Politeness
Do you think people should be polite? Is it important to be polite in your country? How important is politeness for you?
Vocabulary
  • Well mannered (adj.) - behaving in a pleasant and polite way.
  • Fraught (adj.) - causing or having extreme worry or anxiety.
  • Foul (adj.) - foul speech or other language is offensive, rude, or shocking.
  • Maternal (adj.) - related to a mother's side of the family.
  • Neurotic (adj.) - behaving strangely or in an anxious (= worried and nervous) way, often because you have a mental illness.
  • Well behaved (adj.) - behaving in a way that is accepted as correct.
  • To put off (phrasal verb) - if something puts you off something, it makes you dislike it, or decide not to do or have it.
  • Well brought up (adj.) - people, especially children, who are well brought up are polite and act in a quiet and pleasant way, because they have been taught this behaviour at home.
  • Well bred (adj.) - speaking or behaving in a way that is generally considered correct and polite.
  • To scandalize (verb) - if you are scandalized by someone's behaviour, you disapprove of it and are shocked by it because you think it is against moral laws.
Get exclusive episodes on IELTS Speaking parts 1, 2, and 3
Get exclusive episodes on IELTS Speaking parts 1, 2, and 3
Questions and answers
Error get alias
M: Rory, do you think you are a polite person?

R: Well, I certainly try to be well mannered, especially with people I don't know well in formal contexts. I think it's important for making good person impression, isn't it?

M: Do you think people should be polite?

R: Well, most of the time, yes, people just want to get on, don't they? And being polite helps with that. It also helps smooth things over in fraught situations.

M: How do people in your culture show good manners towards others?

R: Well, they make eye contact, shake hands, generally avoid swearing and foul language and they dress for the occasion as well. And there are other things like respecting personal space, and conversational and social boundaries too.

M: Who taught you to be polite?

R: I think it was my parents and my maternal grandmother in the mean, although teachers and friends and others, like sort of played supporting roles in that sense. I think in most cultures it falls to the adults around you to take part in this aspect of socialization, doesn't it?

M: Is it important to be polite in your country?

R: Well, people have this impression that British people are sort of very neurotic about good manners and being well behaved. But actually, I would argue that we're pretty average in this regard. So compared to countries like Korea, or Japan, where there are sort of rules that govern the behavior of everything. And then if you talk about places like America, where people air their views on everything with little regard for other people's feeling. So we're sort of occupying the middle ground.

M: How important is politeness for you?
R: Well, I didn't realize it until the other day, that is actually quite a priority for me, especially when I deal with people I don't know. Like, I'm really put off when people don't have an opening in their emails and just go straight to whatever request they might have. Pleases and thank yous are also something that like helps me personally get invested in people and their problems. I know it seems a bit like window dressing, but at least in my case, it serves a useful purpose.

M: Thank you, Rory, for your polite answers.
Make sure to subscribe to our social media to see some of the “behind the scenes” stuff!

Our Instagram: bit.ly/instagramswi
Our Telegram: bit.ly/telegramswi
Get exclusive episodes on IELTS Speaking parts 1, 2, and 3
Get exclusive episodes on IELTS Speaking parts 1, 2, and 3
Did you like this episode?
Show more
Study with us
PODCOURSES LLP
2ND FLOOR COLLEGE HOUSE 17 KING EDWARDS ROAD, RUISLIP, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM HA4 7AE