Asking and Giving Permission 1
Running head: ASKING AND GIVING PERMISSION
Asking and Giving Permission In Vietnamese and English:
A Contrastive Analysis
Le Thi Thu Le
University of Education
Contrastive Analysis
Mr Nguyen Ngoc Vu
December 30, 2010
Asking and Giving Permission 2
Asking And Giving Permission In Vietnamese And English:
A Contrastive Analysis
No one can deny the fact that cultural values have a strong influence on the use
of language, especially speech acts. Many researchers have conducted the studies of
the contrastive analysis of speech acts between learners’ native language and the
target language for the purpose of helping learners improve their communicative
competence. In my essay, I have the attention of doing a research on the speech act of
permission in Vietnamese and English because the speech act of permission is widely
used in everyday interactions and plays a major role in communication. Specifically, I
focus on the way to ask for permission and some expressions of giving permission to
point out similarities and differences in terms of syntactic and semantic formulas
between Vietnamese and English.
In Vanderveken ‘s view, “By uttering sentences in the contexts of use of natural
languages, speakers attempt to perform illocutionary acts such as statements,
questions, declarations, requests, promises, apologies, orders offers and refusals.”
(Vanderveken, 1990, p. 7). They are called speech acts. It may not be an exaggeration
to say that mastering the use of speech acts is essential and practical. More
importantly, the cross- culture study of speech acts needs to be invested because “the
cross-culture study of speech acts is vital to understanding of international
communication” (Eisenstein, 1989, p. 199) and Rosaldo also cautions that “Violations of
cultural norms of appropriateness in interactions between native and nonnative
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speakers often lead to sociopragmatic failure, breakdowns in communication and the
stereotyping of nonnative speakers.” (Rosaldo, as cited in Hinkel, Long, & Richards,
2006). That’s why permission which is one of the commonly used speech acts should
be considered in all respects.
According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2000), the noun
“permission” has two meanings. It is defined as the act of allowing somebody to do
something, especially when this is done by somebody in a position of authority.
Besides, another meaning of permission is an official written statement allowing
somebody to do something. In my essay, I just focus on the first meaning to discuss
permission speech act which makes up a high proportion in every interaction. So,
asking for permission is the act of wanting to know whether a person can do something
or use something or not.
Ex: Can I use your bike?
In Vietnamese dictionary (2010), the definition of asking for permission (xin phép)
is quite similar to English definition. It is also used to make sure that a person is allowed
to do something.
Ex: Tôi có thể sử dụng máy tính của bạn được không?
In daily life, whenever a person wants to do something or uses something that
belongs to another person, it’s important to ask for permission. It is because asking for
permission shows his/ her respect for others and increases the chances that his/her
request will be granted. However, the expressions of asking for permission are
differently expressed by different people in different cultures. The speech acts of asking
for permission is indeed confusing and complicated. Therefore, the addressers should
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pay much attention to the asking for permission expressions so as to make a polite
permission that will be granted by the authority and avoid creating a permission which
will be assumed as joking, rudeness or sarcasm. Also, utterances used to give
permission should be deeply concerned in order to know the intentions which the
addresser actually wants to say or to do. These intentions are revealed in the asking for
permission expressions.
In the previous studies, researchers take asking for permission into
consideration. They investigated some unique factors involving in the way to ask for
permission from others. They are: ethnic difference, gender difference, situation
difference or social status difference. There is no doubt at all that “The way people ask
for permission, to greater extent, is affected by the situation in which asking for
permission is expressed different cultural background of the speakers.” (Soehartono &
Sianne, 2003).
In other words, cultural values or norms of behavior are likely to be responsible for
producing different ways of asking for permission. After investigating the utterances
expressed by the Chinese and Javanese students of SMU Krisyen petra 3 in asking for
permission for taking leave, Soehartono & Sianne explain that ”Each ethnic has different
opinion about what politeness is “(Soehartono & Sianne, 2003).
