The article considers silence as a nonverbal component of apology situation. The general model of this situation is described and the goals pursued by the participants of the situation are identified. The basic features of the communicative situation of apology as a conflict one are showed. The main functions of communicatively significant silence in apology situation are discussed. As the study indicated, silence performs the communicative (the expression of the addresser or addressee's intentions) and the emotive (the reflection of the psycho-emotional states of communicants) functions in the situation. The silence used by the addressee of apology refers to the courtly strategy of behaviour in conflict situations that is chosen unconsciously and reflects the characteristics of his or her personality. The silence of partners in apology situation is a unit of communication and, depending on the goals and relationships of the interlocutors, can have both cooperative and conflict orientation. In particular, communicatively significant silence in the situation may express both acceptance and nonacceptance of apology. The combination of communicatively significant silence and other nonverbal means of communication may express the addresser's communicative intention (the intention of apology) in the situation directly.
展开▼
