Oldal 177 [177]
AN OPTIMALITY THEORETICAL ANALYSIS OF HUNGARIAN-AMERICAN BILINGUAL USE
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(I like history. I gather the information for my son. He is keen on history.)
(...)
3 I1“Miaz értelme? Mért fontos, hogy tudjuk a törtenelmünket?”
(‘What’s the point in it? Why is it important to know our history?’)
4 G1M27,50 “Minden fontos.”
(‘Everything is important.’)
5 I1“Miért?”
(Why?’)
6 G1M27,50 “Mert akkor jobb aa...”
(‘Because then it is better the the ...’)
7 G2F24 “I just can’t believe that you said that you are gathering
that
8 for Daniel. I am so offended.”
9 G1M27,50 “Everybody who is interested.”
10 G2F24 “Iam so offended, so offended.”
11 G1M27,50 “Everybody who is interested. Well, you never showed a
12 whole lot of interest.”
(source: data collected by Koväcs in 2008-2009)
In this utterance speaker G1M27,50 is speaking about the importance of
collecting all the historical records of his descendants for his son. He makes
this statement in Hungarian. However, speaker G2F24, his daughter, who is a
second-generation Hungarian-American, makes an English comment on this.
She, as his daughter, feels offended by her father’s remark that he collects all
the family records for his son without mentioning his daughter. The daughter
feels that she is excluded from this and gives voice to her disappointment
in English. For her English — although she understands and speaks some
Hungarian — is the default language of communication. When her father reacts
to her remark, he switches from Hungarian to English. He feels that his face
as a good father is threatened by his daughter’s remark, so he tries to come up
with an explanation defending his case by saying that the family records are
for everybody interested. His daughter is not satisfied with this explanation
and repeats how offended she is. The father wants to end this embarrassing
argument going on in front of the two interviewers and reproaches his daughter
for not showing too much of an interest in the family’s history. It is interesting
that he makes the final statement in English, which is the language of solidarity
with his daughter, and not in Hungarian, which is his stronger language, the
father’s mother tongue. The switch to Hungarian would enable the father to
gain back his role of an authoritative father, topping the argument, as well as
mitigating the threat against his face as a competent father. Therefore, the
switch to Hungarian would optimally fulfil the function of Power, topping the
argument, and that of Face, mitigating the face threat. However, he tops the