AN ANALYSIS OF POSITIVE POLITENESS IN THE LITTLE MERMAID (2023)

Politeness is an essential aspect of communication that reflects respect, attention, and
appreciation toward others. One form of politeness strategy is positive politeness,
which aims to build closeness and solidarity between speakers. This study employs a
film as the object of analysis to examine how the main character employs positive
politeness strategies in their speech, as well as the factors that influence them. The
research uses a descriptive qualitative method, with the data source being the film
The Little Mermaid (2023), directed by Rob Marshall. Using an identification table
for data collection and applying Brown and Levinson‘s (1987) theory for analysis, the
study found that: 1) The main character uses two types of positive politeness
strategies. The most dominant realizations are intensify interest to the hearer
(Claiming Common Ground) and include both speaker and hearer in the activity
(Declaring that Hearer and Speaker are Cooperators). 2) Relevant circumstances
(Power, Social Distance, and The Size of Imposition) are the most used factor;
however there is no payoff factor in this study.
Keywords: Pragmatics, Positive Politeness, Movie, Brown and Levinson, The Little
Mermaid.