695

the 2p hearer in what one proposes to do, as a form of

courtesy.

+
Uka uma chur.ita par.j.itu.wa.
that water give 2-1 thirst 3>17
I S

The above sentence is supposed to mean Un poco de agua ddme,

 

tengo sed ('Give me a little water, I'm thirsty'). It is
not particularly polite in any case, but the effect in
non-Patro6n Aymara is closer to ‘Gimme that water, can't you
see I'm thirsty?' As we saw in 8-2.2, a polite request
for water would use the 4p, including the addressee in the
invitation even if he or she is being asked to provide the
water.

In the following example from Wexler (1967:144)
rudeness results from using the 2p instead of the 4p as
subject of the verb inflection, thereby implying that the

addressee is a dog (a nonperson):

*Aka.x mang'a.x José, mang'a.n mun.ta.ti?
here food eat want 2° 3
S

 

The intended meaning is a matter-of-fact announcement
that dinner is ready, but the impression conveyed is bad-
tempered, something like ‘Here's food, José, will you shut

up and eat it?'