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The Positive Politeness Strategies Used by Johnny Cash and Larry King

in the Interview on CNN

A A. Gde Bharga Wisnawa

English Department Non – Reguler Program Faculty of Letters Udayana University

Abstrak

Wawancar biasanya di lakukan dengan percakapan yang langsung antara pewawancara dengan yang di wawancara. Sehubungan dengan studi ini, sebuah wawancara antara Johnny Cash dan Larry King menampilkan percakapan yang khusus yang mana sangat menarik untuk di teliti karena menampilkan makna-makna kesopanan selama percakapan. Jurnal ini berjudul The Positive Politeness Strategies Used by Johnny Cash and Larry King in the Intreview on CNN. Jurnal ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui jenis-jenis dari makna kesopanan yang positif berdasarkan dari teori oleh Brown dan Levinson (1987) dan politeness maxim oleh Leech (1983) sebagai teori pendukung dan alasan kenapa strategi dari makna kesopanan ini di aplikasikan. Data di daperoleh melalui metode dokumentasi. Proses pengambilan data di lakukan dengan mengunduh interview dan naskah dari internet. Dan menonton video wawancara, teknik pencatatan juga di lakukan. Data di presentasikan melalui metode kulitatif, dan di analisa menggunkan metode deskriptif. Dapat disimpulkan dan di temukan beberapa penggunaan strategi makna kesopnan oleh Johnny Cash di antaranya strategy 2 (Exaggerate), startegy 3 (Intensify interest to H), strategy 4 (Use in- group identity markers), strategy 5 (Seek agreement), strategy 6 (Avoid disagreement), strategy 7 (Presuppose/ raise/ assert common ground), strategy 8 (Joke), strategy 9 (Assert or presuppose S’s knowledge of concern for H’s wants). Dan Larry King menggunkan strategy 1 (Notice attend to H), strategy 4 (Use in- group identity markers), strategy 5 (seek agreement), strategy 9 (Assert or presuppose S’s knowledge of and concecrn for H’s wants), strategy 10 (Offer and promise), strategy 11 (Be optimistic), strategy 12 (Include both S and H in the activity), strategy 13 (Give or ask for reasons), strategy 15 (Give gift to H). Berdasarkan dari politeness maxim ditemukan: The Approbation Maxim, The Agreement Maxim, The Sympathy Maxim yang mana telah di analisa sebagai teori pendukung. Alasan mengapa strategi dari makna kesopanan yang positif digunakan karena konteks dari situasi (hubungan antara peserta, keadaan, dan topik) karena percakapan berlangsung dalam keadaan wawancara.

Keyword: kesopanan, strategi kesopanan, wawancara.

  • 1.    Background

People may know that someone is being polite or impolite through the way they speak in conversation in order to maintain the relationship with others. In other words,

being polite means that we try to keep our manners or behaviors and our language not to hurt other people’s feelings.

Related to this study, an interview at November 26, 2002 with Johnny Cash as interviewee by Larry King as interviewer on CNN (Cable News Network) shows a particular conversation which is very interesting to analyzed because it might be shows the application of politeness strategies during the conversation. Therefore, it is very interesting to investigate Brown and Levinson’s politeness strategies especially positive politeness strategies in the interview between Johnny Cash and Larry King.

  • 2.    Problem of the Study

The poblem of this study are:

  • 1.    What kinds of positive politeness strategies and politeness maxim are most frequently used by Johnny Cash and Larry King?

  • 2.    Why the positive politeness strategies are applied in the interview between Johnny Cash and Larry King?

  • 3.    Aims of the study:

  • 1.    To explain the strategy of positive politeness strategies and politeness maxim appears in the interview between Johnny Cash and Larry King.

  • 2.    To explain the reason why the positive politeness strategies are applied in the interview between Johnny Cash and Larry King.

  • 4.    Research Method

The data source of this study was taken from interview video between Johnny Cash and Larry King on CNN. It was downloaded from the internet, exactly from www.youtube.com. The process of collecting data was done by downloading the interview video and the transcript from the internet. And the process of collecting data was done by watching the interview video, in addition the transcript of the interview is used to support in

order to analyze the data. Note-taking technique also used to collect the data. The data analysis technique in this study or research was presented in quantitative method. The data in this study was analyzed by using descriptive method. The finding is analyzed by the relevant theory, the data that have been collected were classified according to strategy of positive politeness strategies that suggested by Brown and Levinson (1987), which words in utterance and what the indicate to the strategy of positive politeness strategies.

  • 5.    Analysis

    The Positive Politeness Strategies Used by Johnny Cash
    Strategy 2 (Exaggerate)

  • •    KING : Did you ever have a song that you thought was going to be phenomenal, and didn't do it?

  • •    CASH : Exactly.

