Verbal Irony: A Relationship Management Tool. 10th Newcastle upon Tyne Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics

Transcription

1 ttps://flic.kr/p/7kviu : A Relationship Management Tool 10th Newcastle upon Tyne Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics Northumbria University Newcastle gerrit.kotzur@northumbria.ac.uk

2 Research Questions 2 Which functions can irony have as a relationship management tool, that is, a device used to deal with conflict in social interactions, but also, and more importantly, to provide means for humorous conversations and strengthening emotional bonds? How can those functions be explained with theoretic approaches from pragmatics?

3 Structure 3 Introduction: Types of Irony Irony Signals Common Ground Emotional Implicature Mention Theory Reversal of Evaluation Theory The Problem with Literal Meaning Conclusion References

4 Introduction: Types of Irony 4 Two functions: implicit criticism for reasons of politeness and mostly negative evaluation of either the recipient s or a third party s behaviour (be it verbal or non-verbal) Dependent on emotion-based implicature as introduced by Schwarz-Friesel (2009, 2010) and define those cases as indirect expressive speech acts

5 Introduction: Types of Irony 5 Propositional irony: (1) (After a meeting) Boy we managed to get so many things done again. (Conversational evidence) Negation: We didn t manage to get many things done again or Reversal: We managed to get almost nothing done again Pretence theory

6 Introduction: Types of Irony 6 Illocutionary irony: (2) (To someone didn t hold the door open) Why thank you. (Conversational evidence) (3) A: It was only a shower but it sufficed to force me to transfer my workplace from the yard to the driveway. B: Oh poor you... ;) A: Yes, that was really hard for me. (facebook.com)

7 Introduction: Types of Irony 7 Illocutionary irony speaker violates the felicity conditions of speech acts and simulates sincerity THANKING becomes CRITICISING SHOWING EMPATHY becomes MOCKING/RIDICULING

8 Introduction: Types of Irony 8 (4) I congratulate you on this utterly ingenious remark. (Conversational evidence) Lapp (1992: 146) defines irony as an open simulation of insincerity on the level of linguistic performativity.

9 Irony Signals 9 interjections (see Boy, oh, above), repetitions, intensifying expressions (superlatives and modal adverbs), as well as gesture, facial expressions and voice modulation (emphasis and pause) (5) (A received the following text from Vodafone: At Christmas time you can download Wham! s Last Christmas as a free ringtone) A: Thank you, Vodafone. My deepest Christmas wish has come true. I m so incredibly happy. (facebook.com)

10 Irony Signals 10 Amount of irony signals and Inferential exercise common ground Avoid irony, for on the internet those comments often lead to misunderstandings and arguments (Schulze 2011).

11 11 Common Ground (6) (B liked A s Facebook update where she stated that she is ill) A: It s great that B likes my update. I really enjoy a sore throat too :D (7)

12 Emotional Implicature 12 (8) (A and B are in a shop. A cannot decide which product to buy and is taking his time.) A: I m always so indecisive. B: I hardly noticed. (Conversational evidence) Informational (cognitive) implicature: HURRY UP!/I M BORED./YOU TAKE TOO LONG. I hardly noticed.? BUT THIS IS NO JOKE./I M SERIOUS./I M REALLY UPSET. I hardly noticed. But that doesn t mean you have to hurry./i m not bored or upset, though./i already know you need to take your time and don t mind too much.

13 Emotional Implicature 13 (9) I-implicature: IT S NOT RUDE AT ALL, DON T BE SILLY. E-implicature: YOU SHOULDN T WORRY SO MUCH./I STILL SEE OUR RELATIONSHIP AS INTACT./I M NOT UPSET OR ANYTHING./IT S RATHER FUNNY/ENTERTAINING etc.

14 Emotional Implicature 14 (9) I-implicature: SOMEONE CARES (NAMELY YOU), BUT YOU ARE NO ONE TO ME E-implicature: I ACCEPT YOUR OFFER TO PLAY ALONG. WE UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER VERY WELL. I LIKE THAT, AND I LIKE YOU. YOU ARE NOT NO ONE TO ME, YOU ARE MY FRIEND etc.

15 Emotional Implicature 15 Self-tease: (10) We deffo need to plan our film night though! But as you say [X], I am totally and utterly busy and important ;-) haha xx (WhatsApp) Irony provides one way to deal interpersonally with situations that threaten social relations by providing a way to express (usually) negative attitudes with humor, with imagination, yet still with some point. (Kumon-Nakamura et al. 2007: 93)

16 Emotional Implicature 16 (11)

17 Emotional Implicature 17 Different affordances in different situations Relationship Management Criticism, Humour, Politeness

18 Emotional Implicature 18 Indeed, irony can be affiliative in at least three ways. 1. It can bind speaker and hearer when a third party is the object of criticism [but not only then!]. 2. It can be used in friendly teasing, 3. and it can be used in self-deprecatory humour, in self-teasing. (Partington 2007: 1567)

19 Mention Theory 19 The main point of irony is to dissociate the speaker from an attributed thought or utterance which she wants to suggest is more or less obviously false, irrelevant or under-informative. (Wilson 2006: 1730) Colston & Gibbs (2007: 18): both pretence and mention theory of irony are too broad to encompass all types of irony without also encompassing all other forms of indirect figurative speech. simple contextual inappropriateness is usually enough to trigger the audience s awareness of irony. (Partington 2007: 1567)