Actually, according to Samovar and Porter, the notion that is deeply rooted in the
English speaking culture is individualism (2000, p.67). One of the characteristic of
individualism is that people in English speaking culture, especially the American
believed all people have personal privacy. For instance, anybody mustn’t step into
another’s house without permission. Nobody has the right to read any other’s letter even
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parents mustn’t read their children’s private letters. That is the reason why people
should ask for permission regardless of age, social status and relationship. People will
be punished if they infringe upon any other’s personal privacy with the motivation of
curiosity, profit or malice. It is because personal privacy is respected highly and
protected by law in these countries.
Similarity, the Vietnamese also highly regard asking for permission. In the past,
Vietnamese ancestors create many valuable folk – songs, proverbs in order to teach
posterity how to behave well, establish and maintain social rapports.
For example: “Học ăn, học nói, học gói, học mở”
Another proverb: “Đi thưa về trình”
Moreover, Huynh explains that:
In Vietnamese society, the predominant sentiment in the relation between
members of a social group is respect. This is particularly evident in the attitude
towards older people. Respect and consideration for old age no doubt derive
from the obligation of filial piety that requires young people to respect and love
their parents and parent-like members of the family. (Huynh, n.d.).
Therefore, no one can deny the fact that people have to ask for permission to get
married, stay overnight at the friend’s house, ect even though they are old enough to
make decisions. Vietnamese people believe that if young people disobey the elders
‘advice, they will suffer bad consequences of their actions
“Cá không ăn muối cá ươn
Con cãi cha mẹ trăm đường con hư”
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The elders are actually the carriers of the tradition and the embodiment of knowledge
and wisdom. (Huynh, n.d.).
In general, asking for permission in Vietnam and English speaking countries play
the important role in every speech situation irrespective of culture.
Regarding the frequency number of language functions, Soehartono & Sianne
show that “There are four language functions that never occur in the permission
utterances expressed to the teacher as the superior” (Soehartono & Sianne, 2003).
They are:
(1): Suggesting a course of action
(2): Requesting others to do something
(3): Advising others to do something
(4): Instructing / directing others to do something
By having analyzed the data, Soehartono & Sianne find out the predominant function
seeking permission and conclude that: “Seeking permission function is followed by
apologizing function that uses to show that they are in the lower position and reporting
function that is used to convince the authority.” (Soehartono & Sianne, 2003).
When it comes to this essay, its purpose is to systematically examine
Vietnamese and English asking and giving permission to draw out some similarities and
differences in terms of syntactic and semantic formulas and meet the requirements of
language teaching and learning.
In English language, the most familiar syntactic patterns are
(1)
Can I borrow your pen?
Could he use your phone charger?
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(Question head + S + Verb phrase with bare infinitive?)
(2)
Would it be OK if I borrow/ borrowed your pen?
Would it be alright if he uses/ used your phone charger?
(Question head + S + Verb phrase with simple present or past
subjunctive?)
(3)
Do you mind if I borrow/ borrowed your pen?
Would you mind if she uses/ used your phone charger?
(Question head + S + Verb phrase with simple present or past
subjunctive?)
Meanwhile, syntactic formulas employed to ask for permission in Vietnamese language
is quite limited. The most commonly occurring patterns are:
(1) Tớ dùng điện thoại cậu nhé? (Can I use your cellphone?)
(2) Em ngồi đây được không chị? (Would it be ok if I sit here?)
(3) Con có thể đi chơi với bạn một chút được không mẹ? Con sẽ về liền.
(May I go out with my friend for a while, Mom? I promise to come back home
soon.)
In Vietnamese language, there is a low frequency of the structures containing “if”.
Even they are never employed. For Vietnamese people, the most commonly used
syntactic patterns in English “Would it be ok if I borrow your pen?” or “Do you mind if I
use your phone charger?” are the unusual patterns for the speech act of asking for
permission. It is because that we can not translate two above utterances into
Vietnamese
“Would it be ok if I borrow your pen?”
