
,5(&75()86/&76,1(1/,6+19,(710(6(
BASEDONTHENOVEL“GONEWITHTHEWIND”AND
ITSTRANSLATEDVERSION“CUỐNTHEOCHIỀUGIÓ”
7DQ9DQ7KDW
7KDL9DQQK
(PDLOWKDWWKRHQ
Received:05/08/2024
Revised:17/02/2025
Accepted:26/02/2025
DOI:10.59266/houjs.2025.542
EVWDFWThe article explores direct refusals in English and their Vietnamese
equivalentsthroughacomparativeanalysisofthedirectrefusalsinthenovel“Gonewith
theWind”byMargaretMitchellandtheVietnamesetranslatedversion“Cuốntheochiều
gi”byVũKimThư.Thestudy’sprimaryaimistoexaminehowrefusalsareexpressedin
EnglishandhowtheseexpressionsaretranslatedintoVietnamese,consideringlinguistic
dierences.Inordertoachievethesetaimsandobjectives,descriptiveandcomparative
methodsareemployedandsupportedbyqualitativeandquantitativemethodswithdata
including 87direct refusals.Thendingssuggestthatthecore component thatplaysa
HQWD RH LQ WKH VWWH HSHVHQWLQ GLHW HVDV LQGHV QHDWLH RGV DQG
words with negative connotations. In terms of constructive methods, both languages
RPPRQVHQHDWLHRGVVKDVQRQRWQHHQRWKLQQRLQWHHVWLQ(QLVKDQG
khng,thi,...inVietnamese.Besides,nodataforthedirectrefusalactswiththenuclearas
performativeverbswerefound.Thisresearchalsoprovidesvaluableinsightsforlanguage
WHDKHV HDQHV DQG VKRDV LQWHHVWHG LQ WKHLQWHVHWLRQ R DQDHWH DQG
RPPQLDWLRQ
.HRVVSHHKDWVHVDGLHWHVDRQHLWKWKH:LQG
HanoiOpenUniversity
Post-graduatestudent,HanoiOpenUniversity
,,QWURGFWLRQ
Whileintegrationandglobalization
drive comprehensive development, a
signicant gap remains in the ability of
most Vietnamese people to eectively
communicateinEnglish,askillessential
for participating in global aairs.
Prociency in communication goes
ERQPUOLQJLVLFNQROJLDOVR
UTLUV D S QUVDQLQJ R VRFLDO
andculturalcontexts.
As a vital speech act in everyday
communication, refusal plays a central
role in how individuals navigate
interactions.Therearenotablesimilarities
and dierences in the way refusals are

expressedinEnglishandVietnamese.For
ODUQUV R(QJOLVKDV DVFRQODQJDJ
(ESL)orVietnameseasaforeignlanguage
(VFL), mastering refusal strategies is
crucial for avoiding misunderstandings
and ensuring smooth communication.
Inadequaterefusals,whetheroverlyblunt
or excessively evasive, can result in
confusionorsocialdiscomfort.
Although several studies have
analyzed speech acts in literary works,
research focusing specically on refusal
acts remains scarce. This gap in the
OLUDU KLJKOLJKV K Q RU UKU
investigation. Our study aims to ll
KLV JDS E DPLQLQJ (QJOLVK UVDOV
and their Vietnamese equivalents in the
bilingual text of “Gone with the Wind”
byMargaretMitchellandtheVietnamese
translatedversion“Cuốntheochiềugió”
byVũ Kim Thư. By doing so, we hope
to provide Vietnamese learners with a
FODUUQUVDQLQJRUVDOVUDJLV
and their cultural nuances, enhancing
ERK KLU ODQJDJ VNLOOV DQ FURVV
cultural communication. This research
is particularly valuable as it addresses
DQ VVQLDO  QUSORU DVSF R
language acquisition, oering insights
LQR K SUDFLFDO V R UVDOV LQ UDO
worldinteractions.
