Interaction between Korean Honorifics and Gestures in Thanking and Apologizing

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate how Korean honorifics interact with gestures and to propose pedagogical implications. For the study, four different Korean dramas showing verbal expressions and gestures of thanking and apologizing were chosen to conduct a multimodal analysis. Then the use of honorifics and relevant gestures was annotated using EUDICO Linguistic Annotator (Version 6.4) and categorized according to grade of honorifics (i.e., addressee-raising, addressee-lowering) and types of gestures. In addition, each category was quantified. The results suggest that Korean speakers are prone to use different gestures depending on age and status. Moreover, based on the results, several pedagogical implications were drawn in this study. Among them are the necessity of teaching Korean honorifics using multimedia materials, of selecting educational content depending on speech acts, and of conducting surveys of Korean language educators. Overall, this study contributes to research on Korean honorifics and their gestures and helps Korean language educators teach honorifics with gestures.