topics strategy can be
seen in the following dialogue. 4:13 Alan Cowan
: This Scotch is unbelievable.
Michael Longstreet : Right? You see that? Eighteen years old, single malt.
PPC057
Michael served Scotch to his guests. Alan thought that the taste of the Scotch was very good. In this case, he gave a statement about safe topic that
was a type of drink. In respond t o Alan’s statement, Michael said “Right”. It
indicates that he sought an agreement from Alan’s statement. Michael saved
Alan’s positive face by using the strategy of seeking agreement in safe topic. The safe topic in this conversation was about drink. By employing this
strategy, Michael could emphasize that he and Alan had a same opinion about the drink. Thus, Michael had shown his solidarity to Alan.
The datum below explains more about the strategy of seeking agreement in safe topics.
4:14 Michael Longstreet : Of course, of course. Excellent, isnt it?
Alan Cowan : Excellent.
PPC058
