Showing papers on "Face (sociological concept) published in 2005"

Politeness theory and relational work

Abstract: In this paper we briefly revisit politeness research influenced by Brown and Levinson’s (1987) politeness theory. We argue that this research tradition does not deal with politeness but with the mitigation of face-threatening acts (FTAs) in general. In our understanding, politeness cannot just be equated with FTA-mitigation because politeness is a discursive concept. This means that what is polite (or impolite) should not be predicted by analysts. Instead, researchers should focus on the discursive struggle in which interactants engage. This reduces politeness to a much smaller part of facework than was assumed until the present, and it allows for interpretations that consider behavior to be merely appropriate and neither polite nor impolite. We propose that relational work, the “work” individuals invest in negotiating relationships with others, which includes impolite as well as polite or merely appropriate behavior, is a useful concept to help investigate the discursive struggle over politeness. We demonstrate this in close readings of five examples from naturally occurring interactions.

Governance in China

Abstract: Governance in China, edited by Jude Howell. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003. xiv + 279 pp. US$75.00 (hardcover), US$27.95 (paperback). The term governance is "contested", says Jude Howell in the introduction to this new edited book, "and the juxtaposition of 'good' augments the evaluative nature of the concept" (p. 1). Rather than employ the usual normative, institutional and managerial definition of the term (good governance is transparent, predictable, accountable and participatory) that has been suggested by international agencies such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, Howell suggests a more comprehensive meaning: "the totality of processes and arrangements, both formal and informal, by which power and public authority are distributed and regulated". From this premise the book sets out to analyze some of these processes. The book can be divided roughly into three parts. The first three chapters-by Joseph Fewsmith on the elite politics of China's reforms, John P. Burns on civil service reform and Zhu Sanzhu on the privatization of lawyers' services-deal with governance in the "usual" way, looking at the impact of major reforms on the ability of the Chinese government and its institutions to improve performance and become more predictable, accountable and so on. The next six chapters elaborate on Howell's extended version of governance, and investigate the marketization of culture (Michale Kaene), new self-government institutions in rural villages (Linda Jakobson) and in the urban residential neighborhoods (Zhang Jing), and civilsociety organizations representing marginal interests (Howell) and women (Du Jie). The final two chapters are on the challenges that the working class (Marc Blecher) and such religious organizations as the Falun Gong (Clemens Stubbe Ostergaard) present to the Party's ability to govern effectively in the face of societal discontent. The book is a welcome contribution to the existing literature on contemporary China. It will be a useful textbook for teachers examining Chinese society and politics, and the readable style and informative content of most of the essays will also attract a readership among public administrators, NGOs and policy makers. However, while the book offers insights into many specific aspects of power arrangements in China, the use of "governance" in such a broad social and political perspective raises some questions. Conceptually, the above-mentioned four generally accepted parameters of governance define a limited-and almost objective-field of investigation where "goodness" can be measured on the basis of rigid criteria borrowed from management textbooks and from the idea of "corporate governance". …

