Prace komisji nauk.pdf - Instytut Filologii Angielskiej Uniwersytetu ...

noticed by Jennifer Coates ([1989] 1998: 247). However, the aspect that has not
been observed is a regular trend to apply such a form in emotionally involving
instances. Regarding the case in example (8), mid-utterance tags are frequently
adopted in those parts of the interaction that relate to the speaker’s past
experiences, either positive or negative. To reiterate, when confiding women desire
to be reassured that they are listened to and, thus, discovered a strategy to hold the
interactants’ attention.
Out of all types of question tags it is the facititative form that is used by
Polish participants the most often. Taking into account that the said form may
assume two functions, a more detailed conclusion may be reached. It seems that as
far as speakers of both genders eagerly apply facilitative tags to engage various
interactants in the conversation and elicit some feedback, these are only females
who make use of question tags to check the listeners’ attention.
Considering the application of another affective tag, namely, the challenging
tag, which functions as means of confronting the addressee, the research showed
that males adopt this strategy far more often than women. However, what seems
surprising is that in the group of close friends, the preponderance of challenging
tags (produced by both genders) assumes the form of tangible sarcastic responses,
which are rather to loosen the tension and entertain the remaining interactants than
bluntly oppose or contradict the addressee.
Example (9)
Context: A male and a female talking about the eating habits of Speaker C’s
sister.
E: A ty przestań, bo dziewczyna musi jeść, bo dojrzewa
C: I cały talerz pierogów w biust idzie, tak?
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