A comparative sociopragmatic study of ostensible invitations in English and Farsi

In their study in 1990, Clark and Isaacs identified five properties and seven defining features that distinguished between English ostensible and genuine invitations. To see if Persian ostensible and genuine invitations could be distinguished by the same features and properties, the present study was carried out. Forty five field workers observed and reported 566 ostensible and 607 genuine invitations. In addition, 34 undergraduate students were interviewed and 68 ostensible and 68 genuine invitations were gathered. Forty one pairs of friends were also interviewed and afforded 41 ostensible invitations. The results of the data analysis revealed that Persian ostensible invitations can also be distinguished from Persian genuine invitations by the features and properties identified by Clark and Isaacs.