Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.31820/f.36.1.7
METAPHORICAL COLLOCATIONS AS POLITENESS MARKERS IN FOOTBALL LANGUAGE
Anita Anita Pavić Pintarić
orcid.org/0000-0002-5105-9999
; Sveučilište u Zadru, Odjel za germanistiku
Abstract
In this paper we start from the assumption that football, as a very popular sport, is presented in newspaper reports in various ways. These reports usually include a dis¬play and evaluation of play, tactics, and on-field behaviour. They become particularly stylistically interesting when covering the national team’s play. To vividly depict the game, picturesque and metaphorical means, such as phrasemes and collocations, are often used. The aim of this paper is to determine whether metaphorical collocations are used to achieve politeness, i.e., to soften criticism if the game is judged as poor. The analysis is based on Brown and Levinson’s (1987) politeness theory, Leech’s (1983, 2014) work, and Hausmann’s (1989) approach to collocations. The analysis has pro¬vided answers to the following research questions: What politeness strategies can be identified in relation to collocations? Are these strategies used in certain types of texts (interviews, comments)? Are there differences or similarities between Croatian and German texts? It turns out that the analysed German texts mostly contain journalistic comments on the game, while the Croatian texts include excerpts from conversations with coaches and players. The most common type of collocation is adjective + noun, with established collocations frequently appearing in newspaper football reports, such as “group of death”, “the striking line-up”, and “wild minutes”. Metaphorical colloca¬tions are used to express indirect criticism and to reinforce contrast as a common strategy to mitigate criticism. This writing style respects the maxim of approval, and collocations often feature enhancers and emotionally coloured words.
Keywords
metaphorical collocations; politeness; football reports; German language; Croatian language
Hrčak ID:
319456
URI
Publication date:
19.7.2024.
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