A pragmatic model of parent-child relations in Uzbek and English domestic discourse

Abstract

This article presents a comparative analysis of the pragmatic features of parent-child relationships in Uzbek and English domestic discourse. The study is based on theoretical approaches in pragmalinguistics, discourse analysis, and cognitive linguistics. Particular attention is given to the use of speech acts, communicative strategies, implicatures, and presuppositions in parent–child communication, as well as to the influence of sociocultural factors on the organization of everyday discourse. The research material includes dialogic speech samples taken from literary works as well as examples of everyday family communication. The analysis demonstrates that although parent-child relationships in Uzbek and English domestic discourse share certain common pragmatic mechanisms, their linguistic realization is strongly influenced by national cultural values and social traditions. In English discourse, communication is typically characterized by cooperation, indirectness, and discussion-oriented communicative strategies. In contrast, Uzbek discourse demonstrates stronger hierarchical relations where directive speech acts, warnings, and instructive communicative strategies play a dominant role. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of family discourse and intercultural communication studies and proves the necessity of learning a foreign language in combination with culture and the way of people’s communication in a family.