A closer look at the pragmatic marker sέbè in Akan
This study examines the use of the Akan expression sέbè and the various contexts in which it occurs. Sέbè is a pragmatic marker that prefaces utterances in Akan discourse to mitigate face-threatening acts (FTAs) and maintain social harmony. Its significance lies in its role as a politeness strategy...
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| Publicat a: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/lla, |
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| Autors principals: | , , |
| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Idioma: | Anglais |
| Publicat: |
Linguistique et Langues Africaines
2025
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| Matèries: | |
| Accés en línia: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| Sumari: | This study examines the use of the Akan expression sέbè and the various contexts in which it occurs. Sέbè is a pragmatic marker that prefaces utterances in Akan discourse to mitigate face-threatening acts (FTAs) and maintain social harmony. Its significance lies in its role as a politeness strategy and its connection to sociocultural norms and values of the Akan-speaking community in Ghana. This study contributes to the fields of pragmatics, discourse analysis, and Kwa language studies by highlighting how speakers manage face in daily interactions. Also, it offers insights into the concept of politeness in non-Western contexts and deepens understanding of pragmatic devices in Akan. Specifically, it demonstrates how sέbè enhances interpersonal communication as it tones down the force of FTAs, serves as an alert to prepare interlocutors for potentially sensitive utterances, introduces strong criticisms tactfully, and redresses potentially offensive remarks. Its absence, when culturally expected, often signals communication failure. By examining sέbè, this study provides broader insights into pragmatic strategies and the interplay between culture and communication. The data for this study were extracted from recorded news broadcasts and panel discussions on Akan-speaking media stations. Our analysis demonstrates that the use of sέbè is a face-saving strategy that reinforces the sociocultural emphasis on cooperation and respect and positively affects both the speaker and the addressee/listener in Akan discourse. |
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