• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.635-644
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• 2020

This paper examines the types and functions of politeness in German communication and how politeness strategy can be realized. 'Politeness' is not a grammatical terminology in German, but it can be found in many places in grammar. The criteria for politeness are not only organized according to the rules of the language system, but the boundaries are ambiguous because non-language factors affect communication. Politeness is an important strategic element as well as social value. The polite expression first appears in the grammatical level of invariant with the form of address according to the familiarity between the conversational parties, verb modus, and modal particle. Modal particle with familiarity is considered to be a positive politeness strategy that limits the listener's speech by weakening or avoiding face threatening act. Modal verbs is classified as polite expressions that do not impose a psychological burden by not forcing the listener to make a direct request. The results of this study are therefore expected to suggest a rationale for empirical research on politeness in German communication.