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( Có được không nếu mình sử dụng bút máy của bạn?)
“Do you mind if I use your phone charger?”
(Bạn có phiền không nếu mình sử dụng cục sạc điện thoại của bạn?)
It sounds unnatural and clumsy. That’s the reason why Vietnamese people seldom use
these utterances to communicate. Instead, they have a tendency to say:
“Mình mượn bút máy của bạn được chứ?”
“Mình sử dụng cục sạc điện thoại của bạn được không bạn?
When using these expressions to ask permission, Vietnamese people never forget to
smile. It seems that they want to create intimacy and friendliness. Thanks to that, they
can erase the strangeness and increase the possibility of granting.
In term of semantic formulas, almost all the English expressions of asking
permission contain modal verbs: can, could, may, might,…However, the choice of the
appropriate modal verbs depends on age, social status, degree of acquaintance,
respect, situation, ect.
Ex- In the shop: a conversation between clerk and customer
Clerk: May I help you? ( Tôi có thể giúp gì cho bạn?)
- At school: a conversation between two friends (they have close friendship)
P1: Can I use your pen? (Tớ dùng viết của cậu được không?)
P2: Of course. (được mà)
Moreover, when asking for permission to do something, the English usually use
the word “please” to make the request sound more polite. It's not grammatically
necessary to use “please” but a person may sound rude if he/she doesn’t use it.
“Please” can be put in different places: at the start, end or before the verb
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Ex: - Please can I borrow your car?
- Can I please borrow your car?
- Can I borrow your car, please?
In addition, a more important way of showing politeness is the tone of intonation and
voice. Even if a person use the word “please”, he/she can sound rude if his/her
pronunciation is not correct.
One characteristic difference from asking for permission in English is the word
“có thể” (can, could, may, might…) used in Vietnamese. It doesn’t mention different
degrees and types of modality. It just makes the permission more polite.
Ex: Tôi có thể giúp gì cho bạn? (May I help you?)
Furthermore, it’s interesting to note that, on the semantic level, the word “xin
phép” is used not only to ask for permission but also to convey the meaning of saying
goodbye. The expressions containing the word “xin phép” are employed to ask for
permission from the authority, elder and superior.
Ex: Em xin phép thầy cho em ra ngoài ạ? (May I go out?)
In other cases, Vietnamese people want to show the courtesy and respect when saying
goodbye. Therefore, they use expressions like this:
Ex: - Xin phép bác con về (It means: chào bác con về.)
- Xin phép mọi người mình đi trước
(It means: chào mọi người mình về.)
They are not expressions of asking for permission. Surprisingly, they are greetings.
People often say these expressions with a smile or nod.
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When it comes to giving permission, Vietnamese people express a preference for
these words or expressions:
“Ừ, được, được mà, không sao đâu, cứ lấy đi, cứ làm đi, cứ tự nhiên…”
More interestingly, they also have the habit of adding the words including
particles which express attitude and feeling toward the addressee:” dạ, vâng, ạ, ờ,
ừa…”
Ex: Dạ, được ạ!
Meanwhile, in response to asking for permission, people in English-speaking
countries seem to use these expressions frequently.
(1) Yes: used when you are giving permission
(2) Of course: used for giving someone permission in a polite way
(3) Certainly: used for expressing agreement or giving permission
(4) All right: used for saying that you will allow someone to do something, or you do not
mind if they do it
(5) If you want: used for giving permission or agreeing with a suggestion that someone
has made
(6) By all means: used for politely agreeing with someone, giving permission or saying
“yes”
(7) As you wish: used for telling someone that they can do or have whatever they want
(8) I don’t see why not: used for saying “yes” when someone asks for your permission
(9) Help yourself: used for giving someone permission to do or use something
(10) If you (really) must: used for telling someone that it is all right to do something,
even though you does not want them to do.