Generation KU: Individualism and China's Millennial Youth

Abstract: The People's Republic of China is undergoing dramatic changes, most of which have their roots in the government-initiated reforms of the 1980s. However, many of the current changes are being driven by China's younger generation, China's equivalent of America's millennials. One of the most prominent of these changes is a new kind of individualism valued by China's millennial youth. A key indicator of young Chinese attachment to this new individualism is the pervasive use of a new slang term associated with it, ku. Ku is the Chinese version of the American slang term "cool," and like cool, its emergence as a pervasive youth slang term is the verbal icon of a youth rebellion that promises to transform some of the older generation's most enduring cultural values. (China, youth, slang, culture change) ********** It is all but impossible to discuss China today without acknowledging the significance of its increasingly rapid pace of change. Change is evident in economic development, especially in major urban centers like Shanghai and Beijing, and in the new official attitude toward private enterprise that is, to say the least, supportive. These overt trappings of change are part of a global process that has made marketing by major corporations a force whose power and immediacy may exceed those of the various religious or political philosophies the world has seen so far. Corresponding to this economically driven change are other transformations that are particularly apparent in the educated youth of China's millennial generation (Hooper 1991; Marr and Rosen 1998). Of course young Chinese respond to the forces of globalization in a variety of ways, many of which are mutually contradictory. Some may pointedly speak out against commercial forces while others readily accept them or embrace the commodities that are their agents in the popular media of films, music, television, and the Internet. The millennials are the children of the Cultural Revolution generation. Largely because of globalization, their viewpoints and attitudes are profoundly different from those of their parents. A central feature of these attitudes is a kind of individualism that stands emphatically opposed to the collectivist spirit promoted during the Cultural Revolution, an individualism that is influenced by Western pop culture and is linked to the new Chinese slang term "ku," derived from the English slang term "cool." The ku of China's millennials is not a carbon copy of Western styles. There are different ways to be ku in contemporary China, but all reflect Western kinds of modernity and individualism. The adoption of the word ku as a basic slang term symbolizing the values of a current generation of Chinese youth is similar to what occurred in the U.S. twice during the twentieth century, first in the 1920s with the term "swell," and again in the 1960s when swell was replaced by "cool" (Moore 2004). In each case a fundamental transformation in values, driven by adolescents and young adults, was accompanied by the emergence and widespread acceptance of a new slang term of approval. China today is experiencing a similar transformation in values among its youth. The acceptance of new values by young people in the face of resistance by their elders is a pattern commonly found in modern societies where popular culture flourishes via mass media. It is also common for the younger generation to emphasize its association with their new values via a pervasively used slang term. In the case of ku, the newly adopted term is revealing in that it comes from a basic slang lexeme originating in Western popular culture, but is semantically linked to features not associated with the meaning of the Western term. In fact, the semantic modification of this slang term highlights what is most prominent in the way young Chinese identify themselves as distinct from their forebears. Ku is written with a classical Chinese character (also pronounced ku) whose original meaning was "cruel. …

Broadening the horizon of linguistic politeness

Abstract: 1. Acknowledgments 2. Foreword 3. Introduction: Broadening the horizon of linguistic politeness (by Lakoff, Robin T.) 4. Part I. General overviews: The plenary papers 5. Civility and its discontents: Or, getting in your face (by Lakoff, Robin T.) 6. How and why honorifics can signify dignity and elegance: The indexicality and reflexivity of linguistic rituals (by Ide, Sachiko) 7. Whither politeness (by Fraser, Bruce) 8. Part II. The theoretical perspective 9. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu: Routine practice of the routine formula in Japanese (by Takekuro, Makiko) 10. An argument for a frame-based approach to politeness: Evidence from the use of the imperative in Cypriot Greek (by Terkourafi, Marina) 11. The significance of 'face' and politeness in social interaction as revealed through Thai 'face' idioms (by Ukosakul, Margaret) 12. Part III. The descriptive perspective 13. Face threatening acts, primary face threatening acts, and the management of discourse: Australian English and speakers of Asian Englishes (by Conlan, Christopher J.) 14. Politeness in Thai computer-mediated communication (by Hongladarom, Krisadawan) 15. Polite diminutives in Spanish: A matter of size? (by Mendoza, Martha) 16. Indirectness as a politeness strategy of Thai speakers (by Srinarawat, Deeyu) 17. Part IV. The comparative perspective 18. Japanese honorifics as a marker of sociocultural identity: A view from non-western perspectives (by Yoshida, Megumi) 19. Directness as a source of misunderstanding: The case of requests and suggestions (by Kallia, Alexandra) 20. Forms of address in Irish and Swedish (by Ahlqvist, Anders) 21. Women, men and polite requests: English and Greek (by Kouletaki, Ekaterini) 22. Privacy: An intercultural perspective (by Le, Mark) 23. Selection of linguistic forms for requests and offers: Comparison between English and Chinese (by Tsuzuki, Masako) 24. Part V. The historical perspective 25. Japanese pronouns of address: Their behavior and maintenance over time (by Barke, Andrew) 26. An aspect of the origins and development of linguistic politeness in Thai (by Khanittanan, Wilaiwan) 27. Index

Computational, Geometric, and Process Perspectives on Facial Cognition : Contexts and Challenges

