Lay and theoretical concepts of phatic talk

This chapter examines lay and theoretical concepts of phatic talk and builds on Malinowski's (1923/1969) understanding of phatic communion and how this has been subsequently developed and its relevance to foreign language (FL) interaction. I argue that phatic communion embraces small talk, gossip, casual conversation, personal narratives, troubles-telling, etc., and should not be limited to the opening and closing phases of a conversation. Reference is made to how FL interlocutors should approach and engage in phatic communion with a distinction being made between phatic communication and phatic communion. I consider the importance of nonverbal communication and the difficulties and challenges it represents for FL interlocutors. Finally, I examine how FL teachers as target-language (TL) users view small talk and the motivations behind employing small talk along with their reflections on the similarities and differences between L1 and TL phatic talk.