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It’s interesting to note that in English, people can not know the power
relations (social status or age) and relationship (close, normal or distant) between two
speakers because the word “yes” can be used to give permission in all cases. In
contrast, in Vietnamese, people may focus on the words “dạ, vâng, ạ, ừ, ờ,…” to know
power relations and relationship between interlocurs.
Ex: A conversation between grandparent and nephew
Grandparent: Nội vào phòng con được chứ? (Can I come in?)
Nephew: Dạ, nội vào đi ạ! (Yes)
Ex: A conversation between two close friends
F1: Bạn cho mình mượn tập nghen? (Can I borrow your book?)
F2: Ừ, bạn lấy đi (Yes)
In Vietnamese culture, people are willing to avoid unpleasantness by giving
permission although they don’t want. This contradiction can lead to great
misunderstandings. Therefore, “Yes” may not mean “Yes”. When Vietnamese people
say: “No problem”, it can mean “Yes, there is a problem”. (“Vietnam,” n.d.). In this case,
double and even triple check should be kept to maintain social rapport
It’s clear that the English and the Vietnamese pay regard to the custom of
asking for permission. They consider the choice of expressions very carefully. The way
English people and Vietnamese people employ asking permission speech act is
influenced by two factors: power relations (social status or age) and relationship (close,
normal or distant) between interlocutors.
However, the characteristic feature which makes English different from
Vietnamese is the use of modal verbs. They are used to ask for permission with
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different degrees and types of modality. Meanwhile, Vietnamese people have a habit of
adding the particles “dạ, ừ, ạ, nhé...” to the expressions of asking and giving permission
to show respect, courtesy or intimacy.
One another difference between Vietnamese culture and English culture which
affects the use of language is that Vietnamese people rarely refuse permission. They
don’t want to create unpleasant and threatening atmosphere during conversation.
Sometime, they give permission to maintain social rapport and satisfy the addresser’s
positive face. To some extent, this should be avoided because it can cause great
misunderstandings.
In conclusion, “Language is a system of signs that is seen as having itself a
cultural value” (Kramsch, & Widdowson, 1998, p. 3). Vietnamese culture is quite
different from English culture. That’s why the way people ask for permission and give
permission are not similar. Learners should take notice of that to achieve the success in
learning the target language.
When it comes to learning a second language, one of the problems learners
have to face with is the influence of the first language and culture on the second
language use. As a consequence of this problem, learners are not confident when
communicating or even cause pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic failure. To
overcome the above difficulties, I would like to discuss some implications for language
teaching and learning based on contrastive analysis between Vietnamese and English
asking and giving permission.
Firstly, it is necessary for English teachers to raise students’ awareness of
culture similarities and differences between patterns of asking and giving permission in
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English culture and Vietnamese culture. Teachers can combine many suitable teaching
ways to help learners understand the conflicting patterns. For example, teachers can
explain, describe, illustrate…Learners must be well aware of the influence of the culture
on language to avoid communication breakdown or offence and converse with native
speakers of English successfully.
Secondly, English teachers should supply input as much as possible in order to
improve students’ ssociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic competence. Teachers can
apply the progress of technology to language teaching. Teachers compile and design
real situations based on the Internet, on TV…for use in class. Besides, teachers need to
provide more options for asking and giving permission to satisfy the requirements of
everyday interaction.
Finally, teachers should create communicative opportunities for students to
practice asking and giving permission in English. Through role play, interview, dialogue,
survey,…, students have chance to use the expressions they have learnt in real
situations. Significantly, they know how to choose suitable expressions in different
situations. Thanks to that, students are able to engage in successful communication
with native speakers.
These are some suggested activities I collected on the Internet to serve the
needs of language teaching and learning.

Activity 1 : Work in pairs and practice the dialogues
 For the lower level students:
(a) F1: Can I move your card?
F2: Yes, you can.
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(b) F1: May I move your card?
F2: Yes, you may.
 For the middle level students:
(a) F1: Is it ok if I move your card?
F2: Yes, it is ok.
(b) F1: Do you mind if I move your card?