20 Reversal of Evaluation Theory 20 (12) Do you have to make that noise while you are eating? (McDonald 1999: 488) Once again the bisociative evaluation reversal theory would seem to account well for such cases. The speaker creates two narratives of the type: N1 (dictum): (I ask you whether) you evaluate that noise as necessary (i.e. as good). N2 (implicatum): I evaluate it as unnecessary and indeed irksome (i.e. as bad). (Partington 2007: 1564)

21 Reversal of Evaluation Theory 21 Persuasive Power of Irony and once again we are reminded of the Second World War and Germany s obligations tied to it. And by whom? Right. Of course, by nations that are popular for prudence and world peace. Just like the Jews for example, who are totally peaceful and readily accepting of other religions besides Judaism. dann wird gleich wieder an den 2. Weltkrieg und die Verpflichtung Deutschlands daraus erinnert. Und von wem? Richtig. Von Nationen, die natürlich für Besonnenheit und Weltfrieden bekannt sind. Wie z. B. eben von den Juden, die ja total friedlich sind und andere Relegionen so ohne weiteres neben dem Judentum aktzeptieren. ( /seite4.html, , 08:30, Tank, #69)

22 22 The Problem with Literal Meaning Humpty Dumpty took the book, and looked at it carefully. That seems to be done right, he began. You're holding it upside down! Alice interrupted. To be sure, I was! Humpty Dumpty said gaily, as she turned it round for him. I thought it looked a little queer. As I was saying, that seems to be done right You seem very clever at explaining words, Sir, said Alice. Would you kindly tell me the meaning of the poem called Jabberwocky? (Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking-glass and what Alice found there).

23 23 The Problem with Literal Meaning He is our beloved president. Context-independent lexical meaning & meaning potential Context-dependent utterance meaning & referentialisation: Time, place, speaker and recipient, situation Illocutionary force: YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR HIM./WE SHOULD TRUST HIM./(Introducing someone). Etc. (Ironic): HE IS NASTY, WE SHOULD CONSPIRE TO OVERTHROW HIM. etc.

24 Conclusion 24 All theories make use of some form of the idea that irony constructs counterfactual worlds, defeated expectations or norms, beliefs, and opinions. Emotional attitudes in the form of certain implicatures and reversal of evaluation and speech act types are central to explaining verbal irony.

25 References 25 CLARK, H. H. & GERRIG, R. J., On the Pretense Theory of Irony. In: GIBBS, R. W. JR. & COLSTON, H. L. (eds.), 2007, COLSTON, H. L. & GIBBS, R. W. JR., A Brief History of Irony. In: GIBBS, R. W. JR. & COLSTON, H. L. (eds.), 2007, GIBBS, R. W. JR. & COLSTON, H. L. (eds.), Irony in Language and Thought. A Cognitive Science Reader. New York, London: Erlbaum. GIORA, R., FEIN, O. & SCHWARTZ, T., Irony: graded salience and indirect negation. In: Metaphor and Symbol 13, GROEBEN, N & SCHEELE, B., Produktion und Rezeption von Ironie. I: Pragmalinguistische Beschreibung und psycholinguistische Erklärungshypothesen. Tübingen: Narr. GROEBEN, N. & CHRISTMANN, U., Verstehen von Sprecherintentionen: Witz, Metapher, Ironie. In: RICKHEIT, G., HERRMANN, T. & DEUTSCH, W. (eds.), Psycholinguistik. Ein internationales Handbuch. Berlin, New York: de Gruyter, HARTUNG, M., Ironische Äußerungen im Freundeskreis. Versuch einer gesprächsanalytischen Begriffsbestimmung. In: BROCK, A./HARTUNG, M. (eds.), Neuere Entwicklungen in der Gesprächsforschung. Tübingen: Narr, KUMON-NAKAMURA, S., GLUCKSBERG, S. & BROWN, M., How About Another Piece of Pie: The Allusional Pretense Theory of Discourse Irony. In: GIBBS, R. W. JR. & COLSTON, H. L. (eds.), 2007,

26 References 26 LAPP, E., Linguistik der Ironie. Tübingen: Narr (= Tübinger Beiträge zur Linguistik 369). PARTINGTON, A., Irony and reversal of evaluation. In: Journal of Pragmatics 39, SCHWARZ-FRIESEL, M., Ironie als indirekter expressiver Sprechakt: Zur Funktion emotionsbasierter Implikaturen bei kognitiver Simulation. In: BACHMANN-STEIN, A., MERTEN, S. & ROTH, C. (eds.), Perspektiven auf Wort, Satz und Text. Semantisierungsprozesse auf unterschiedlichen Ebenen des Sprachsystems. Festschrift für Inge Pohl. Trier: Wissenschaftlicher Verlag (= Kola 3), SCHWARZ-FRIESEL, M., Expressive Bedeutung und E-Implikaturen Zur Relevanz konzeptueller Bewertungen bei indirekten Sprechakten: Das Streichbarkeitskriterium und seine kognitive Realität. In: RUDNITZKY, W. (ed.), Kultura kak tekst (Kultur als Text). Moskau: SGT, SPERBER, D. & WILSON, D., Relevance. Communication and Cognition. Oxford: Blackwell. WILSON, D., The pragmatics of verbal irony: Echo or pretence? In: Lingua 116, SCHULZE, L., Achtung! Fettnäpfchen beim Online-Dating. tipps/online-dating-tipps/fettnaepfchen.

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