Commenting strategies by judging panels in two reality shows america’s next top model and vietnam’s next top model

The results gained from the findings and data analysis have revealed eight common commenting strategies utilized by American and Vietnamese judging panels.. Table 2: Use of commenting st

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

University of Languages and International Studies FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

SUBMITTED IN THE PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR

THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS ( TEFL)

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

University of Languages and International Studies FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

SUBMITTED IN THE PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE

DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS ( TEFL)

SUPERVISOR: MS ĐỖ THỊ MAI THANH, M.A

Hanoi, May 2011

In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited

in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper

Phạm Thị Ngọc Thúy

May 2011

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There must be the lexical gap phenomenon in English, as I desperately

would like to seek out a word that is more than “Gratitude” to send to all

the people who have unconditionally supported and encouraged me to accomplish this graduation paper

I wish, first of all, to record the debt of gratitude, which owes to my supervisor Ms Đỗ Mai Thanh (M.A) for her continuous assistance and guidance during the writing of this paper Without her precious help and constructive advices, this thesis would not have come into being

My sincere thanks also go to Ms Nguyen Thi Thom Thom (M.A) for her patient encouragement and insightful comments on my work right from the early stage of generating the idea for my thesis proposal Had it not been for her invaluable instructions, it would have been much more difficult for the author to complete this thesis paper

I also would like to acknowledge all the authors of the reference books for their useful reading materials, which have served as a firm foundation for the development of this study

Last but not least, I am deeply in debt of my parents and my younger sister whose patient care, love, encouragement and assistance have invisibly inspired me to overcome all the difficulties and accomplish the very last work in my student‟s life

it in another way, 10 episodes of “America‟s next top model” and 10 ones

of “Vietnam‟s next top model” have been explored to obtain the data for

investigation

The results gained from the findings and data analysis have revealed eight common commenting strategies utilized by American and Vietnamese judging panels Several major similarities and differences between American and Vietnamese panels‟ ways of employing those strategies have been presented From this reality, some suggestions about performing the speech act of commenting have also been proposed to earn the practical implications for the study

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACCEPTANCE PAGE iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv

ABSTRACT v

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES AND ABBREVIATIONS viii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Statement of the problem and rationale for the study 1

1.2 Research aims and research questions 2

1.3 Significance of the study 3

1.4 Scope of the study 3

1.5 Organization of the study 4

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 5

2.1 Cross - cultural Communication 5

2.1.1 Communication 5

2.1.2 Culture 6

2.1.3 Cross – cultural communication 7

2.2 Speech act – Commenting as a speech act 8

2.2.1 Definition of speech acts 8

2.2.2 Classification of speech acts 9

2.2.3 Commenting as a speech act 11

2.3 Reality shows 13

2.3.1 Definition 13

2.3.2 Top Model Series 14

2.3.2.1 Definition 14

2.3.2.2 Format description 14

2.3.2.3 Judging 14

2.4 Concluding remark 15

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 16

3.1 Selection of subjects 16

3.2 Research methods 17

3.3 Data collection procedures 18

3.4 Data analysis procedures 18

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 19

4.1 Findings 19

4.2 Discussion 29

4.3 Concluding remark about major cross-cultural similarities and differences 39

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 42

5.1 Summary of findings 42

5.2 Implications 43

5.3 Limitations of the study 45

5.4 Suggestions for further studies 46

5.5 Concluding remark 46

REFERENCES 47

APPENDICES 50

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES AND ABBREVIATIONS

Table 1: Use of commenting strategies by both American and

Vietnamese panels

Table 2: Use of commenting strategies by American panel

Table 3: Use of commenting strategies by Vietnamese panel

Table 4: Use of strategy 1 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 5: Use of strategy 2 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 6: Use of strategy 3 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 7: Use of strategy 4 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 8: Use of strategy 5 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 9: Use of strategy 6 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 10: Use of strategy 7 by American and Vietnamese panels

Table 11: Use of strategy 8 by American and Vietnamese panels

Figure 1: Use of commenting strategies by American panel

Figure 2: Use of commenting strategies by Vietnamese panel

ANTM: America‟s Next Top Model

VNTM: Vietnam‟s Next Top Model

Str : Strategy

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Statement of the problem and rationale for the study

There is little shadow of doubt about the importance and sway of communication on human behavior From the cradle to the grave, people are desperately in the need of communication Thanks to this kind of interaction, human beings get the opportunity of exchanging thoughts, information, feelings and so on Nowadays, communication takes place not only within the boundary of a country but widespread across globe That is good reason for us to cast our eyes over cross-cultural communication

