Pragmatics

LO: to understand and be able to apply Grice’s conversational maxims and the concept of schema to texts.

Starter: Discussion point

Without realising it, we are constantly under pressure to obey hundreds of unwritten rules and social codes which prevent us from saying certain things

in certain ways to certain people.

Can you think of any examples of these unwritten rules and codes?

Pragmatics – the study of how language and meaning rely on contextual information, shared knowledge and inference• For instance:• Unwritten social rules that prevent people saying certain things: you wouldn’t

tell the Queen to ‘put the kettle on, love’.• Social conventions that dictate that you must say certain things in particular

situations e.g. ‘sorry’ or ‘thank you’.• You can understand this sentence as an instruction to fetch something: ‘My

coat is hanging on the back of the chair.’

‘Those yellow trousers are nice’ Comparative – those yellow trousers are nice compared to these yellow ones

Comparative – those yellow trousers are nice compared to the blue ones

angryenviousflirtatioussarcastic

Genuine compliment

Pragmatics relies on schema

• In order to understand a text, a reader needs to do more than simply decode the semantic meaning of individual words.• Each word evokes a rich store of knowledge that we make use of

interpretation – we’ve already met some of this in the concept of connotation.• We term this store of knowledge as schema – bundles of information that is

triggered by a word.• Some knowledge is embodied (i.e. gained from physical experience of

something), so different readers’ schemas of the same word will be different.• We also rely on the co-text – the surrounding text – to help us filter out non-

useful information and focus on what is relevant to our understanding of this particular text in this particular context.

Apply what you have learnt about schema to this advertisement.

Conversational maxims (Paul Grice 1975)• In conversation, we assume that people speaking to use intend to

convey some sort of meaning – communication is a cooperative enterprise between speaker and listener.

• One way in which we can explain the cooperative principle is through conversational maxims: they aren’t rigid rules, but help explain why we need context to help us decode what someone is saying.

Conversational maxims (Paul Grice 1975)• The maxim of quantity – do not say too little or too much• The maxim of quality – speak the truth• The maxim of relevance – keep what is being discussed relevant to

the topic in hand• The maxim of manner – be clear and avoid ambiguity

When these maxims are flouted or broken, they give rise to implicatures – implied meanings that listeners are intended to infer from the speaker’s comments.

Look at the exchanges on the next slide and see if you can identify the implicatures.

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. Where does Jay live?B. Somewhere in the South of France.

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. I’m exhausted after working all day!B. Well, The Half Moon is only a short walk away…

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. What do you think of David Cameron as Prime Minister?B. He’s always well dressed and he likes jazz.

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. I’m Rufus and I’m asleep at the moment.

(from a TV breakfast show aired before 8am) For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. Your dad got out of bed the wrong side this morning.

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. Would you like some coffee?B. Is the Pope a Catholic?

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. Have you done your homework?B. What time’s dinner?

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Can you identify a) which maxim has been flouted and b) what implicatures arise?

A. Has anyone taken the d-o-g for a w-a-l-k?

For what purpose have these maxims

been flouted?

Putting Grice’s maxims into practice.Watch this video – can you identify the maxims being flouted?

Putting Grice’s maxims into practice.Watch this video – can you identify how maxims are being flouted?

Putting Grice’s maxims into practice.Watch this video – can you identify how maxims are being flouted?

Plenary

• Using the comic strip, write a dialogue that makes use of at least one flouted maxim.

• Extension: explain, with relation to GASP (genre, audience, subject and purpose) what the effect of your flouted maxim is.

Homework

• Alongside your work on the extended analysis (due Friday on Showbie please!), please make sure that you update Kidblog with another example of something you have read.

• Do use the links and ideas on learning spaces if you’re stuck for ideas.