Flouting Maxims

• A: Teheran’s in Turkey, isn’t it, professor?

• B: And London’s in Armenia, I suppose.

• A: I’m actually a very important person in

the government.
• B: Yeah, and I’m the Easter Bunny.

• => Maxim of Quality

• War is war.
• Either John will come or he won’t.
• If he does it, he does it.

• => Maxim of Quantity

• A: I do think Mrs. Jenkins is an old windbag,
don’t you?
• B: Lovely weather for March, isn’t it?

• Johnny: Hey Sally, let’s play marbles.

• Mother: How’s your homework getting along,
Johnny?

• => Maxim of Relevance

• Miss Singer sang an aria from “Rigoletto.”

• Miss Singer produced a series of sounds

corresponding closely to the score of an
aria from “Rigoletto.”

• => Maxim of Manner

 Entailment
• If S1 is true, then S2 is also true.
•
S1: Bob has a beagle.
• S2: Bob has a dog.
 Implicature
• A: I really need a cup of coffee.
• B: There’s a café right next door.

• => Relevance
• A: How many papers did you write in
October?
• B: Well, I finished the one on wh-
indefinites.

• => Maxim of Quantity

• I took this medication and started
coughing.

• I started coughing and took this

medication.

• => Maxim of Manner

 Speech Acts
• Doing things with language
• assertion
• question
• request
• order
• promise
• threat
 Felicity Conditions
• Request
• Action not yet accomplished
• Speaker wants it done
• Hearer is able
• Hearer is willing
 Performative Verbs
• I promise to be in my office this afternoon.

• I request that you do all the readings for

this class.
 Not Performatives
• I promised to be in the office (but an
unexpected meeting called me away).
• => Past tense

• Bob threatens to quit if we don’t raise his

salary.
• => 3rd person
 Indirect Speech Acts
• Direct
• Please take out the garbage.

• Indirect
• The garbage hasn’t been taken out yet.
• Would you mind taking out the garbage?