Worldwide interest in cross-cultural communication grows out of two assumptions First, human beings live in an age when changes in technology, travel, economic systems, immigration patterns and population density have created a world in which people increasingly interact with each other from different cultures Whether these changes are welcomed or not, they will continue to grow in both frequency and intensity Second, more and more people are now aware that culture affects communication in subtle and profound ways One‟s cultural backgrounds and experience help determine how the world looks to him and how he interacts in that world (Samovar, Porter & McDaniel, 2007) The above hypothesizes seem to be far more enough to make the field of cross-cultural communication so charming and appealing to such a large number of researchers

Today, TV programs, with its variety and valuable contents, have become

so essential in human‟s daily lives that it is difficult to imagine a household without a television It is beyond doubts that, TV programs not only enable people to seek entertainment but also enhance many important aspects of

In television programs, these days, there have been a large number of reality shows, which have both American and Vietnamese versions Imagine that when an American reality show is franchised to Vietnamese

TV, it must be flexibly adapted so that it can be suitable to the audience‟ taste in that country It is because English and Vietnamese are two different languages, that is, each of them embodies in itself the cultural factors, which characterize one culture from another That is the very reason why it can be said that the ways of commenting by judging panels in one reality show reflect the national culture, historical experiences of that community

Noticeably, cross- cultural studies on the speech act of commenting have not received much concern from linguistics and researchers of related field This idea offers me a strong impetus to carry out a study on commenting

strategies employed by panels in two reality shows: American Next Top Model (ANTM) and Vietnam Next Top Model (VNTM) on American and

Vietnamese televisions

1.2 Research aims and research questions

The study is carried out to address the following objectives:

- To discover the common commenting strategies utilized by panels in

two reality shows: ANTM & VNTM

- To investigate the similarities as well as the differences between American and Vietnamese panels‟ ways of employing those strategies of commenting

- To help American or Vietnamese audience be more aware of the cultural factors governing these differences and hopefully it could facilitate those who are working in the field of mass media and our future career in broadcasting

The above aims could be summarized into two following research questions:

1 What are the common commenting strategies utilized by panels in

two reality shows: ANTM & VNTM?

2 What are the similarities and differences between American and Vietnamese panels‟ ways of employing those strategies?

1.3 Significance of the study

The research is an attempt to exploit into a comparatively under- investigated issue at our faculty of English Language Teacher Education as well as in Vietnam Therefore, once completed, the outcome can bring about such considerable number of benefits to entities involved, namely Vietnamese reality show makers, audience and researchers in the field as:

- Provide a more insightful view into how the judging panels comment

on reality shows, namely ANTM & VNTM

- Help the audience approach a more critical view about commenting

part in the Vietnamese version of Top Model series

- Offer a reliable source of information for researchers who wish to carry out studies on similar issues in the future

1.4 Scope of the study

As its title suggests, the study just focuses on verbal direct commenting strategies employed by judging panels only after the photo shoot in two reality shows: ANTM & VNTM on American and Vietnamese television

However, as the length of the graduation paper is limited, the content of this thesis is mainly based on ten reality shows of each version, which are all shown on American or Vietnamese TV in the same year of 2010

1.5 Organization of the study

The thesis paper consists of five chapters, each of which is set to deal with

a specific aim as followed:

Chapter 1: Introduction- states the problem and rationale for the study, together with the aim, significance, scope and organization of the study

Chapter 2: Literature review- provides the key concepts and theoretical backgrounds related to the research issue

Chapter 3: Methodology- outlines the research methods used and demonstrate that recognized procedures have been followed in the study

Chapter 4: Findings and discussion- state what was found, analyze and explain why the results came out as they did, and how they helped to answer the research questions

Chapter 5: Conclusion- summarizes the key points of the study, points out the limitations and proposes some suggestions for further studies

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Cross - cultural Communication

2.1.1 Communication

Communication- the process of sharing belief, values, ideas and feelings -

is the basic of all human contact Without communication, an individual could hardly develop to become a human in its true sense Keating, C.F (1994) once emphasizes the importance of communication when

remarking, “Communication is powerful: It brings companions to our sides

or scatters our rivals, reassures or alerts children, and forges consensus or battle lines between us” Undeniably, communication acts as an essential

part of human life, no matter what kind of society is, primitive or modern

As defined by Bach & Harnish (1979), communication is “the exchange and negotiation processes between at least two individuals through the use

of verbal and non-verbal symbols, oral and written/ visual modes, and production and comprehension processes” It is the form of social

interaction and involves a high degree of unpredictability and creativity in form and message

Also regarded communication as a process, Lustig (1996: 29) hypothesizes

that communication is a symbolic process in which people create shared meaning

In the meantime, wishing to offer one definition that is all- encompassing,

Samovar et al (2007) hold that “Human communication is the process through which symbols are transmitted for the purpose of eliciting a response” To put in slightly different term, communication is actually a

two- way process whereby meaning is sent and received so as to gain shared understanding

