LANGUAGE IMPOLITENESS OF MALE AND FEMALE STUDENTS IN CLASSROOM INTERACTION AT SMP NEGERI 1 BEIRINGIN

The objectives of the study were to find out: (1) the types of language impoliteness which are uttered by the male and female students to the teacher in the classroom interaction and (2) the reasons of using language impoliteness which are uttered by the male and female students to the teacher in the classroom interaction. The study was descriptive qualitative. The subjects of the study were the male and female students of class IX-7 of SMP Negeri 1 Beringin. The data of the study were the students’ impolite utterances to the teacher recorded from the conversations in the classroom interaction. The data were identified, analyzed, and categorized based on Culpeper’s theory (1996, 2003). The findings of the study show that: (1) There were 4 types of language impoliteness used by the male students in the classroom interaction, namely 1) bald on record impoliteness, 2) positive impoliteness, 3) negative impoliteness, and 4) withhold politeness and there were two types of language impoliteness used by the female students namely (1) positive impoliteness and (2) withhold politeness. Positive impoliteness was the most dominant strategies used by male and female students in the classroom interaction and the least strategy was withhold politeness, and (2) The use of language impoliteness in the classroom interaction by the students have some reasons. From the students’ point of view, they spoke impolitely to their teacher because they wanted (a) to vent negative feeling, (b) to show disagreement, (c) to mock others, (d) to show power, and (e) to clarify something. To vent negative feeling was the most dominant reason used by the students and the least was to clarify something. From the teacher’s point of view, the male students uttered more of language impoliteness than female students because a) the teachers realized that the male students were still in adolescence who still are unstable, and b) the female students are more sensitive and had more shame feeling than male students. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that the students used language impoliteness to their teachers intently to cause disharmony between them. Some suggestions are directed to those who are interested in understanding language impoliteness as found in the practice.