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Article published In:
Pragmatics
Vol. 29:1 (2019) ► pp.57–82

Managing relationships through repetition

How repetition creates ever-shifting relationships in Japanese conversation

| Japan Women’s University

This study examines cross-speaker repetition in triadic conversations in the Japanese language. For the analysis, three sets of triadic conversations between close friends taken from a TV talk show are used. The results reveal that repetition in triadic conversations performs distinctive functions that are not observed in dyadic conversations: repetition often takes place between only two participants of the triad and allows the two to team up and strengthen their bond exclusively (teaming repetition), or even playfully tease the third participant (teasing repetition). Repetition is also shared between the three participants. In such cases, it allows the participants to create an instant bond by joking or referring to shared circumstances (immediate threefold repetition), or to gradually establish rapport by connecting their utterances and co-constructing a story (repetition relay). All these types of repetition express the participants’ points of view and contribute efficiently to their relationships that shift from moment to moment. The study further demonstrates cases in which one participant makes good use of various repetition types in a short period of time and efficiently allocates thoughts and feelings to the other two participants. The study concludes that repetition plays a significant role in Japanese conversation, helping speakers to converse smoothly and manage the dynamic relationships efficiently.

Keywords: cross-speaker repetition, triadic conversation, teaming, teasing, threefold repetition, repetition relay, co-construction of a story, the Japanese language
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Previous studies
  • 3.Data
  • 4.Analysis
    • 4.1Repetition between two participants in a triadic conversation
      • 4.1.1Repetition as a device for teaming
      • 4.1.2Repetition as a device for teasing
      • 4.1.3The difference between teaming and teasing repetitions
    • 4.2Repetition between three participants
      • 4.2.1Immediate threefold repetition
      • 4.2.2Repetition relay
    • 4.3The co-occurrence of various types of repetition and how the participants manage their relationships
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.
Published online: 7 March 2019
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/prag.17021.mac
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