In a nutshell, no matter how varied these schools of thoughts are, they are

by nature the same in the sense that language is by no means the unique way of communication Besides spoken words, such other non- linguistic manifestations as gestures, facial expressions, eye contact , conversational distance should also be taken into account in order to understand or interpret other‟s meaning successfully

Triandis, in his book “Culture and Social Behaviors” (1994), sees culture as

“a set of human- made objective and subjective elements that in the past have increases the probability of survival and resulted in satisfaction for the participants in an ecological niches” The remarkable point of this

definition is that it successfully contains the recurring theme of how culture and communication are linked

Meanwhile, from their own point of view, Levine and Adelman (1993) also associate the concept of culture with the concept of language when

assuming, “Culture is a shared background resulting from a common knowledge and communicative style, customs, beliefs, attitudes and values.”

In their last attempts to lay down a comprehensive definition of culture, Kroeber and Kluckhohn (1952) suggest that:

Culture consists of patterns, explicit and implicit, of and for behavior acquired and transmitted by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievements of human groups, including their embodiments in the artifacts; the core of culture consists of traditional ideas and especially their attached values; culture system may, on the other hand, be considered as products of action, on the other as conditioning elements of further action

In short, the term „culture‟ in all above definitions is not defined in the

sense of „high culture‟, but understood as “whatever it is one has to know

or to believe in order to operate in a manner acceptable to its members, and to do so in any roles that they accept for anyone of themselves”

(Goodenough, 1957) In other words, „culture‟ here does not refer to art, music, literature and so on, but refers to the informal and often hidden patterns of human interactions, expressions and viewpoints that people in one culture share

2.1.3 Cross – cultural communication

As the world we live is becoming “flatter”, it gives us more opportunities

of interacting with people from different culture That is why worldwide interest in cross-cultural communication has increasingly grown up Surprisingly, the concept of cross-cultural communication is not newborn, but dates back to thousands of years ago Since the beginning of civilization when the first human formed trial groups, cross-cultural contact occurred whenever people from on tribe encountered others and discovered that they were different However, cross-cultural communication has only been seriously studied since the second half of the 19th century

According to Kramsch (1998), the term „cross-cultural communication‟

usually refers to the meeting of two cultures or two languages across the political boundaries of nation- states

Sharing the same idea, Nguyen Quang (1998) believes that,

Cross-cultural communication is communication between people from different cultures: communication that is influenced by cultural values, attitudes and behaviors; the influence of culture on people and recreations and responses to each other

Another comprehensive definition by Samovar et al (2007) states, cultural communication involves interaction between people whose cultural perceptions and symbol systems are distinct enough to alter the communication event.”

“Cross-Evidently, in understanding the term „cross-cultural communication‟ whatever expressions they may use, these well-known authors all refer it to

communication between people who don‟t share the same nationality, social or ethnic origin, gender, age, occupation, or sexual preference

(Kramsch, C., ibid, 1998)

2.2 Speech act – Commenting as a speech act

Austin (1962) was the first philosopher introducing the theory of speech acts when he originally used the term „speech act‟ to refer to an utterance This potential theory was later studied by such a lot of other theorists as Hymens (1972), Searle (1969), Levinson (1983), Brown and Yule (1989), etc Speech act analysis has offered a valuable way to look at language function and the connection between function and grammatical forms

2.2.1 Definition of speech acts

When conducting their researches into the theory of speech act, different researchers have proposed their own definitions for it Overall, they all

share the common theme that speech act is best described as “in saying something, we do something”

According to Searle (1969), “Speech acts are those verbal acts such as promising, threatening and requesting that one perform in speaking” For example, by uttering, “Would you please open the door for me?”, the

speaker is performing an act of requesting

George Yule (1997) believes that, “In many ways of expressing themselves, people do not only produce utterances containing grammatical structures and words, they perform actions via those utterances” Therefore, a more concise definition was proposed as “actions performed via utterances are generally called speech acts.”

In brief, speech acts are acts that speakers perform when making utterances for purpose of communication

2.2.2 Classification of speech acts

Austin (1962) makes a distinction in the theory of speech acts between three different types of act involved in or caused by the utterance of a sentence as locutionary act, illocutionary act and perlocutionary act

The first type is locutionary act, which is the saying of something that is meaningful and can be understood To perform a locutionary act is to produce an utterance with a particular form and a more or less determinate meaning according to the rules of a given language For example, as the

statement “It is cold here.” is uttered, it may just characteristically describe

a state of affair

However, if we not only simply say that sentence but also intend to require

produce with purposes in mind is generally known as illocutionary act In short, an illocutionary act is using a sentence to perform a function

The third dimension of speech act is perlocutionary act, which is the result

or effect that is produced by means of saying something That is why it can

be said that if communication is successful (an act is actually performed by the hearer when the speaker makes an utterance), the illocution and the perlocution are alike or nearly alike

Another approach to distinguish the types of speech acts is based on the speaker‟s intention In Searle‟ belief (1969), speech acts can be divided into five types: commisive, directive, declarative, expressive and representative

Commissive: commit the speaker to a course of action, expressing his/her

intention such as promises, threats, refusals, etc

Eg: I will take you to the cinema tomorrow

Directive: attempt to get the hearer to do something and express what the

speaker wants They are requests, suggestions, orders, etc

Eg: Could you open the door?

