dialogue, discourse & subtext. oh my.
I wanted to say, first off, that dialogue is one of the biggest challenges for a writer, but then I realized how empty a statement that really is. When you're sitting in front of a blank page, everything is a big challenge.
It's been established before (here, and everyplace else people write about writing) that dialogue has to do more than one thing to earn its place on the page and in the scene. Dialogue can contribute a lot to characterization, if it's handled right.
The sociolinguistic rules for conversation are complex to the extreme (there's a whole wide field called discourse analysis, and within that, conversational analysis and politeness theory). I have found that now and then, when I'm having trouble hearing characters talk to each other, it helps me if I step back and analyze what's going on between them in this light.
Various linguists have worked out theories of how power and social structure work through language and conversation. The basics (and I mean, really diluted) of this approach are:
The concept of face refers to the respect that an individual claims for him or herself, and the effort that goes into maintaining self esteem and respect in situations public or private. There are two sides to this: the need to be respected and desired, and the need not to be imposed upon by others.
Politeness is seen as one strategy in saving face for the self and others by avoiding Face Threatening Acts (FTA's). FTAs infringe on the hearers' needs for respect, desirability, and a suitable amount of emotional and physical space.
Whenever two people meet and interact, hundreds of quick decisions are made at the subconscious level. Think of being in a car with somebody you don't know very well for a long drive. You're hungry.
Strategy One: Direct On Record
I want to stop at the very next restaurant.
(no attempt to acknowledge a hearer’s Face needs: I don't care if you're offended; I'm never going to see you again, and I'm really hungry.)
Strategy Two: Negative Politeness
Did Mrs. Malone forget to mention to you that I've been traveling since five this morning?
(shift responsibility for handling a difficult interaction; higher FTA possibility:
Boy, are you dense and insensitive, you should notice that I'm in a bad way over here.)
Strategy Three: Positive Politeness
You've been driving for a long time, you've got to be dehydrated, no?
(minimize distance by expressing friendliness and solid interest in the hearer's need to be respected; low FTA possibility: Come on, guy, let's do us both a favor and take a break.)
Strategy Four: Off-Record-indirect
Gosh, look at that, one of those Amish all-you-can-eat buffets, I've heard about those.
(removing all possibility of FTA, short of not speaking at all: ... and I hope you have too, but okay, if you haven't, I'll sit here and be hungry.)
I think about these strategies when I've got characters I am still getting to know who come face to face. For example: A man is trying to connect to a woman he's just met. Of course the greater context is relevant, but I'm leaving that out for the sake of simplicity.
"So, can I have your number?" (Strategy 1)
"Your sister had the idea that you might want to go to the opera, so you know, if she had that right and you are interested I've got an extra ticket for Friday." (Strategy 2)
"You must be tired, it's really late. Do you need a ride?" (Strategy 3)
"I'd go to that company dinner, but I hate walking in there alone." (Strategy 4)
You get a sense of the personality behind each of these statements, and a place to start. The question is, how will the other person react? What happens when a Strategy 1 statement is made to a strong, self confident woman who is not impressed, or one who is very, very impressed? Or maybe the woman is distracted and bored and just not very interested herself. What strategy is likely there?
I'm playing with the Strategy 1 line above.
"So, can I have your number?"
Subtext: I like your looks and what little I know of you enough that I'm willing to (a) take a run at this and (b) risk rejection doing so. But I'm not so nuts as to give you a lot of power over me, so I'm just going to put it out there, and see how you handle it.
He gets this answer from his female counterpart:
"I'm listed. If you can remember my name tomorrow, you can look me up."
Subtext: I have evaluated you as a potential partner for sex and/or friendship and/or a more serious relationship and I find you lacking in crucial areas. Part of my evaluation of you has to do with the fact that you took no trouble to evade FTAs. Thus I feel completely justified in returning that same treatment to you.
There's real potential here, seems to me -- both in terms of establishing conflict, and moving characterization along.
Recently I came across a review of a new Broadway musical called The Light in the Piazza, which made me think immediately of a novel I first read as a teenager and really loved, by Elizabeth Spencer. It turns out that this new musical is an adaptation of that novel, which was re-released in 1995. Back then I bought it and read it, and found that I loved it in a different way. Now I'm the age of the mother in the story, so my perspective is different.