Preference Structure – dispreferred A dispreferred social act, to simply put, is a way of expressing refusal In an adjacency pair, silence in the second part is an indicator of a dispreferred response Silence after the first speaker’s utterance often leads to revision of the first part to get a second part that is not silence from the second speaker Example A: Mark: You should go to the party tonight (2 seconds) Mark: Hmm-You’re shy though James: Yea-I’m not good with crowds James’ silence occurs when he would have had to make a dispreferred response The silence indicates that James is not in a position to give a preferred response Silence, however, is quite extreme of a response and it may give a nonparticipation impression Usually, when a speaker have to make a dispreferred statement, they will show indication Example B: Nolan: I love the Red Sox Best team to represent New York! Sally: Uh-Well-It’s Boston Red Sox They’re from Boston In this example, Nolan made a statement that Sally disagrees to Sally’s dispreferred second part is indicated with hesitation, as it is difficult to perform this action A delay “uh” followed by a preface “well” shows that this speaker is having difficulty and is unwilling to have to say what is being stated The use of hesitation and preface can also be found in dispreferred second part to invitations Example C: Aaron: You want to go to the movies this weekend? Bruce: Oh-Yes-I’d love to-but you see-I-I’m tasked with this project and-UhI’m supposed to finish on time-you know how it is As shown in example C, a refusal can be accomplished without the speaker saying “no” Even though it’s not said, the intention is communicated After a preface “oh”, the speaker made a token acceptance “yes I’d love to” to show appreciation to the invitation Then, the other’s understanding is invoked “but you see” and an account is presented “I’m tasked with this project” followed by a hesitation “uh” This explains the speaker’s reasoning behind the dispreferred response The speaker also conveys that the circumstances are beyond his control because of an obligation “I’m supposed to” How to a dispreferred response Examples a Delay/hesitate Pause; er; em; ah b Preface Well; oh c Express doubt I’m not sure; I don’t know I’d love to; that’s great I’m sorry; what a pity I must this; I’m expected in Y You see; you know d Token Yes e Apology f Mention obligation g Appeal for understanding h Make it non-personal i Give an account j Use imigators k Hedge the negative Everybody else; out there Too much work; No time lef Really; mostly; Sort of; kinda I guess not; Not possible III Conclusion Conversation is an unavoidable activity in our daily lives Humans are social beings As part of society, we must interact with fellow members of our social environment As such, being proficient in using language in conversations is a skill we must possess in order to form good communication between us and others around us These skills include how to get other’s attention, how to start a conversation, how one should and should not cut off the conversation, and how to close a conversation To be competent with such skills, we should not feel tired and bored to learn, because learning is the only way to improve ... speaker’s reasoning behind the dispreferred response The speaker also conveys that the circumstances are beyond his control because of an obligation “I’m supposed to” How to a dispreferred response Examples... out there Too much work; No time lef Really; mostly; Sort of; kinda I guess not; Not possible III Conclusion Conversation is an unavoidable activity in our daily lives Humans are social beings As