Declarative: change states of affairs, comprising namings, firings,

appointments, etc

Eg: I now pronounce you husband and wife

Expressive: state what the speaker feels, express psychological states or

attitude They can be apologies, compliments, greetings, expressing gratitude, commenting, etc

Eg: The meal was delicious

Representative: state what the speaker believes to be the case or not,

including assertions, descriptions, reports, statements, etc

Eg: This is a German car

In the light of the aforementioned classifications, the researcher would like

to employ the view of Searle as it proves to be the most complete and comprehensive one

2.2.3 Commenting as a speech act

Basing on Searle‟s theory of speech acts, it can be seen that commenting belong to Expressive type When people make a comment, they really state what they feel, express psychological states or attitude toward someone or

something

As defined in Collins Cobuild Advanced Learner‟s English Dictionary

(2006), commenting is giving opinion about something or giving an explanation for it Besides, according to Dictionary.com, commenting is making remarks, observations, or criticisms

Apparently, commenting is a kind of speech act, which is closely related to such other speech acts as complimenting, criticizing, disparaging, encouraging, advising, etc Therefore, an overview of these speech acts should be presented to provide fundamental theories helping the researcher carry out the rest of the study effectively

First and foremost, making a comment can be in the form of complimenting In the Cambridge Encyclopedia of language, Crystal

(1996) defines complimenting as expressing admiration of, congratulating

or politely praising (someone) for something For example:

He complimented Erika on her appearance

In contrast, criticizing is an act of “making fair, careful judgments about the good and bad qualities of someone/ somebody.” (Collins Cobuild

Advanced Learner‟s English Dictionary, 2006) For example:

“Thank you for the report I can see you put a lot of effort in it However, I was hoping you could touch it up a little by summarizing it more carefully and adding some graphs This content is solid, but if you could make those small changes, I would really appreciate it.”

Another speech act that is somehow similar to criticizing but has a more negative meaning is disparaging Disparaging can be defined as the act of showing that you are not satisfied with something or someone Linguistically, disparaging can be treated as an absolute antonym of complimenting For instance, in an interview, Avril Levigne said about

Britney Spears: “I cannot stand the Britney‟s style It‟s even more than terrible.”

Moreover, giving encouragement is also an additional way of commenting Encouraging means inspiring (someone) with the courage or confidence (to

do something) In other words, it is a speech act that stimulates (something

or someone to do something) by approval, help or support For example:

“I see your potential.”

“You will make it through.”

Another form that performing a comment can be is advising This kind of official speech act, as defined in the Cambridge Encyclopedia of language

(1996), is the giving of one‟s opinion about what somebody else should do

or how he/she should behave Following is an example:

“If I were you, I would try all my best to get it.”

All in all, commenting is really a special kind of speech act, as it can be in

the form of other speech act or the combination of multiple speech acts A

commenting strategy may first consist of a compliment and then a criticism

or first a disparagement and then encouragement or initially a compliment,

then a criticism and finally an encouragement, etc

2.3 Reality shows

2.3.1 Definition

According to Collins Cobuild Advanced Learner‟s English Dictionary, a reality show is a type of television programming that aims to show how ordinary people behave in everyday life, or in situations, often created by programme makers, which are intended to present everyday life

In Wikipedia, a reality TV is defined in more details as a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded Although Wikipedia is an

unauthorized online encyclopedia, it still seems to successfully offer a very vivid, detailed and understandable definition of reality shows

To sump up, the function of a television reality show is to feature talent culled from the ranks of 'ordinary' people, not professionally trained actors Reality show producers typically shoot hundreds of hours of footage per episode and use creative editing to create a narrative thread Noticeably, a reality show is not to be confused with a documentary, in which the subjects are asked to ignore the cameras and behave naturally

2.3.2 Top Model Series

Besides the definition of reality shows, an overview of the top model series should also be taken into account Following is the summary of the series from Wikipedia online encyclopedia:

