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forthcoming, he I she may alter footing to either counter his / her own standpoint
and, as a potential side effect add some nuance which may initiate some
element of negative alignment in the up to that point solidaric partners. In terms
of remedial work, German speakers interestingly often ask after others in order
to reinstate some element of negative alignment (e. g. 'Und was ist deine
Meinung' [And what's your opinion? ']). Prima facie this would seem to be
initiating a narrative type episode, but what it often leads to is a quick
contradiction of the invoked response. In this sense another's opinion is forced
out as suitable conversational resource for negative alignment (see my
discussion of the German 'examinatory self in Chapter 7).
6.6 Alignment Contingencies: Summary
What I have done in this chapter is to move on from the general
observations of alignment within sociable gatherings outlined in chapter 5 to
more closely examine sociable conversational occurring within what I referred to
in chapter 5 as the main phase of sociability - or more precisely, sociable
episodes where participants develop some common topic, theme, or issue.
I have moved beyond considering sociable conversation in each culture
under the general heading of 'style' (see Chapter 2), to consider more
specifically how sociable conversation can be analysed for its alignment
properties. In drawing on the model of facework as alignment outlined in
chapter 3,1 have outlined the range of alignment contingencies, including both
equilibric alignment, and what I referred to disequilibric ones.
Importantly, aside from illustrating these alignment contingencies per se,
I have demonstrated how German and English sociable conversation displays
salient differences in terms of the nature of claims made by participants during
each of these various alignment phases. In short, alignment in English sociable
episodes seems to reflect the preference for narrative and personalisation of
topics. German alignment seems to be characterised by the claiming of both
solidarity and individuated in and thorough more objective discussion. These
findings corroborate much of what was said in Chapter 2 in terms of German
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