Politeness: Judgments of Japanese and English speakers

Experts agree that the principles of politeness are universally the same, but there are differences in the proportions, and the way of expressing them. The differences occur because politeness is decided by cultural factors, and the society in which people live. ESL teachers should teach these differences in more detail so that ESL students can acquire more practical and proper English. This paper demonstrates similarities and differences in polite expressions between two languages, English and Japanese; the cultural factors which make these differences; and the actual differences in English polite expressions by native English-speakers and by native Japanese-speakers. By knowing these differences, ESL teachers can take more effective measures to teach practical and proper English in ESL classroom.