2.3.2.1 Definition

Top Model is a fashion-themed reality television show format produced in many countries throughout the world and seen in over 120 countries including Vietnam The show takes the form of a modeling competition whose winners typically receive a contract with a major modeling agency

and a cover shoot spread in a fashion magazine The format was created by

Tyra Banks for the original series, America's Next Top Model which was

first aired in 2003, produced by 10×10 Entertainment

2.3.2.2 Format description

The format of the show is based primarily on the American version of the series, though the format applies to the international versions, as well Each

season of Top Model has from 9–13 episodes and starts with 10-14

contestants Each episode, one contestant is eliminated, though in rare cases

a double elimination or no elimination was given by consensus of the

As of ANTM, the current judging panel includes the host Tyra Banks,

Vogue editor André Leon Talley, and fashion photographer Nigel Barker

As of VNTM, the current board of judgment includes international super model Ha Anh (the host), designer Huy Vo and actor-model Duc Hai

2.4 Concluding remark

In this chapter, the author has provided the basic theoretical backgrounds to the research issue, including definitions and concerning knowledge of certain key concepts This chapter is presented to help the readers orientate themselves to the content of the research The detailed methodology of the study can be found in the following chapter

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This chapter focuses on a detailed depiction of the methodology applied in this research paper More specifically, the size and characteristics of the research subject altogether with research instruments, data collection procedure as well as data analysis procedure are put into description and justification

3.1 Selection of subjects

In order to conduct this study, the researcher has employed 10 episodes of

ANTM and also 10 ones of VNTM The Vietnamese hit series have been

taken from the very first cycle, while the American reality shows have been chosen from the 15th cycle However, both American and Vietnamese versions have been shown on TV in the same year of 2010 The distribution

of the samples is tabulated as below:

ep3, ep4, ep5, ep6, ep9, ep10, ep11, ep12, ep13, ep14

In fact, the research subjects in this study have been chosen under the procedure of information-oriented sampling, as opposed to random sampling This is because an average case is often not the richest in information Extreme or atypical cases reveal more information because

they activate more basic mechanisms and more factors in the situation studied

From 10 episodes of ANTM, the researcher has obtained 160 utterances of

commenting; meanwhile, she has got 150 commenting utterances from 10 episodes of Vietnamese version, which makes a total of 310 utterances This large size of the samples could somehow be considered eligible enough for the researcher to carry out a reliable study

3.2 Research methods

To conduct the study, the researcher has employed two methods namely quantitative and qualitative ones The combination of these two methods

has offered the researcher valid data for later analysis

Regarding the aim of the study, the researcher has found that quantitative is the most feasible method to deal with the research problems It is because,

in the social sciences, quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigation of quantitative properties and phenomena and their relationships The objective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to phenomena The process of measurement is central to quantitative research because it provides the fundamental connection between empirical observation and mathematical expression of quantitative relationships

Besides, qualitative research is a method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also

in market research and further contexts Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that

govern such behavior The qualitative method investigates the why and how

of decision-making, not just what, where, when Hence, smaller but focused

samples are more often needed, rather than large samples

3.3 Data collection procedures

The data collection procedure has been divided into two successive phases The elaboration of each phase is clarified as followed:

analysis

3.4 Data analysis procedures

First of all, the verbal data have been interpreted into subtypes of commenting strategies As observed, there are eight strategies that are most commonly used by both American and Vietnamese panels (See part 4.1) After that, the researcher has calculated the frequency of commentators' using the above commenting strategies This step has been followed by her converting the frequency into the percentile forms for comparison Finally, the researcher has compared the frequencies of commenting strategies used

by American panel and Vietnamese panel

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

This chapter provides an insightful and detailed data analysis collected during research procedure Accordingly, the interpretation of these data is also offered to address the two research questions

In some cases, the boundary of each strategy is not clear enough because the panel‟s choice of various strategies spontaneously can be found throughout the research Therefore, the author of the study, after carrying out the data collection procedure, could just suggest the most common strategies employed by both American and Vietnamese panel as the following:

1 Strategy 1 : Complimenting/ Praising

2 Strategy 2 : Criticizing/ Disparaging

3 Strategy 3 : Complimenting / Praising + Criticizing/ Disparaging

4 Strategy 4 : Complimenting/ Praising + Advising

5 Strategy 5 : Complimenting/ Praising + Encouraging

6 Strategy 6 : Criticizing/ Disparaging + Complimenting

7 Strategy 7 : Criticizing/ Disparaging + Advising

8 Strategy 8 : Complimenting/ Praising + Criticizing/ Disparaging+Advising

 Strategy 1 : Complimenting/ Praising

In this strategy, the panels employ positive words to express their admiration of, congratulate or politely praise the contestants As observed, some popular positive expressions used by American panel are:

Stunning, supper super hot, beautiful, fantastic, sexy , magical, fashioned, striking, brilliant, elegant, charming, unbelievable, amazing, wise, special, wonderful , surprising, excellent, wow, fabulous, etc

“You look fantastic!”

