The Negative Stance Expression Function and Its Formation of “May I Ask?”

“我请问呢”在人们的日常交际过程中逐渐凝固成一个话语标记语，表示言者的负面立场。“我请问呢”多位于话轮之首作触发语，预示负面立场，可以位于话轮中、末尾强化负面立场，也可以独立形成话轮，直接表达负面立场。“我请问呢”具有负面评价和情感态度的立场表达功能，并在具体的语境中动态浮现出抱怨、责怪、斥责这三种不同程度的负面情感态度，反问语境、主观化以及礼貌原则和语用省略是“我请问呢”话语标记用法形成的重要原因。“May I ask?” gradually solidifies into a discourse marker in people’s daily communication, indicating the speaker’s negative stance. “May I ask?” is often used as a trigger at the beginning of a turn, indicating a negative stance. It can be placed at the middle or end of the turn to reinforce the negative stance, or it can independently form a turn to directly express the negative stance. The phrase “May I ask?” has the function of expressing negative evaluations and emotional attitudes and dynamically manifests three different degrees of negative emotional attitudes: complaint, blame, and reprimand in specific contexts. The use of rhetorical context, subjectification, politeness principles, and pragmatic omission are important reasons for the formation of the discourse marker “May I ask?”.