,,/LWHUDWUHUHYLH
2.1.Overviewofspeechacts
6SFK DF UUV R DQ DFLRQ KD
isperformed when making anutterance,
for example, giving orders and making
promises (Austin, 1962). Searle (1969)
shares,“Speechactsarethebasicunitof
linguisticcommunication.”
Austin (1962) lists ve categories
R VSFK DFV Verdictives, Exercitives,
Commissions, Expositives, and
Behavities. In addition, Searle (1969)
SURSRVV D DRQRP KD KU DU V
ve basic kinds of action that one can
SURUP LQ VSDNLQJ 5HSHVHQWDWLHV,
LHWLHV, &RPPLVLHV, Expressives,
DQ HDDWLRQV. Accordingly, refusals
EORQJRtheexpressivecategory.
2.2.Refusalspeechact
Refusals are one of a relatively
VPDOO QPEU R VSFK DFV KD FDQ E
FKDUDFUL DV D UVSRQV R DQRKUV
DF UDKU KDQ DV DQ DF LQLLD E K
speaker(Gass&Houck,1999:2).
Refusals,accordingtoSearle(1969),
belong to the category of commissives
EFDVKFRPPLKUVURSURUP
an action (in Félix-Brasdefer, 2008:42).
Beebeetal.(1990)addthatrefusalscanbe
used in responseto requests,invitations,
oers, and suggestions (in Scarcella, p.
55-73).
In the book “English Speech Act
Verbs”,A.Wierzbicka(1987)statedthat
refusal belongs to the FORBID group,
which consists of the following verbs:
forbid,prohibit,veto,refuse,decline…
In the Vietnamese dictionary
“Đại Từ Điển Tiếng Việt”, some verbs
FRQFUQLQJ UVDO LQ 9LQDPV DU
LQUSUDVROORV
Chối:tonegatewhathasbeendone,
HHLHGRKDWKDVWDHQSDHHHQL
it’strue[7;380]
Từchối:QRWWRWDHVRPHWKLQWKDW
hasbeenoeredtoyou[7;1578]
Từ bỏ:WR HQRQH WR LH S
something,toleavesomebody,especially.
Somebodyyouareresponsibleforwithno
intentionofreturning.[7;1785]
Cự tuyệt:to refuse denitely or a
decisiveactsoasnottoacceptaction.Or

athingisgiventoyou.[7;491]
Insummary,refusalisanindividual’s
UVSRQVRUDFLRQRQRDFFSRULVDJU
witharequest,oer,orsituation.Itusually
occurs when the person disagrees, does
not want to participate, or is unable to
meetanotherperson’srequest.
2.3. Classication of refusal
VWDWHLHV
Beebe et al. (1990) established a
7DRQRPR5VDOVKDOLQDVKU
directrefusalstrategiesandelevenindirect
UVDOVUDJLVDSSOLFDEORKFLRQ
of refusal speech acts. The three direct
strategiesinclude:(1)performative,(2)non-
performative, and (3)negative willingness
ability. Conversely, the eleven indirect
strategiesconsistof:(1)expressionofregret,
(2)wish,(3)excuse,reason,orexplanation,
(4) presentation of alternatives, (5)
conditionsforfutureorpastacceptance,(6)
promiseoffutureacceptance,(7)statement
of principle, (8) philosophical statement,
(9)eortstodissuadetheinterlocutor,(10)
acceptancethatservesasarefusal,and(11)
avoidance.Thistaxonomywillserveasthe
DQDOLFDOUDPRUNRUKDDFROOF
inthisstudy.
 LHFW HIVDO DFW 5 LQ
(QOLVKDQ9LHWQDPHVH
5LVDQDFKDFODUOSUVVV
the intention of refusal, rejecting a
requestorinvitationbyusingthesurface
structures of language. The listener (L)
directly receives the refusal intention
without any diculty or consideration
fromthespeaker(S).
RUDPSO
S:Wouldyoulikesomewater?
L:Nono!I’mf-fine. ( D i r e c t
refusal)(9,p.164)
In English and Vietnamese, an
UDQF R LUF UVDO VDOO
FRQVLVVRDQFODUKLFKSUVVVK
refusalofintention,negative words,and
development.