Abstract: Contents: Preface. A.J. O'Toole, M.J. Wenger, J.T. Townsend, Quantitative Models of Perceiving and Remembering Faces: Precedents and Possibilities. J.T. Townsend, B. Solomon, J.S. Smith, The Perfect Gestalt: Infinite Dimensional Reimannian Face Spaces and Other Aspects of Face Perception. T. Valentine, Face-Space Models of Face Recognition. M. Steyvers, T.A. Busey, Predicting Similarity Ratings to Faces Using Physical Descriptions. T.A. Busey, Formal Models of Familiarity and Memorability in Face Recognition. R.D. Thomas, Characterizing Perceptual Interactions in Face Identification Using Multidimensional Signal Detection Theory. M.J. Wenger, J.T. Townsend, Faces as Gestalt Stimuli: Process Characteristics. C.S. Campbell, G. Schwarzer, D.W. Massaro, Face Perception: An Information Processing Perspective. G.W. Cottrell, M.N. Dailey, C. Padgett, R. Adolphs, Is All Face Processing Holistic? The View From UCSD. S. Edelman, A.J. O'Toole, Viewpoint Generalization in Face Recognition: The Role of Category-Specific Processes. D. Valentin, H. Abdi, B. Edelman, M. Posamentier, 2D or Not 2D? That Is the Question: What Can We Learn From Computational Models Operating on Two-Dimensional Representations of Faces? W.R. Uttal, Are Reductive (Explanatory) Theories of Face Identification Possible? Some Speculations and Some Findings.

China's New Nationalism: Pride, Politics, and Diplomacy

Abstract: China's New Nationalism: Pride, Politics, and Diplomacy, by Peter Hayes Gries. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004. x + 215 pp. US$24.95/£15.95 (hardcover). The aim of this book, as stated in the Introduction, is to present a balanced view of "China's new nationalism", "one that acknowledges its legitimate grievances and recognizes its potential dangers" (p. 12). It argues from a social psychological point of view that Chinese identity "evolves in dynamic relationship with other nations and the past" and "involves both the Chinese people and other passions" (p. 19). These interrelated arguments are intended not only to challenge what the author calls "the dominant Western interpretation of Chinese nationalism" and the "West's state-centric view of Chinese nationalism" but also to draw attention to the dangers of China-bashing in the US and America-bashing in China. "Nationalism" in this book refers to "any behavior designed to restore, maintain, or advance public images" of a national community (p. 9). What seems to make "China's new nationalism" new is its "genuine popularity" and "independent existence". This conclusion is based on the evidence that Chinese nationalism increasingly challenges the Party-state; that the Chinese, like all peoples, have deep-seated emotional attachments to their national identity; and that Chinese public opinion now plays a role in national politics. Another new feature of today's Chinese nationalism is the way in which it constructs narratives of a "century of humiliation". The national narrative of heroism and victory that served the requirements of Communist revolutionaries and nation-building goals under Mao are now superseded by a new and popular victimization narrative that blames the West, including Japan, for China's suffering. It is not immediately clear in the book why long-suppressed memories of past suffering resurfaced in the 1990s, but this seems to have much to do with a psychological need to return continually to unresolved traumas in the hope of mastering them. These themes are developed through an examination of nationalist writings-mostly by Chinese intellectuals-and the official and popular responses to a number of well-known events in the 1990s and more recently. Chapter 1 looks at the protests in 1999 in the wake of the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade. Chapter 2 discusses the ways that Chinese national identity is shaped in a dialogic process of comparison with and distinction from the US and Japan. Chapter 3 turns to the effect of Chinese visions of the "century of humiliation" on their self-image, as well as the impact of changes to their national identity on Chinese views of the century. Chapters 4 and 5 revisit Chinese views of the US and Japan, although this time the focus shifts to writings about past and future Sino-American and Sino-Japanese relations. In Chapter 6-probably the most substantive and interesting chapter-Gries explores the motivation of Chinese nationalists, focusing on China's apology diplomacy. Chapters 7 and 8 can be thought of as a conclusion in two parts, in that they pull together and highlight once again some of the book's main themes. The book does an admirable job in demonstrating that the way US policymakers and commentators talk about China dangerously distorts US interpretations of, and responses to, Chinese policies and actions, and influences Chinese understandings of the US. It also shows convincingly that anti-American and anti-Chinese polemics easily spiral into mutual dehumanization and demonization and thus lay the foundations for violent conflict. A no less significant contribution the book makes is its perspective on Chinese nationalism. Central to Gries' perception is the concept of face-so much so that he has consistently italicized the word in the book. What he means by face is not simply the figurative self shown to others but also a prerequisite for maintaining authority and the ability to pursue instrumental goals. …

The Changing Face of World Missions: Engaging Contemporary Issues and Trends

Abstract: This volume is the second of an eightvolume series titled Encountering Mission, a series designed to replace the outdated series of texts used in the 80s and 90s written by J. Herbert Kane. The Changing Face of World Missions is intended for upper-level under-graduate and graduate students preparing for cross-cultural ministry, and lay and church leaders wanting perspective the changing context in which missions is now conducted.