(Tyra Banks- episode 13)

Meanwhile, Vietnamese panel, when positively commenting, are in favor

of utilizing the following expressions:

Tự tin (confident), rất đẹp (very beautiful), mềm mại (gently), nữ tính (girly), có thần thái (soulful), thanh lịch (elegant), thể hiện thành công (successful), làm tôi bất ngờ (surprising), rất thuyết phục (persuasive), rất thu hút người xem (appealing), sang trọng (gorgeous), rất tỏa sáng (very shinning),cuốn hút ( attractive), etc

- I love………

- I think it‟s great about…………

- You really improve in…………

- This is one of my favors

- Finally, it is the best I have seen

“Hoa là tiên bay về trời.” ( Huy Võ- episode 12)

- Năng lượng của bạn dồi dào ( You are full of energy.)

- Tôi bị thuyết phục bởi……… ( I‟m persuaded by…)

- Tôi thích……… ( I like…….)

- Tôi rất ngạc nhiên………… ( I am very surprised at…)

- Tôi không tưởng tượng được rằng… (I cannot imagine that…)

- Tôi thấy một sức mạnh đến từ………( I see an energy from….)

- Không ai có thể phủ nhận rằng…… (It is undeniable that…)

- Bạn thật sự tỏa sáng! (You are really shining!)

- Chúc mừng bạn! (Congratulations!)

In fact, both American and Vietnamese panels employ this strategy when they are persuaded by good performances of the contestants or when they can see the improvement in their candidates‟ performances In other words,

as long as the examinees could understand the concept of the photo shoot, then try their best to express it in their pictures; they always receive positive comments from the panel

 Strategy 2 : Criticizing/ disparaging

This strategy is employed due to the fact that the panels would like to express their disapproval and opinions about the bad qualities of the contestants‟ performances They, therefore, mention a lot of negative words

in their comments In what follows are the common negative expressions utilized by American panel:

Stiff, crazily uncomfortable, irritating, fun, afraid, unmemorable, too simple, not in heat, overdoing, abandoned, weird, hard, etc

- There is no… in your photograph

- Here you give me so bad a picture

- I don‟t feel any……… at all

- For me, it doesn‟t work

- It‟s not my favorite photo

- I think it‟s bad

- It‟s a mess, in anyway, it‟s a mess

- The biggest problem here is…

- I can‟t understand…

- You get a little bit lost…

- It is not enough

In the meantime, Vietnamese panel usually make use of the following expressions when making negative comments:

Không ấn tượng( unimpressive), vô hồn( soulless) , xấu nhất ( the worst) , không đẹp( not beautiful), nhợt nhạt ( faint), không chủ động được ( inactive), cứng ( stiff), nhạt nhòa( vague), quá đà ( overdone), thiếu tập trung( lack of concentration), chưa thuyết phục ( unconvincing), etc

“Không những mắt bạn vô hồn mà đôi môi của bạn cũng vô hồn…”

(Hà Anh- episode 4)

- Bạn bị mắc một lỗi là…………( Your mistake is….)

- Bạn chưa thể hiện được…… ( You failed to…)

- Bạn chưa biết cách………… ( You didn‟t know how to…)

- Bạn chưa thuyết phục được…( You aren‟t convincing in…)

- Điều hạn chế là……… ( The weak point is…)

- Tôi chưa hài lòng với………( I am not satisfied with…)

The above strategy is not only employed when the panels witness quality photographs of the contestants, but also when they see no improvement in the examinees‟ performances

low- Strategy 3 : Complimenting / Praising + Criticizing/ Disparaging

This strategy can be regarded as a kind of indirect disparagement The compliment here is used as a redress for the negative evaluation which might be a threat to other‟s face People often pay attention to the second clause rather than the first clause, which is considered to be a lead-in For instance:

- You can continue to be the girl that takes pretty photos because you are stunning, but it is not really the talent behind.( Tyra Banks- episode 5)

- It looks stunning There was elegancy, but one thing that‟s lacking

for me is a little bit more charm ( Nigel Barker - episode 7)

- I like this picture because in the wild, you have sexuality but it doesn‟t create any angles that I am interested in when I go into the close up ( Tyra Banks- episode 9)

- Khi mà Hương bước lên, tôi có thể thấy năng lượng của Hương rất dồi dào Nhưng trong tấm hình này thì tôi thấy bạn rất nhợt nhạt, Hương giống một cô bé đi lạc , bức ảnh không để lại cho tôi một gợi nhớ gì trong một tấm hình.( Đức Hải- episode 5)

- Tôi thích ánh mắt của Trang trong bức ảnh này , nó có một chút gì mạnh mẽ hơn nhưng phần cơ mặt của Trang từ phần miệng trở xuống Trang hoàn toàn không chủ động được, rất là cứng (Đức Hải- episode 5)

- Ngay từ đầu, tôi luôn nói bạn là người có khuôn mặt khả ái , có một thân hình với số đo chuẩn, thế nhưng mà trong tấm hình này, tất cả những yếu tố đó đều bị nhạt nhòa (Hà Anh- episode 11)

