Курсовая работа: Pragmatics: rules of conversation

Example; She’s probably deceiving her husband this evening.

Implication: the speaker posses some evidence of her love affair.

III. Examples of violation of the maxim of Relation.

Perhaps the most important rule is that your utterances must be relevant to the current topic at hand; this is known as the maxim of relevance. Going off-topic constantly will provoke displeasure with your fellow participants.[7]

A: How's the weather today?

B: There's a nice film opening at the theater tonight.

Implication: the answer does not correlate with the question.

Violation of this rule is quite useful in order to force a subject change:

A: Do you really love me?

B: I like Ferris wheels, and college football, and things that go real fast.

Implication: Either B doesn’t want to respond to A (perhaps he has problems discussing his feelings) or the answer is “no.”

C: Are you ever going to pay back the money I lent you?

D: It's very hot outside, isn't it?

Implication: D is not ready to pay back money.

Michael wants Pat to pass the salt. He says, "Could you pass the salt?"

In most cases, this question is not meant literally -- it is pretty clear that Pat is able to pass the salt. Therefore, the question violates some maxims, notably Relevance.

This violation of a maxim helps indicate to Pat that a non-literal use of the sentence is intended (most likely, an indirect request).[4]

IV. Examples in which maxims of Manner are flouted.

1. Ambiguity.

When the speaker answers with ambiguity, the hearer should define if this ambiguity was deliberate or accidental and react in proper way if it is a conversational game.

According to Grice, there can be two types of deliberate ambiguity:

a) examples in which there is no difference, or no striking difference, between two interpretations of an utterance with respect to straightforwardness; neither interpretation is notably more sophisticated, less standard. [7]

- I sought to tell my love, love that never told can be.

Implication: My love refers either to the emotions or an object of emotion, but as these notions are contextual synonyms, the flouting of maxim is acceptable.

b) Examples in which one interpretation is notably less straightforward than another.

2. Obscurity.

Sometimes the obscurity could be used in order to make the conversation unclear to the third party of conversation.[7]

A: Shall we get something for the kids?

B: Ok. But I veto I-C-E-C-R-E-A-M.