The importance of "place" in Japanese politeness: Implications for cross-cultural and intercultural analyses

Abstract: It has long been the contention of various scholars that Brown and Levinson's notion of face, in particular the concept of personal autonomy associated with negative face, is not appropriate for explaining politeness in Japanese. However, there has been little work on what might constitute a suitable alternative. In this paper, it is proposed that the concept of “place,” which has long occupied an important position in Japanese philosophy and language studies, is fundamental to instances of politeness in Japanese. It is suggested that Japanese politeness involves concern about both the “place one belongs” (inclusion) and the “place one stands” (distinction). Examples are then given to show how the concept of place can be useful in understanding politeness phenomena both cross-culturally and interculturally.

Communication and Interpersonal Skills in Social Work

Abstract: Communication skills: don't they just come naturally? What do we know about effective communication? The human face of social work: Emotional communication Getting started Making progress and managing endings Communicating with children Working with families and groups Working with people with "Special Communication Needs": Communicative minorities Safety and risk: Working with hostility The demands and rewards of interpersonal work

High/Low Context Communication: The Malaysian Malay Style

Abstract: Globalization and workforce mobilization have prompted many scholars and researchers to conduct intercultural studies. In studies on eastern intercultural communication, research focus has been on the Japanese and Chinese cultures. However, there are other eastern cultures which are less known to the intercultural scholars. Therefore, the author of this paper hopes to introduce a group of individuals who seldom appear in western literature and probably unknown to many scholars - the Malays. Using Edward T. Hall’s characteristics of high-low context communication, this essay illustrates the Malaysian Malay style of communication. Introduction When you enter a cow’s barn, moo, and when you enter a goat’s shed, bleat. (A Malay proverb, translated). The above is a traditional Malay proverb depicting advice by a mother to her daughter when the daughter was about to marry and move out to stay with her in-laws. The mother typically says very little about what she thinks her daughter should do to adapt to the new family, but the implicit meanings behind her advice were bits of wisdom for her daughter to interpret. A similar experience befalls a woman from another culture who was to marry a Malay man. This woman would need a considerable amount of time to learn and understand the new family as well as the even greater task of adapting to the culture of the man she marries. Culture plays a big role in the development of human thoughts and behaviors. Ignoring cultural differences in an interaction can potentially signal trouble. Numerous articles have been written on cultural differences, their implications, and the ways of dealing with them. One example of an intercultural difference is illustrated by gift-giving. In the article titled, “Wrong gifts may tick off potential trading partners,” Philippidis (1999) reminds readers about the consequences of a lack of understanding a trading partner’s cultural taboos. For example, presenting a clock as a gift to a Chinese is as though wishing the receiver a short life (Philippidis, 1999), but to a Malay, receiving this gift is a gesture of friendship and thoughtfulness. Another instance of the Malay culture is the use of the left hand. If someone uses the left hand to point or give something to another person, it shows disrespect for the other person. Companies that overlook the salience of intercultural communication differences might face potential relationship problems. This phenomenon can jeopardize long term ties for businesses if companies are less sensitive to cultural differences. Due to the impact on businesses and social relationships, much research focuses on understanding and explicating intercultural communication differences. In terms of research done on intercultural communication, a dearth of literature exists in work conducted in Malaysia. In the Asian region, studies on intercultural communication mainly focus on Japanese and Chinese cultures but very few can be found on other cultures such as those in countries like Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia. This paper therefore aims to add information about

Chinese Face/Off: The Transnational Popular Culture of Hong Kong

Abstract: Jackie Chan's high-flying stunts, giant pandas, and even the unintentionally hilarious English subtitles that often accompany Hong Kong's films are among the many targets of Kwai-Cheung Lo's in-depth study of Hong Kong popular culture. Drawing on current concepts of globalization as well as the theories of Jacques Lacan and Slavoj Zizek, "Chinese Face/Off" explores the way in which fantasy operates in relation to ethnic and national identity. The book offers a critical perspective for approaching the question of cultural otherness by problematizing what it means to be Chinese and explaining how Hong Kong popular culture serves as an imaginary screen for its many compatriots seeking to understand what it means to be "Chinese" in a global age. Examining topics including film, newspaper culture, theme parks, and kung-fu comics as well as the interaction of the Hong Kong film industry with Hollywood, Lo uncovers Hong Kong's importantly "transnational" identity defined in terms of complex relationships with mainland China, other diasporic communities (like Taiwan), and the West. Kwai-Cheung Lo is an associate professor with the Department of English Language and Literature at Hong Kong Baptist University.