 Strategy 4 : Complimenting/ Praising + Advising

As for the forth strategy, the panels will first make a polite remark to show that they like the appearance, appreciate the qualities or approve of what the candidates have done Then, they will give their opinions or share their own experiences about what the examinees should do to improve their performances The American panel, therefore, usually employ such

structures as “even though…”, “if…”, “you have to…”, “you need to…” in

the second part of their comments In Vietnamese, the common phrases that

can be used are “nhưng nếu…”, “tuy nhiên bạn phải chú ý ”, “tôi muốn gửi tới các bạn rằng…” These are the most typical examples:

- Even though you look stunning, if you put your gesture at your neck even more, it will make you to look more of a model (Tyra Banks- episode 4)

- I think you are so stunning, I think you need to grow into more

confident (Andre Leon Talley- episode 11)

- Tôi thấy Hoa khác rất nhiều so với những lần trước Bức ảnh này rất

là đẹp mặc dù bạn không nhìn trực tiếp vào ống kính Đây cũng là điều tôi muốn gửi tới các bạn rằng: không phải lúc nào mình cũng cần nhìn vào ống kính ( Đức Hải – episode 5)

- Bạn rất đẹp, nhưng nếu mềm mại hơn một chút thì bạn sẽ làm tốt hơn rất nhiều (Hà Anh –episode 13)

It is likely that, by giving advice after making a compliment, the panels are somehow satisfied with the contestants‟ photos but still wish to help them enhance their performances better and more professional

 Strategy 5 : Complimenting/ Praising + Encouraging

When this strategy is utilized, it means that, at the beginning, the panel will express their approval or admiration towards the contestants After that, they tend to give the candidates more confidence by letting them know that what they are doing is good and telling them that they should continue to

do so Thus, such English phrases as “be your best”, “more of you”, “still not your best shot” or Vietnamese phrases as “hãy duy trì phong độ”, “bạn

có thể…nữa” can be easily found in this kind of commenting strategy

Several typical examples are:

- I think it is a great job, I thought you have a lot of qualities of all how I wish, and you could even be more ( Nigel Barker – episode 4)

- It is almost the situation of who is who in this picture It is very striking, very strong in the eyes I think it is exactly what of your best shot but not your best shot today as I truly see the model in you ( Nigel Barker – episode 7)

- You got a magic moment I want to see more of you (Nigel Barker – episode 7)

- Tôi rất thích tấm hình của bạn, tôi cho rằng đây là tấm hình đẹp nhất của bạn từ đầu cho đến giờ, hãy duy trì phong độ của mình cho tới cuối cuộc thi (Đức Hải – episode 6)

- Đây là 1 tấm hình đẹp, lạ và tôi hi vọng bạn sẽ còn làm chúng tôi bất ngờ hơn nữa (Hà Anh- episode 3)

The above strategy may be applied in the case that the panels seem to see the potential of the contestants and they want to inspire them to develop their inner energy to the best as they can

 Strategy 6 : Criticizing/ Disparaging + Complimenting

At first glance, it can be obviously seen that the sixth strategy is contrasted

to the third one In the third strategy, a nice compliment will be followed by

a negative evaluation about the contestants Meanwhile, when the sixth strategy is employed, the panels will, at first, show that they are not satisfied with the photos of the contestants Afterwards, they tend to say something rather good about the examinees, which serves as a means helping avoid threatening the contestants‟ faces For instance:

- I can‟t really understand the way you were doing with it, but you looked genius ( Nigel Barker - episode 3)

- The body language is little but the face is stunning (Nigel Barker - episode 5)

- It‟s very simple, it‟s not in heat but what you have is a magic ability

to look almost lightless in the shot ( Nigel Barker - episode 9)

- Mặc dù khi chụp tấm hình này, mắt bạn đang nhắm, nhưng mà cơ thể bạn vẫn thể hiện được ý tưởng của buổi chụp hình (Đức Hải - episode 4)

 Strategy 7 : Criticizing/ Disparaging + Advising

It is a fact that, once making a negative comment towards the contestants, not only the receivers but also the producers feel no good at all That is the reason why the panels employ strategy 7 with the second part of advising,

in much hope of that they could see the examinees‟ improvement in the next photos In what follows are the typical examples of this strategy :

- It‟s classic position, if you do like this, it‟ll become fashion (Nigel Barker - episode 5)

- Chris, in this picture I think it‟s a bit forced I do think that you need

a little bit more energy (Kyle Hagler- episode 10)

- Khi chụp hình các bạn quên đi điều đó và chỉ chú trọng đến gương mặt của mình thôi Ví dụ như tấm hình của Tuyết Lan, nếu bạn chỉ cần hạ một chút bờ vai xuống, trông tấm hình sẽ khác liền ( Huy Võ – episode 4)