(1HJDWLYHRUG121FOHDU
HYHORSPHQW
9TừphủđịnhKHÔNG7jQ
phầncốtlõi+Thànhphầnmởrộng
RUDPSO
S:Let’sgoforadrink.
L:No,,FDQWI’mbusynow.
Điuốngchútgđi.
Khng. Mình không đi được.
Mnhbn.
Ican’t=MnhkhngđiđưcLVK
QFODUKLFKJRVLKNo.
I’mbusynowwiththedevelopment
oftheutterance.
KHQHD
7K QFODU LV K N SDU R K
refusalutterance,whichplaystheroleof
themainspeechact.Itcanbeacomplete
UDQF RU FRPELQ LK 12 DQ K
development.The nuclear can consistof
performativeverbsshowingthemeaning
ofrefusal,suchasrefuse,deny,decline…,
etc.; negative words, such as NO, NOT,
NEVER; ornegativewords withaxes,
suchasIM-;IN-;-LESS;etc…
RUDPSO
-Canyounishthehomework?
-No.It’sLPSRVVLEOH
~Cucthlmxongbitpkhng?
-Không.Khôngthểđược.

KHGHHRSPHQW
The development can be used to
PLQLPL K JU R DFKUDQLQJ
DFV R K LQUORFRUV KQ KU LV D
refusalintheirutterance.Thedevelopment
FRQVLVV R PLQLPLLQJ OPQV DVHV
but…’;‘Sorry,I…’‘It’sverykindofyou,
but…’.
RUDPSO
-Let’sgoforadrink. -HV EW ,
can’tgonow.,PEV
~Điuốngchútgđi. -Ừ,nhưng
bây giờmìnhkhôngđiđược.Mìnhbận
rồi.
‘Yes, but … I’m busy.’ LV V R
PLQLPL K JU R DFKUDQLQJ
DFVKQKOLVQUKDUVKUVDOR
QFODU,FDQWRfromthespeaker.
,,,0HWRGRORJ
7KHVHWWLQRIWKHVW
RQH LWK WKH :LQG LV D URPDQLF
drama and the only novel written by
MargaretMitchell. It isset inJonesboro
and Atlanta, Georgia during the
American Civil War (1861 – 1865) and
Reconstruction, and follows the life of
Scarlett O’Hara, from the utmost luxury
to absolute starvation and poverty, and
URP KU LQQRFQF R KUQUVDQLQJ
andcomprehensionoflife.
0HWKRVRIWKHVW
The main objective ofthe study is
RSORUKRUVDOVDUDULFODLQ
(QJOLVK DQ KR KV SUVVLRQV DU
translated into Vietnamese, considering
K OLQJLVLF QDQFV EQ K
two languages. Therefore, the primary
methods of this study are descriptive
and comparative,complementedbyboth
qualitative and quantitative approaches,
DORQJ LKFKQLTV RUDDFROOFLRQ
andanalysis.
Thedescriptivemethodisemployed
RDPLQKRUVDODFVDUSUVV
in English and Vietnamese, using data
extracted from the bilingual novel RQH
LWKWKH:LQG.
The comparative method is used
to analyze the dierences in the use of
LUFDQLQLUFUVDOVLQERK(QJOLVK
and Vietnamese, based on the bilingual
 R RQH LWK WKH :LQGbyMargaret
Mitchell,translatedbyVũKimThư.
Supporting qualitative and
quantitative methods will be applied for
dataanalysis.Oncethedataiscollected,
L LOO E FDJRUL DQ DQDO R
facilitateacomprehensivedescriptionand
comparison,whichwillformthebasisof
thestudy’sconclusions.
 DWD FROOHFWLRQ DQ DWD
DQDOVLV
Regarding material selection, the
DKRUV V K FRSULJK ERRN R K
bilingual“GonewiththeWind”byMargaret
Mitchell and its Vietnamese-translated
version,“CuốnTheoChiềuGió”.