F2: No, I don't mind.
(c) F1: Would it be okay if I move your card?
F2: Yes, it would be ok.
 For the more advanced level students:
(a) F1: Would it be alright if I moved your card?
F2: Sure, it'd be alright -OR- Of course it'd be alright.
(b) F1: Would you mind if I moved your card?
F2: No, I wouldn't mind.
(c) F1: If you don't mind, I'd like to move your card.
F2: Sure, I don't mind.
(d) F1: Would it bother you if I moved your card over there?
F2: No, it wouldn't bother me at all.
(e) F1: Is it alright to move your card so I can pick up my card?
F2: Sure, it's alright

Activity 2: Many times, hotel staff will find themselves in situations where
they will have to take some action that will effect the guest. In these cases, the staff
should politely ask the guest for their permission before taking any action. The guest
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may also ask permission to do something. It is only polite to ask for their permission
before doing so. There are several expressions that can be used for asking for
permissions. Look at the expressions below.
Expressions
Possible responses
Is it OK if . . .
I really wish you wouldn’t.
Do you mind if . . .
No, I don’t mind. Go ahead
May I . . .
Sure, no problem.
Would it be a problem if . . .
No problem at all.
Would it be OK if . . .
No, please don’t
I would prefer that you didn’t.
 Dialogue: Work in pairs and practice the dialogue
(a) Staff: May I pour you more wine, ma’am?
Guest: Sure.
(b) Staff: Do you mind if I clean the room now, sir?
Guest: Actually, would it be possible for you to come back in half an hour?
Staff: No problem, ma’am.
(c) Guest: May I borrow you pen.
Staff: Absolutely sir, here you go.
(d) Guest: Would it be a problem if I left my luggage here for a few minutes?
Staff: No problem at all, sir. I’ll, keep on eye on it.
(e) Staff: Is it OK if I make a copy of your passport?
Guest: Sure, whatever you need.
 Conversation Activities
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1. Practice using the above expressions by having a dialogue similar to the ones
above with a partner, one partner taking the role of the guest and the other the role of
the staff. For additional practice, switch roles. Practice the dialogue several times, trying
to use all of the expressions noted above.
2. Role play the following situations with a partner, one person taking the role of
the guest and the other person taking the role of a hotel staff.
Permission by Staff
- Move some luggage out of the passage way
- Open a window
- Refill a coffee cup
- Pull down a shade
- Get their room key or card
Permission by guest
- Leave bags behind a counter
- Smoking in a restaurant
- Borrow a pen
- Take newspaper from lounge to read in room
- Leave a message for a friend
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References
Vanderveken, D. (1990). Meaning and Speech Acts: Principles of language use.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Eisenstein, M. (1989). The Dynamic interlanguage: empirical studies in second
language variation. New York: Plenum Press.
Hinkel, E., & Long, M., Richards, J. (Eds.) (2006). Culture in second language teaching
and learning. Culture And The Individual, 2.
Hornby, A., & Wehmeier, S., Ashby, M. (Eds.) (2000). Oxford Advanced Learner’s
Dictionary (6th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press
Nguyen, N. Y., Nguyen, V. K., Vu, Q. H., & Phan, X. T. (2010). Vietnamese Dictionary
(9th ed.). HoChiMinh, City: Vietnam National University Publishing House
Soehartono, & Sianne (2003). A Study of asking for permission expressions produced
by the Chinese and Javanese students of SMU Kristen Petra 3, Surabaya.
Retrieved December 4, 2010, from http://repository.petra.ac.id/2579/
Samover, L.A. & Porter, R.E. (2000). Intercultural communication: A reader. USA:
Wadsworth Publisher, 67-68.
Huynh, D. T. (n.d.). Social relationships. Retrieved December 6, 2010, from
http://www.vietspring.org/values/social.html
Vietnam. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2010, from
http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_vn.htm
Kramsch, C. & Widdowson, H. (Eds.) (1998). Language and Culture. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.