- Tôi thấy rằng em chưa làm chủ được cơ thể của mình, là một người mẫu mình phải biết chỗ nào nên che và chỗ nào nên phô ra ( Đức Hải – episode 3)

- Bạn không có một ánh mắt hút hồn, phải có một ánh mắt như thế thì bạn mới có thể thành công.( Đức Hải – episode 3)

- Tôi thấy rằng Hương chưa điều tiết và duy trì tốt cảm xúc của mình Đoạn quảng cáo cần được truyền tải cảm xúc từ đầu cho tới cuối Điều đó khó hơn một buổi chụp ảnh ( Đức Hải – episode 10)

 Strategy 8: Complimenting/ Praising + Criticizing/ Disparaging+ Advising

Last but not least, sometimes, the boards of judgment are observed to employ the strategy number 8, which is the combination of totally three speech acts Noticeably, it is worth mentioning that the order of the above speech acts is quite flexible depending on the panel‟s intentions Followings are typical examples:

- You have the most of stunning bone structure but you lost it by being

so lack of face If you want to be a man, you have to back your jaw; you have to do things to exaggerate the thorn on your face to look like a handsome guy But your picture doesn‟t look handsome as you

are beautiful.(Tyra Banks- episode 7)

- As far as the photography, this is one of my favors but I don‟t feel a model, I feel a beautiful woman I think it is important to bring your

fashion model to the shot Thank you! (Tyra Banks- episode 10)

- It can‟t fast I think and it‟s stiff as well, you‟re just relaxing to it but the great thing is the camera loves you, so all that photographers love to shoot you, you were beautiful.( Nigel Barker - episode 13)

- I think you got a beautiful photograph, but there is no emotion, there

is no anything I think it is important as a model to bring your soul to the picture People want to deal with models that have their own

personality that can make you to start (Kyle Hagler -episode 10)

- Hình của Thủy rất là đẹp, nhưng mà đây là tấm hình duy nhất trông Thủy đẹp, những tấm hình còn lại trông bạn rất lạnh Mấy bạn chỉ

có một cơ hội thôi nên hãy cố đưa ra hết những gì mình có.( Huy Võ -episode 3)

- Ở đây chúng ta thấy 1 gương mặt đẹp nhưng chưa thấy cá tính của bạn Bạn là người có cá tính mạnh mẽ, tôi muốn bạn phải mang được điều này vào trong bức hình của mình (Hà Anh – episode 9)

All in all, the thesis author has proposed eight commenting strategies that are most popularly employed by American and Vietnamese judging panels

in two reality shows VNTM & ANTM Although, some strategies may be

overlapped, typical features of each strategy can still be seen, which help the researcher distinguish one from another

4.2 Discussion

With a view to addressing the second research question “What are the similarities and differences between American and Vietnamese panels‟ ways of employing those strategies?”, the author has relied on the data

collected to discover the frequency of the use of commenting strategies by

panels in two reality shows: ANTM & VNTM

American Panel Vietnamese Panel

Table 1: Use of commenting strategies by panels in two reality shows:

American Next Top Model & Vietnam Next Top Model

American panel

Str1 (%)

Str2 (%)

Str3 3(%)

Str4 (%)

Str5 (%)

Str6 (%)

Str7 (%)

Str8 (%)

American

Table 2: Use of commenting strategies by American panel

As can be seen from the data, the very first strategy (complimenting/ praising) appears to be the most common one used by American panel.

Figure 1: Use of commenting strategies by American panel

- Your picture can be in Vogue Italia (Nigel Baker- episode 4)

In contrast, the American judges seem to be least fond of the strategy

number 8(complimenting/ praising + criticizing / disparaging + advising)

This strategy is used for three times, constituting only a small proportion of 1.88%

It is persuasive enough for the thesis author to come to a conclusion that, as the 8th strategy is the combination of even three speech acts, it seems to take the board of judgment more time and effort to make this kind of comment Thus, it is not popularly employed but only utilized in special

bad points of the contestants‟ photos; accordingly, they want to facilitate the candidates to overcome their weak points to perfect their performances

Vietnamese panel

Str1 (%)

Str2 (%)

Str3 3(%)

Str4 (%)

Str5 (%)

Str6 (%)

Str7 (%)

Str8 (%)

Vietnamese

Table 3: Use of commenting strategies by Vietnamese panel

The chart illustrates a fact that Vietnamese panel use all the eight strategies,

among which the second one (criticizing/ disparaging) is the most favored

Figure 2: Use of commenting strategies by Vietnamese panel

The most representative examples are quoted as followed:

- Không những mắt bạn vô hồn mà đôi môi của bạn cũng vô hồn, đây

là góc cạnh xấu nhất của bạn, nó phô ra tất cả những điều không đẹp của bạn.(Hà Anh- episode 4)