Reshaping Social Life

Abstract: Caught up in current social changes, we do not fully understand the reshaping of social life. In sociological analyses there is a conceptual gap between subjectivities and social structural processes, and we face real difficulties in understanding social change and diversity. Through analysis of key areas of social life, here, Sarah Irwin develops a new and exciting resource for better understanding our changing social world. Breaking with conventional approaches and reconnecting the subjective with the objective, Irwin’s book develops a new conceptual and analytical perspective with social relationality, interdependence and social context at its heart. The new perspective is developed through grounded analyses of empirical evidence, and draws on new data. It explores and analyzes: * significant changes in family forms, fertility, gender relations and commitments to employment, children and care, both now, and with comparisons to early twentieth century developments * the meshing of norms and social relations in contexts of change* diverse values, norms and perceptions of fairness, analyzed with respect to diversity over the life course, and in respect of gender, ethnicity and social class. Through analysis of context, Irwin offers new insights, and tackles puzzles of explanation. Reshaping Social Life offers a fascinating and innovative way of slicing into and re-interrogating our changing social world, and is sure to become a landmark resource for students, scholars and researchers.

Chinese identities, ethnicity and cosmopolitanism

Abstract: Prologue: When Strangers Meet 1. Rethinking Assimilation and Chinese Ethnicity in Thailand 2. Civic Identity and Chinese Ethnicity in a Market Town in Thailand 3. The Migrant Family Drama of Mainland Chinese Immigrants in Singapore 4. The Ethnicity Paradox of Hong Kong Immigrants in Singapore 5. One Face, Many Masks: The Singularity and Plurality of Chinese Identity in Singapore 6. Migration, Dispersal, and the Chinese Cosmopolitan 7. Epilogue: Inner Hybridity in the City

Fear of offending: disclosing researcher discomfort when engaging in analysis:

Abstract: In this article we take up the issue of transcript analysis within a collaborative researcher/participant relationship. We specifically focus on the challenges and ethical dilemmas that researchers face when engaging in analysis. As researchers who use constructivist psychological theory to study the narratives of people's lives, we are particularly interested in inviting dialogues about what is involved when we engage in analysis of our participants’ renditions of experience. By conversing with colleagues and students, and reflecting on previous research projects, we use research experiences to shape our discussion.

The Theory That Won't Die: From Mass Society to the Decline of Social Capital

Abstract: Though it lacks adequate empirical support, the hypothesis of declining social attachments as a source of American social problems persists. Both mass society theory in the mid-twentieth century and the theory of declining social capital in the late-twentieth century have had broad appeal. This paper demonstrates the continuities in argument and assumptions between these two theories as well as the modifications of the theory in the face of cultural change. It suggests that some of the weaknesses in the theory of decreasing social capital can be traced to the assumptions it shares with mass society theory—assumptions rooted in concerns about individualism.

Civility and its discontents : Or, getting in your face

Abstract: Although linguists have been studying politeness for some 30 years, some questions have not yet been explored. For instance, not much attention has been focused on the role politeness expectations play at the level of discourse and social structure. This paper focuses on some of these larger questions: why is the issue of politeness more salient in some societies than others? Why and how do the expected forms of politeness change over time? And how do members of a society express their concerns in times when the politeness rules are undergoing rapid flux, as is the case in America at this time? What is the role of the media in this shift? And, finally, what does our current state of agonism mean?

Politeness and face in caribbean creoles

Abstract: This paper discusses greeting routines in the Eastern Maroon community of Suriname and French Guiana. The paper argues that there are two broad sets of greeting routines. They have different origins, linguistic structures and distinct social meanings (e.g. setting, social groups, social relationship). As a result of social changes in the community, their social distribution, frequency and their social meanings are currently changing. The ‘urban’ greetings are being extended to all kinds of new social spheres and are increasingly losing their negative or subculture connotations while the ‘village’ greetings are becoming restricted to a relatively small set of situations and kinds of interactions. Moreover, new kinds of greeting practices emerge to symbolically assert existing social distinctions and to mark newly emerging social realities.

