The Semantic-Pragmatic Characteristics of the Speech Act of Self-praise.

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to present the semantic and pragmatic features of
speech acts expressing self-praise. Unlike praise, self-praise has a negative
connotation. It can be expressed through different perlocutionary acts. The purpose
of this act is to gain attention and admiration, trying to please the listener and gain his
approval with his verbal and non-verbal behaviour, pleasing the addressee. While
performing this act, the speaker highlights his merits, successes, skills and qualities
in order to present them in a positive light. Self-praise is a type of praise when the
speaker addresses a positive assessment to himself, that is, in this case, the
recipient of the self-praise acts as the recipient of the praise at the same time. He
tries to strengthen his self-esteem, impress others, and establish authority. If self-
praise is modest and consistent with the context, it can strengthen the person's
authority, while excessive self-praise can be perceived as arrogance. The intention
of a self-praising person is to achieve his goal by trying to gain the approval of the
interlocutor, as a result of which his verbal and non-verbal behavior can be
expressed even in self-deprecation by using self-humiliating expressions. The
implementation of this act is conditioned by the different status and role
characteristics of the communicators. The present paper is an attempt to outline the
semantic and pragmatic peculiarities of these speech acts.