Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Sleepy in Seoul]

As well as demanding "please" from my students, I use it a lot too. To me, it doesn't sound weak but it is common courtesy. If I say "Open you books please", it doesn't make it any less of an order, but sounds more polite. Or at least that's what I like to think.

[Hanson]

Sleepy in Seoul, nice avatar! Me Likee!

[peppermint]

I use please a lot with my studetns, but right now, it's enough of a challenge to get them to rememeber Korean style manners, so I don't force them to say "please"

[agraham]

I find that, depending on how it's used, please can make a request more imperative. Especially if the sentance is said even a little bit stongly.
Compare:

Open the window. (you have your orders)
Please open the window. (smacks of false courtesy)
Open the window, please. (I'm frustrated that you haven't already opened the window)

The only way to make this request really polite is to use "Would you mind..." or something to that effect.

Of course spoken harshly, any "whimperative" (nice word BTW) is going to sound false and dismissive.

[schwa]

Sure, "please," with a bit of stress, can be a loaded term, but thats a pretty subtle nuance between native speakers. "Pleeeease" can be turned into a childish whine too.

Nowhere near as common though as the uninflected pleasant courtesy word used when simply asking for something. It softens the request. A mark of civility, I'd say.

Korean (in my small knowledge of it) seems to use ÷ similarly, but not so frequently.