The Politeness Effect: Pedagogical Agents and Learning Gains

Abstract: Pedagogical agent research seeks to exploit Reeves and Nass's Media Equation, which holds that users respond to interactive media as if they were social actors. Investigations have tended to focus on the media used to realize the pedagogical agent, e.g., the use of animated talking heads and voices, and the results have been mixed. This paper focuses instead on the manner in which a pedagogical agent communicates with learners, on the extent to which it exhibits social intelligence. A model of socially intelligent tutorial dialog was developed based on politeness theory, and implemented in an agent interface. A series of Wizard-of-Oz studies were conducted in which subjects either received polite tutorial feedback that promotes learner face and mitigates face threat, or received direct feedback that disregarded learner face. The polite version yielded better learning outcomes, and the effect was amplified in learners who expressed a preference for indirect feedback. These results confirm the hypothesis that learners tend to respond to pedagogical agents as social actors, and suggest that research should perhaps focus less on the media in which agents are realized, and place more emphasis on the agents' social intelligence.

Seeing like a system Luhmann for anthropologists

Abstract: In this essay, I discuss how Niklas Luhmann’s systems theory might be useful for anthropologists. After providing a summary of Luhmann’s theory, I address the quandaries anthropologists might face when deploying a theory that presumes systems without selves. I also recount how other anthropologists have made use of Luhmann’s systems theory to analyze auditing, legal pluralism, and biosecurity hazards.

The Return of the Repressed: Recovering the Public Face of U.S. Sociology, One Hundred Years On

Abstract: At its inception one hundred years ago, the American Sociological Society was concerned to separate itself from the social movements and reform impulses to which it had hitherto been connected. One hundred years of professionalism have achieved the splitting and amassed an impressive body of theory, empirical analysis, and innovative techniques, but sociology’s public face has remained underdeveloped. Public sociology today requires rethinking the meaning of the public sphere as well as that of the discipline of sociology. Moreover, in today’s world, reaching out to publics demands recognition of the interests of the different social sciences within the new global dispensation.

Pragmatism and the politics of rewilding nature: the case of grizzly bear reintroduction in idaho

Abstract: Environment and Society: A Critical Introduction is an overview of the diverse conceptual tools and traditions for thinking about, explaining and addressing the environmental challenges we face in the contemporary worldProvides an introduction to the environmental challenges we face in the contemporary world through foundational theoretical ideas illustrated with concrete, everyday examplesUtilizes compelling, conversational language to expound on theory, history, and scientific topics, making the text accessible to a diverse readershipDraws upon contemporary theoretical understandings in nature/society theory while demonstrating through practice and deploymentIncludes discussion of key historical events, topical issues, and policies, as well as scientific concepts

A research paradigm for international business communication

Abstract: Purpose – This conceptual paper aims to present a research paradigm for international business communication research, with special reference to the problems of Japanese corporations.Design/methodology/approach – To develop a paradigm, international business communication first is defined, and the obstacles Japanese corporations face in international business are described, as are the methods used to deal with obstacles and foster better global management and intercultural communication. The key issue of developing training programs is emphasized. To systematize international business communication research with reference to Japanese companies, a research agenda is offered involving study of: correct usage of English, the meanings of international business terms, and the relationship of English as an international business language to its various users. The guiding theories in this research will come from semiology.Findings – English will be the agent of globalization, and Japanese companies must accept t...

Euphemistic strategies in politeness and face concerns

Abstract: The present paper aims to shed light on the implications of euphemism in relation to the notion of face (Goffmann 1967) within the framework of linguistic politeness (Brown and Levinson 1987). For this purpose, I claim that impoliteness is a social taboo on which euphemistic mitigation acts and, with this in mind, I consider euphemism not only as a strictly lexical process used to tone down certain concepts deemed unfit for normal linguistic usage, but also as a more comprehensive phenomenon with a primarily discursive dimension. In this regard, a typology of strategies of non-hostile verbal communication is proposed. From this perspective, euphemism is understood as a powerful discursive tool used to enhance politenes, preserve the public self-image of the participants in communicative exchanges and, therefore, facilitate harmonious interpersonal relationships.