Developing awareness of crosscultural pragmatics: The case of American/German sociable interaction

Abstract

The elaboration of the theoretical notion of communicative competence reflects a growing awareness of the importance of pragmatic knowledge in achieving mastery of a second language. Such awareness includes the recognition that teaching language effectively includes teaching culture in the most fundamental sense. Using the framework of interactional sociolinguistics to link theoretical work on cultural ethos and research in crosscultural pragmatics 1 with the interpretation of situated language use, this article draws teachers’ attention to three interrelated aspects of conversational style which are important in initial crosscultural encounters between Americans and Germans. The goal is to provide teachers of both English and German as second languages with conceptual frameworks for and ideas about classroom practice which will teach culture appropriately by fostering pragmatic awareness and interactional competence crossculturally. 2 The argument is made that language teachers should give pragmatic competence/awareness the highest priority in the classroom, from the beginning of language study.

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