Abstract

Abstract
This research deals with politeness theories from various linguistic points of view. It gives us comprehensive perspectives on politeness theories, the notion of face, and face threating acts, respectively. This work studies several different models, theories, rules, and superstrategies (e.g. Goffman (1967), Grice (1989), Brown and Levinson (1978/ 1987), Culpeper (1990), Thomas (1995), Fraser (1990), Lakoff and Ide (2005) and Leech (1983) (2014)).This research is built principally upon Brown and Levinson's (1978/ 1987) influence, their model of face saving acts and their distinction between positive face and negative face. Furthermore, their assumption is that politeness should be communicated and the absence of communicated politeness can be taken as absence of the polite attitude. Politeness is considered as a standard source of deviation from such rational efficiency, and is communicated precisely by that deviation. Politeness principles and politeness maxims are treated as a strategy to form a social-pragmatic politeness theory. A face-threatening act perspective means an action which threatens a person’s puplic self-image.