Phatic Communion in the Perspective of Language Dignity
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Journal of Language and Literature Vol. 19 No. 02 – October 2019 ISSN: 1410-5691 (print); 2580-5878 (online) Phatic Communion in the Perspective of Language Dignity R. Kunjana Rahardi [email protected] Indonesian Language and Literature Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University Abstract The efforts to dignify the Indonesian language must not stop at the elaboration of grammatical rules. The Indonesian grammatical rules have long been standardized but it is still debatable whether the Indonesian language has achieved its dignity or not. As a rule, the dignified language should carry the various functions which cater to several different interests and is learned by the wider audience. The formulation of rules interconnecting with language use as in the pragmatic studies must be promoted. Essentially, the linguistic study and pragmatic study of language have the same purpose despite their different manners of doing it. Keywords: phatic expression, dignify, language functions, pragmatic phenomena Introduction in the educational domain. In terms of a small number of references for phatic expressions, it In the monography entitled Kelas Kata is expected that the research on phatic dalam Bahasa Indonesia (Word Classes in the expressions funded by the research grant from Indonesian Language) written in a bid to fulfill the Directorate of Research and Community the Alexander von Humbolt research grant in Services, Kemristek, DIKTI, can be conducted Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Frankfurt successfully for three consecutive years and am Main, West Germany in 1985, Prof. Dr. reference books on Indonesian phatic Harimurti Kridalaksana affirmed that the expressions will soon be published. phatic category was a relatively new invention in the Indonesian linguistics (2008, p. 120). It Discussions on phatic expressions are was true what the Indonesian renowned inseparable from the issues of language linguist had said as up to today there has been function and dignity. While Kridalaksana said only a little research on phatic expressions. that phatic categories function to initiate, Undeniably, several papers on a similar topic sustain, and assert communication (2008, p. were written. Some scientific studies were also 114), Sudaryanto (1990, p. 95) affirms that the conducted in the form of undergraduate thesis, intrinsic function of language is to humanize graduate thesis, and dissertations. However, human beings to live with and for others. In the the quantity and quality of the study are far writer’s opinion, to live for and with other from being considered significant. human beings, one must be first and foremost able and willing to communicate with others. In anticipating the signs of low interest in In the discussions on the language functions the study, in the past one year the writer has which are interrelated with language status, been specifically investigating phatic either as a national or official language, the expressions in the language, particularly those issue of language dignity has become essential 91 Journal of Language and Literature ISSN: 1410-5691 (print); 2580-5878 (online) R. Kunjana Rahardi to discuss, because the dignity of a language, or In Sudaryanto (1990, p. 33), the term the lack of it, depends highly on and is “communion” refers to the “personal determined by the beauty and eloquence of the encounter phenomenon; a face-to-face word in serving its functions. encounter between two people.” Thus, ‘communion’ is not the same as In the writer’s opinion, the beauty and ‘communication’ which essentially means ‘the eloquence of the language in carrying out the transfer of information, ideas, thoughts’, which functions are by the clarity and establishment is referred to as ‘communication of thought,’ of the language rules. The clear and by Abercrombie (1998). This prominent established rules of language are non- linguist affirms that language does not merely negotiable in order to raise the dignity of a function as a means to communicate language. Therefore, the prolonged efforts to information, ideas, thoughts, but above all, it is standardize the language rules through a means to place ‘others as equal.’ various means, despite rejections and disloyalty from the language users in In the writer’s opinion, the process to employing the language rules to produce make someone equal as others is only possible utterance and to create exchanges, must be when the addresser and addressee are able stirred up again through more effective and willing to cooperate and to treat other strategies. Hence, the Indonesian language will people as equals. Thus, the cooperation to not be a foreign language in its own country in make others equal can only be achieved when the future to come. there is an ‘encounter’ between them to cooperate. The writer’s opinion is In this brief note, the writer intends to corroborated by Abercrombie (1998) that ‘ties elaborate the pragmatic phenomena, namely of the union’ means union in encounter to phatic function, in the constellation of build agreements. functions and dignity of the Indonesian language. The unclear language rules and its Phatic communion, according to Richards limitation in sustaining the identity of et al. (1985, p. 214), is ‘a term used by the semantic meaning referred to as ‘the fuzziness British-Polish anthropologist Malinowski to of grammatical categories’ by Leech (1982, p. refer to communication between people which is 25), particularly related to the speaker’s not intended to seek or convey information but meaning, can be explained through this has the social function of establishing or language study using a pragmatic approach. maintaining social contact.’ They assert that the main purpose of phatic communion is neither to ‘seek information’ nor ‘to transfer From Phatic Communion to Phatic information’, but it aims to “establish and Communication preserve sociability.” The term phatic communion was initiated Consequently, the English utterance “How by Bronislaw Kasper Malinowski, a Polish are you?” which is translated into Indonesian anthropologist who undertook an “Apa kabar?” is not necessarily meant to seek ethnographic work in Trobriand Islands, for the addressee’s ‘information’ or ‘news’. Melanesia in 1923. From his ethnographic Similarly, in an encounter, someone greets study, the well-known anthropologist ‘Sehat-sehat saja Bapak!”, the addresser does introduced two language functions, namely (1) not necessarily seek information about the pragmatic function and (2) magical function. addressee’s ‘health condition,’ but it is meant The term ‘phatic’ is derived from the verb in to merely ‘build sociability’ with the addressee. Greek, which means ‘to speak’, while the term Therefore, it would be strange for a university ‘communion’ means ‘the creation of ties of student who addresses the lecturer in a union’ (Abercrombie, 1998). Further, the term campus lobby by greeting, ‘Selamat pagi, Pak!’ ‘phatic communion’ is understood as (Good morning, Sir!) and is responded curtly ‘establishing an atmosphere of sociability by the professor who says, ‘Sudah siang kok rather than communicating ideas’ (Mey, 2008, pagi!’ (It’s noontime already!). p. 673). 92 Journal of Language and Literature Vol. 19 No. 02 – October 2019 ISSN: 1410-5691 (print); 2580-5878 (online) The Javanese rural community is well- in pragmatics must be interconnected with the known for their friendliness and they usually pragmatic context, which essentially consists exchange pleasantries among neighbors, such of sets of assumptions (Rahardi, 2015), both as addressing the neighbor who is on her way personal and communal. On the other hand, to the market by saying, “Tindak peken, Bu!” lingustic meaning is understood dyadically as (Are you going to the market?). In the same proposed by Buhler and Revesz. friendly manner, the phatic expression will be responded with an utterance “Injih! Monggo! Linguistics does not involve the contextual (Yes, I am. See you later). Therefore, even dimensions in the form of sets of assumptions, though the addresser has already known that which are defined by Parker (1986), Wijana the addressee is going to the market, the (1996), and Rahardi (2015; 2016) as triadic in friendly question still needs to be expressed to nature (triadic meaning). The phatic ‘preserve sociability.’ Someone who is not phenomenon belongs to the linguistic entity familiar with the importance of sociability will with a triadic dimension. reply rudely, ‘Orang jelas-jelas sudah tahu saya mau ke pasar kok malah tanya begitu?’ (It is Understanding the phatic intention as clear that I am going to the market. Why do you uttered by the addresser is impossible to be need to ask?). It would be strange to respond done if the focus is only on the linguistic rudely to questions about his/her wellbeing to markers. In the Javanese language, the form establish small talk or to maintain sociability ‘monggo’ or ‘sumonggo’ in the utterance or by saying, ‘Sehiiittttt! Orang jelas jalannya exchange has various pragmatic meaning begini kok ditanya sehat-sehat saja!’ (I am interpretations. This happens because the sooooooo healthy, you know? Can you see that variety of pragmatic meanings is determined I can walk just fine? Why do you ask whether I by the different assumptions which essentially am healthy or not?) underlie the contexts. Thus, interpreting the intention of ‘monggo’ is not first of all In the previous studies, such as a study by determined by the spatio-temporal contexts Kridalaksana (2008, pp. 119-121), some phatic which involve the dimensions of time and markers have similar forms as interjections. In place (Alan, 1986), or the social-societal an utterance and in a certain exchange, the contexts as elaborated by Hymes (1972), but it phatic markers such as ‘ah, eh, halo, ya’ overlap is determined by the different sets of with interjections. Some discourse markers assumptions being the essence of the are actually phatic markers, such as ‘mbok, deh, pragmatic contexts proposed earlier by kek, tho, ding, dong, kan, kok’, while some Rahardi (2016). others are pure interjections such as ‘aduh, idih, wah, aduhai, wahai, bah, ih, nah, syukur, Similarly, in the Indonesian language, the astaga’.