Johnny Cash applies this strategy by using exaggerative expressions (exactly) to conveys a dramatically praise in order to make a conversation more intimate.

Startegy 3 (Intensify interest to H)

“Well, there's a great compilation of my work that they've put together, all the companies that I worked for, you know? And everybody is trying to outdo the other one.”

Johnny Cash talks about the great compilation of his work to Larry King in order to tell him about the story of his works. In the conversation above Cash uses “you know” to make King interest about the story and make vivid conversation.

Strategy 4 (Use in- group identity markers)

I have been with you many times, Larry, and it's all been uphill every time. You remember? (language or dialect)

Johnny Cash uses a language or dialect in the conversation by mention Larry only, as we know Larry is the first name of Larry King. Therefore, Cash shows the intimacy between them.

Strategy 5 (Seek agreement)

• a. KING

: You sang with Sun?

• CASH

: Yes, I was on Sun Records.

• b. KING

: When Presley was there?

• CASH

: Yes, when Presley was there.

Those sentences indicates that Johnny Cash agrees with Larry King when King asks to Cash. In this case the sentence can be analyzed with politeness maxim as well, by exaggerating his intonation, Cash maximize his agreement between him and King. In order it seems that Cash is applying Agreement Maxim: maximize agreement between self and other.

Strategy 6 (Avoid disagreement)

Well, I don't know. It was a money thing, I guess. RCA- Victor went to Sam Phillips to buy Elvis and they bought him. And he was the nucleus of the whole thing -- the rockabilly thing was revolving around. (hedging opinion)

In the utterance above Cash is hedging at his own opinions. It seems to avoid disagreement to Larry, we can see in this sentence “Well, I don't know. It was a money thing, I guess”. Therefore, that sentence shows that Cash so as not to be seen to disagree with King. To soften FTA’s, Cash chooses to be vague about his own opinion. It also indicates that Agreement Maxim: minimize disagreement between self and others is applied when Cash tries to avoid disagreement.

Strategy 7 (Presuppose/ raise/ assert common ground)

Yes. Well, I don't go out and sing. I don't do concerts any more because the physical thing of going out there and doing concerts and the planes and the cars and the hotels and all that. And the backstage is where it's so dark I have a hard time. My vision is -- my vision is over. I'd probably say 60 percent gone because of the neuropathy. And the diabetes.

Strategy 7 is asserting common ground, Cash tries to draw King into his story through his statetment. Cash says that the situation is certainly true, he tells about the vision and he can not do concert because the neurophaty and diabetes.

Strategy 8 (Joke)

  • •    KING : And no anger at the, Why did God do this to me?

  • •    CASH : Oh, no. No. I'm the last one that would be angry at God. I'd really took if I shook my fist at him.

In this utterance Johnny Cash tries to make a joke that truly he does not really mean it, we can see the sentence “I'd really took if I shook my fist at him.” if Johnny Cash is wouldn’t took a shook his fist to God, he is joking and does not really mean it.

Strategy 9 (Assert or presuppose S’s knowledge of concern for H’s wants)

  • •  .KING : Are you bitter?

  • •  CASH : Bitter? No.

  • •  KING : Angry? You're a young guy. You're only 70.

  • •   CASH : No, I'm not bitter. Why should by bitter? I'm thrilled to death with life. Life is

-- the way God has given it to me was just a platter -- a golden platter of life laid out there for me. It's been beautiful.

In this case, Cash tries to avoid the other willingness by using the other willingness as an alibi to King it appears in this sentence “No, I'm not bitter. Why should by bitter? I'm thrilled to death with life” when King asks to Cash. King asserts two willingness but Cash wants to do only one of King’s willingness.

The Positive Politeness Strategies Used by Larry King

Strategy 1 (Notice attend to H)

  • •    a. How would you describe your voice? Since there's no voice like it.

  • •    b. I mean, it's not -- you don't hear yourself any where, right? I mean, there's no one -- are you a bass?

Both of the utterances that used by Larry King has a purpose to praise Johnny Cash in order to make his wants fulfilled that the King conveys his interest to Cash. Obviously, that King wants the Cash to describe the King’s want. It can be analyzed by politenes maxim, The Approbation Maxim: maximize the expression of beliefs which express approval of other. It is preferred to praise Cash.

Strategy 4 (Use in- group identity markers)

All right, Johnny, first and foremost, how are you doing? How's your health?

As an interviewer Larry King is applying this strategy to conveys in-group of language or dialect to Johnny Cash, it is clearly he uses this strategy to show intimacy of relationship between Larry King and Johnny Cash by calling Johnny Cash first name (Johnny).

Strategy 5 (Seek Agreement)

  • •    CASH : I think so. I think everybody that saw him perform did, yes.

  • •    KING : Yes.

