36.3665, Diss: English; Applied Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Pragmatics, Sociolinguistics, Translation: Chun Liu: "The Multimodal Expression of Impoliteness and Implications for Subtitling: The Case of Modern Family"

[The LINGUIST List]

LINGUIST List: Vol-36-3665. Wed Nov 26 2025. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 36.3665, Diss: English; Applied Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Pragmatics, Sociolinguistics, Translation: Chun Liu: "The Multimodal Expression of Impoliteness and Implications for Subtitling: The Case of Modern Family"

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Date: 26-Nov-2025
From: Chun Liu [chun.daviesliu at outlook.com]
Subject: The Multimodal Expression of Impoliteness and Implications for Subtitling: The Case of Modern Family


Institution: Doctorate in Languages, cultures and societies at the
University of Leeds
Degree Date: 2023

Dissertation Title: The Multimodal Expression of Impoliteness and
Implications for Subtitling: The Case of Modern Family

Dissertation URL: https://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/id/eprint/33424/

Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics
                     Discourse Analysis
                     Pragmatics
                     Sociolinguistics
                     Translation

Subject Language(s): English (eng)

Dissertation Director(s): Adami, Elisabetta and Davies, Bethan;
(examiners: Miriam A. Locher; Sara Ramos Pinto)

Dissertation Abstract:

This thesis examines multimodal (im)politeness in telecinematic
discourse and its subtitling. It brings together research in
(im)politeness, audiovisual translation (AVT), multimodality and the
pragmatics of fiction to provide concrete analytical frameworks to
study how situated (im)politeness is expressed multimodally in an
unfolding interaction and how multimodal (im)politeness is rendered in
subtitling, which have received scarce attention in each of the
mentioned research field.
Using the data from the American family sitcom Modern Family and its
Chinese fansubbed version, I formulate analytical frameworks for
studying multimodal (im)politeness and its subtitling. The theoretical
underpinnings draw upon social semiotics (e.g., Kress, 2010) while
combining and adapting (im)politeness models (e.g., Culpeper, 2011a,
Spencer-Oatey, 2008), interpersonal pragmatics (e.g., Locher, 2015)
and the pragmatics of fiction (e.g., Locher et al., 2023, Locher &
Jucker, 2017, 2021). The study adopts a “co-text” approach: its
originality lies in studying all modes in their own right through
examining how (im)politeness meanings are created within and across
modes, and how situated (im)politeness effects are shaped by the modes
employed and their affordances. The data is analysed quantitatively
and qualitatively.
The analysis shows how (im)politeness and its supported diegetic
functions, i.e., characterisation and comedic effects are linked to
the modes recruited and their affordances. It shows that the
impoliteness trigger, response and resolution (Bousfield, 2007) can
occur simultaneously rather than only sequentially. It uncovers a
“new” type of mixed messages where both politeness and impoliteness
are sustained. It demonstrates that semiotic effects (e.g., emphasis)
in (im)politeness acts can be produced by prosody and/or the modal
resources in other modes (e.g., movement in gesture). It shows that
subtitles can actively render what modes other than speech convey.
The study moves the discussion of multimodal (im)politeness from
observation to explanation. It highlights that fictional discourse
warrants the examination in and of itself.



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