7K DD FROOFLRQ DQ DQDOVLV
SURFVVKDVEQFDUULRLQRUPDRU
stepstoachievetheseaimsandthestated
objectives.
- Firstly, collect all the data on
UVDO DFV LQ (QJOLVK DQ 9LQDPV
fromMargaretMitchell’sbilingualnovel
GonewiththeWind.
-Secondly,thedatamustbeanalyzed
DQFDJRULLQDLOLQUPVRSV
andmeansofrefusals.
-Thirdly,analyzing,andcomparing
KPDQVRUVDODFVLQ(QJOLVKLK
referencetoVietnamese.

-Finally,discussingthendingsand
VJJVLQJVRPLPSOLFDLRQVRUODUQLQJ
DQDFKLQJUVDOVR9LQDPVODUQ
ersofEnglish.
,90HDQVRIGLUHFWUHIVDODFWVGUD
LQHQJOLVFRPSDUHGLW9LHWQDPHVH
Inthenovel“Gonewiththewind,”
KU DU  VQQFV SUVV LUF
refusalacts,accountingfor51,5%ofthe
total number of refusals, which will be
seenclearlyinthefollowingtable.
Table1:FindingofDRAinEnglishcomparedwithVietnamese
0HDQVRIGLUHFWUHIVDODFWV (QJOLV 9LHWQDPHVH
3 ) 3 )
7HGLUHFW
UHIVDODFWLW
WHQFOHDU
Thedirectrefusalactswiththenuclearasperformativeverbs
Thedirectrefusalactswithnuclearasnegativewords  40.23  39.08
Thedirectrefusalactswithnegativewords,andthenuclear 8.05 9.20
7HGLUHFW
UHIVDODFWV
LQFOGHWH
QFOHDUDQG
GHYHORSPHQW
Thedirectrefusalactswiththedevelopmentasreasonor
SODQDLRQ  31.03  31.03
Thedirectrefusalactswiththedevelopmentshowingregret 3.45 3.45
Thedirectrefusalactswiththedevelopmentshowing
DJUPQ 5.75 5.75
Thedirectrefusalactswiththedevelopmentexpressing
goodwillintheformofgivingthanks  11.49  11.49
727/    
7KH5VLWKWKHQFOHD
 KH 5V LWK QHD DV
QHDWLHRGV
(1):Butler:-Itisquitewarminhere,
hesaid.‘NowonderMissO’Haraisfaint.
MayIleadyoutoawindow?
6FDUO1R.(6,p.171)
Butler: - Ở đy nng qu, c
O’Haraamtlphải.Ticthdẫnc
tớicửasổ.
Scarlett:-.KQ.(5,p.174)
The conversation took place
betweenRhettButlerandScarlett.Scarlett
hadneverthoughtofmeetingRhettButler
again,whohadmockedherinthelibrary
at Ashley’s house. She thought, among
millionsofpeopleintheworld,shecould
notmeetthisdisgustingperson.Shesank
downintothechair.Melaniethoughtshe
wastired.HeoeredtoleadScarletttothe
windowtohelpwiththeheat.
7K LQLLDLQJ DF R K 
conversation above isan oer.It canbe
VQ KD 6FDUO DV UVLQJ 5KV
oerHDGWRDLQGRInbothEnglish
andVietnamese,thisisthedirectrefusal
act with the nuclear - negative word
“NO”. InVietnamese, it is expressed by
the equivalent word “KHÔNG”.Scarlett
gavetheclear-cutrefusaltoRhett’soer.
 KH 5V LWK QHDWLH
RGVDQGWKHQHD
(2):‘Miss.Pittypat:-Oh,Melly,do
youthinkI’dbetterwriteHenryanoteand
askhimtospeaktoCaptainButler?
Melanie:-1R,GRQW,saidMelanie
(6,p.224)
Miss. Pittypat: - Melley, chu c
thấyccầnphảiviếtchoHenrybảochú
ấynivớithuyềntrưngRhettkhng?
Melanie: - Không, cháu không
muốnvậy.(5,p.228)