This is from the book "From Sign to Text: A Semiotic View of Communication By Yishai Tobin". Talking about Hebrew:

"the extra-linguistic contexts between the encoder and decoder (e.g. the social and professional distance between them) may also influence the choice of tense used in these utterances: the more distant the relationship, the more likely a remote form will be used to convey these specific kinds of messages; while the closer the relationship, the more likely a proximate form will be deemed acceptable or appropriate."

I think the same goes for English usage. What do you think?

I'm not sure about the absolutes. Perhaps "the more distant" and "the closer" the speaker perceives the relationship to be.

1. What if you give him a call? (proximate)

2. What if you were to give him a call? (remote)

#2 sounds more polite to me; it might indicate deference, tentativeness, or condescension.

MrP

Forbes wrote:

I can't answer that as I don't know what the writer means by a "remote form" or a "proximate form" nor what "utterances" or  "specific kinds of messages" are being referred to. "Encoder" and "decoder"? Does he mean "speaker" and "listener"?

Remote forms would be such things as past tense verbs and demonsratives that express distance (that, there, etc.) and proximate form would be such things as present tense verbs and demonsratives that express closeness (this, here, etc.). Utterances mentined in the text above are in Hebrew, but English examples would be something like the difference between these:

Can you come tomorrow?/Could you come tomorrow?

Do you want a drink?/Would you like a drink?

Do me a favour, will you?/I want to ask you for a favour/I wanted to ask you for a favour

I wonder if you can explain.../I wondered if you could explain...

<"Encoder" and "decoder"? Does he mean "speaker" and "listener"?>

Yes, or writer and reader.

<Yes, that's true. But I think I see the distance/closeness as what the speaker wants to express, rather than what the distance/closeness really is.>

If a student goes to his/her university professor and says "I want to speak you", what would the speaker be wanting to express? What would it be if the same student were to say "I wanted to speak to you" instead? Could the student say "I will want to speak to you tomorrow", or would it be normal for the professor to say that?

<The more oblique "I wanted..." would not have that effect: the speaker is distancing himself from the "wanting".>

And those students who've been taught to use the oblique form in such contacts with professors, have been told it is out of respect. There, it seems nothing to do with what the speaker wants to, personally, express. I think urgency can be expressed by either form, but the "wanted to" shows respect, or acceptance of social (professional) distance.