"This empirical data-rich book provides a helpful contribution to the field of cross-cultural pragmatics ... . It succeeds in deepening readers' understanding of the linguistic features of EL ... . Its exploration into the speech acts of persuasion and comforting enriches the study of language elasticity. The evidence-based findings of the book bring far-reaching insights ... . Those who take an interest in contrastive pragmatics, language stretching, VL/EL, and cross-cultural communication will find the book valuable and beneficial." (Shuangshuang Lu, Journal of Pragmatics, Vol. 187, 2022)
Chapter 1: Introduction.- Chapter 2: Theoretical Foundations.- Chapter 3: Methodology.- Chapter 4: Elastic Language in the Chinese Data.- Chapter 5: Elastic Language in the English Data.- Chapter 6: Comparison Between the Chinese and English Findings.- Chapter 7: Elastic Language and Impact Factors.- Chapter 8: Conclusions.
Grace Zhang is Professor in the School of Education at Curtin University, Australia.
Vahid Parvaresh is Senior Lecturer in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Anglia Ruskin University, UK.
This innovative book examines, from a cross-cultural perspective, the elasticity of language in the popular talent show The Voice. The study discusses how and why elastic language is used in persuasion and comforting. The comparisons made throughout the book between Chinese and English highlight the important role elastic language plays in effective interactions and strategic communication. The insights and resources provided in this book are expected to advance our knowledge in the fields of contrastive pragmatics and cross-cultural communication. The study emphasises the need to give the elastic use of language the attention it deserves, and reveals how language is non-discrete and strategically stretchable. This book will be of interest to academics and postgraduate students engaged in elastic/vague language studies, cross-cultural pragmatics, media linguistics, discourse analysis, sociolinguistics and communication studies. It will also be useful for educationalists involved in language teaching, cross-cultural education and professional communication training, as well as those who have a general interest in language and communication.