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3.4 Politeness Principle Politeness Principle is a set of maxims, just like the Cooperative Principle discussed in the last unit. These maxims were proposed by Geoffrey Leech. Leech observes that participants in social interactions try to interact in an atmosphere of relative harmony. Below are the maxims.
Tact Maxim:
minimize cost to other, maximize benefit to other. The first part of this maxim aligns with Brown and Levinson’s strategies of minimizing imposition, while the second part reflects the positive politeness strategy of attending to the hearer's
interests, wants, and needs. For example Can you spare me just two minutes please
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