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Responsibility and Culpability in Apologies

Distinctive Uses of “Sorry” versus “I'm Sorry” in Apologizing

Bibliographic Data

ID11273604
AuthorsMarilena Fatigante (0000-0002-8880-7567, Sapienza University of Rome, corresponding author), Federica Biassoni (0000-0002-0375-2211, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), Francesca Marazzini, Pierangela Diadori (University for Foreigners of Siena)
Year2016
Volume53
Issue1-2
Pages26-46
Publication date2016-01-02
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueDiscourse Processes (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0163-853X • E-ISSN: 1532-6950
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0163853x.2015.1056696
OpenAlexW1862903350
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited14

In this paper, we address the distinction, existing in certain particular apologetic environments, between the usages of Sorry and I’m sorry. These expressions are treated by Robinson (2004) as equivalent and listed as markers of explicit apologies. We first discuss the analogous uses of the two; then, we examine the distinctive environments in which they proportionally differ (Heritage & Raymond, this issue). Particularly, we focus on extensive apologetic sequences initiated by I’m sorry apologies. We found that these are characterized by several aspects (detailed explanations, intensifiers, recycling of the apology), which make affiliation - as regards both its exhibition from the speaker, and its attainment from the recipient- as a relevant aim, more than the clearance of the offense. We eventually propose an alternative meaning of the increase in agency that is encoded in the pronoun I (in the case of I’m sorry), which foreground the apologizer as a subject of the experience of culpability, beside the actor ascribing himself the responsibility for the offense

Criminology · Culpability · Linguistics · Nonverbal communication · Communication · Forgiveness and Related Behaviors · Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology

  • Uncovering chatgpt’s narrative identity through a psycholinguistic perspective

    Open Access•Martina Gnerre, Federica Biassoni•Current Psychology•2025

  • “Sorry for Holding You Up”

    Open Access•Sarah J White, Ken Ho et al.•Health Communication•2024

  • Vocal Emotional Expression in Parkinson’s Disease

    Open Access•Martina Gnerre, Eleonora Malaspina et al.•Societies•2023

  • Oops, I didn’t mean to be so flippant”. A corpus pragmatic analysis of apologies in blog data

    Open Access•Ursula Lutzky, Andrew Kehoe•Journal of Pragmatics•2016

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    Open Access•Caroline L Rieger•Pragmatics Quarterly Publication…•2022

  • I'm Sorry “About That”

    Piera Margutti, Véronique Traverso et al.•Discourse Processes•2016

  • Are Explicit Apologies Proportional to the Offenses They Address

    J Heritage, Chase Wesley Raymond•Discourse Processes•2016

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    Jeffrey D Robinson•Research on Language and Social…•2004

  • Choosing Not to Repair

    Catrin S Rhys•Research on Language and Social…•2013

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Unique citing works8
Citations per year0,8
Citation span2016 - 2025 (10)
Citation velocityrecent
Highly citedNo
Citation typesNeutral: 8
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