The utterance indicates that Larry King is obviously agree with Johnny Cash, by repeating the sentence, it seems King applied Agreement Maxim: maximize agreement between self and other as well to Cash.

Strategy 9 (Assert or presuppose S’s knowledge of and concecrn for H’s wants)

Now your singing contemporaries pass away -- I just want to get this right. Waylon Jennings died in February battling diabetes, had part of a foot amputated. You shared an apartment in the '60s. What was it like to lose him?

In this case, Larry king asserts two willingness to make things right about Johnny Cash, first is he asks the to make things right by use this sentence “I just want to get this right” and then King tries to avoid the other willingness by using the other willingness as alibi by using this interrogative “What was it like to lose him?”.

Strategy 10 (Offer and promise)

Let me take a break and you think about it.

Larry King uses this strategy is clearly to offer Johnny Cash a chance to think, by applying this strategy King may claim that (with a certain sphere of relevance) whatever Cash wants, King wants for him and will help to obtain in order to redress the potential threat of some FTAs.

strategy 11 (Be optimistic)

That song cracked up everybody whenever you sing it, right?

This strategy is used by Larry King because he is optimistic that Johnny Cash will be fulfilled what he wants. By stressed “right” in the of the sentence is to make sure if Cash wants to fulfill King’s want.

Strategy 12 (Include both S and H in the activity)

My daughter's here with me tonight and she had to remind me, Kia, that we should show the album. It's called "Cash". There's that face.

King wants if he and Cash are included in the activity by using this sentence ” that we should show the album”. It has a meaning to do it with “you”. By using we form, both King and Cash will show the album to “Kia” King uses this as another way to illustrate the cooperative strategy. It has purpose to fulfilled desire.

Strategy 13 (Give or ask for reasons)

You thought that couldn't miss. Okay. Now, what surprised you? What song did you record that did well that you didn't think much of?

Larry King wants to hear a reason from Johnny Cash therefore King uses this strategy. We can see in this sentence “Explain”. One of conventionalized positive-politeness form is the indirect suggestion, which demand rather than give reasons. In this case it can be analyzed by Approbation Maxim: maximize the expressions of beliefs which express approval of other.

Strategy 15 (Give gift to H)

  • •    It was good (good)

  • •    Be well. (sympathy)

From the utterances it can be understand that Larry King make a good utterances to show an intimacy relationship conversation to respect each other. Furthermore, sympathy utterance, by using this strategy King conveys his respect or support to Johnny Cash. In this case, it can be analyzed also with The Sympathy Maxim: maximize sympathy between self and other.

  • 6.    Conclusion

The findings are found: strategy 2 (Exaggerate), startegy 3 (Intensify interest to H), strategy 4 (Use in- group identity markers), strategy 5 (Seek agreement), strategy 6 (Avoid disagreement), strategy 7 (Presuppose/ raise/ assert common ground), strategy 8 (Joke), strategy 9 (Assert or presuppose S’s knowledge of concern for H’s wants), these are used by Johnny Cash. And Larry King use strategy 1 (Notice attend to H), strategy 4 (Use in- group identity markers), strategy 5 (seek agreement), strategy 9 (Assert or presuppose S’s knowledge of and concecrn for H’s wants), strategy 10 (Offer and promise), strategy 11 (Be optimistic), strategy 12 (Include both S and H in the activity), strategy 13 (Give or ask for

reasons), strategy 15 (Give gift to H). According to politeness maxim there are found: The Approbation Maxim, The Agreement Maxim, The Sympathy Maxim which was analyzed as supporting theory. The reason why the positive politeness strategies applied by Johnny Cash and Larry king in the interview is influenced by some factor, such as: the context of situations (the relation between participant, setting, and topic), age (it means that the younger speakers have to speak politely to the older speaker), and social status (such as occupation, education wealth).

  • 7.    Bibliography

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Hobb, P. 2003. The Medium is the Massage: Politeness Strategies in Men’s and Women’s Voice Mail Message. Los Angeles: University of California.

Holmes, J. 1992. An introduction To Sociolinguistic. London: Longman.

Leech, G. 1983. Principle of Pragmatic. London: Longman Group Ltd.

Luhur, Baruna. 2009. The Analysis of Positive and Negative Politeness Strategies in Friends TV Series Script (undergraduate thesis). Denpasar: Faculty of Letters Udayana University.

Mutunda, Sylvester. 2006. A Sociolinguistic Study of Politeness Strategies in the Lunda Culture. Tucson: University of Arizona.

Putra, I Ketut Adi Astina. 2011. The Politeness Strategies Used in the Movie Jerry Meguire (undergraduate thesis). Denpasar: Faculty of Letters Udayana University.

Purnami, D. 2006. Politeness and Addres Forms in Film Actualy Love (undergraduate thesis). Denpasar: Faculty of Letters.