3.0 KiB
[D] Doesn’t Matter, Warm Fuzzies | Melting Asphalt
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Author: u/Nighzmarquls *
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URL: http://sonatagreen.tumblr.com/post/121851602039/doesnt-matter-warm-fuzzies-melting-asphalt
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Score: 6
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Created: 2015-06-18T19:32:15
Post:
Comments:
u/Nighzmarquls [+3] (a minute later)
In particular I could see this as useful for authors who want to build up worlds that have different rules but not make their inhabitants aware of everything ever.
So I suppose this is a useful tool for rational fiction, but for rationalist it probably is best only as a 'starting point' for a pre-existing culture.
u/eaglejarl [+2] (6 hours later)
The word for this is 'phatic' -- words or behaviors that have no meaning in and of themselves but serve a social function. For example, "How are you?" is a phatic that translates as "I wish to begin a conversation with you and am being polite about this desire."
u/IWantUsToMerge [+2] (7 hours later)
I thought that was more a way of communicating "I want to know how you are although it is understood that it might not be practical for you to tell me at this juncture", which may or may not be a lie. It's often genuine.
u/eaglejarl [+4] (12 hours later)
The normal answer for "how are you?" is "Fine" -- usually people look surprised if you actually tell them that (e.g.) your foot really hurts today. This even holds among friends sometimes, although friends are more likely to actually want the answer.
u/IWantUsToMerge [+2] (12 hours later)
I don't think they'd consider that odd for expecting "fine", I think they'd consider that odd because they can't do anything with it, it's probably irrelevant to them, and your intentions are opaque. If you can find an example of a situation where it would be weird if you divulged something real to someone who could actually do something for you with it(who recognized that you knew they could, where the cost of doing it would not be prohibitive), I'd be kind of suprised.
u/Bowbreaker [+1] Solitary Locust (2 days later)
Except that many people seem to use it with no intention of starting an actual conversation. And you can't even say that that is due to intentional deception because often not only do both parties know that the one saying "how are you?" doesn't want to start a conversation, they also know that they both know and then exchange 1+ more lines (sometimes not even that) before continuing on their way.
Or at least where I'm from it often goes:
1:"Hi" 2:"Hi. How are you?" 1:"Fine, you?" 2:*Nods and smiles* ~The End
u/eaglejarl [+2] (2 days later)
Fair point. Which supports the idea that it's a phatic, it just provides a second definiton. In this case the definition might be "I wish to acknowledge your existence for purposes of politeness." Again, it doesn't convey content, really, it's just a social placeholder.