Maxim of manner: Difference between revisions
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The '''maxim of manner''' is one of the Gricean [[conversational maxim]]s which constitute the [[Cooperative Principle]]. It makes the following requirements: | |||
* ‘Be perspicuous’ | |||
** Avoid obscurity of expression. | |||
** Avoid ambiguity. | |||
** Be brief (avoid unnecessary prolixity). | |||
** Be orderly. | |||
The '''maxim of manner''' thus relates "not [...] to what is said but, rather, to HOW what is said to be said [...]" (Grice 1975: 46). | |||
An elaboration of the Gricean maxim of manner was proposed by Leech (1983: 100), who distinguishes two kinds of clarity: "One kind consists in making unambiguous use of syntax and phonology of the language in order to construct a clear text. Another type [...] consists in framing a clear message, ie a message which is perspicuous or intelligible in the sense of conveying the intended illocutionary goal to the addressee." | |||
==Examples== | |||
* A: I hear you went to the opera last night; how was the lead singer? | |||
* B: The singer produced a series of sounds corresponding closely to the score of an aria from 'Rigoletto'. (Levinson 1983: ***) | |||
B flouts the maxim of manner, as the sentence is unnecessarily prolix. | |||
==See also== | |||
* M-Principle | |||
===Link=== | ===Link=== | ||
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===References=== | ===References=== | ||
* Atlas, J. and S. Levinson (1981) It-clefts, informativeness, and logical form, In: P. Cole ed., Radical Pragmatics, 1-61, New York: Academic Press | * Atlas, J. and S. Levinson (1981) It-clefts, informativeness, and logical form, In: P. Cole ed., Radical Pragmatics, 1-61, New York: Academic Press | ||
* Horn, Lawrence. (1984) Toward a new taxonomy for pragmatic inference: Q-based and R-based implicature, In: D. Schiffrin ed., Meaning, Form and Use in Context (GURT '84), 11-42, Washington: Georgetown University Press | * Horn, Lawrence. (1984) Toward a new taxonomy for pragmatic inference: Q-based and R-based implicature, In: D. Schiffrin ed., Meaning, Form and Use in Context (GURT '84), 11-42, Washington: Georgetown University Press. | ||
* Sperber, D. and D. Wilson (1986) ''Relevance: Communication and Cognition'', Oxford: Blackwell | * Levinson, S. 2000. ''Presumptive Meanings: The Theory of Generalized Conversational Implicature''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. | ||
* Sperber, D. and D. Wilson (1986) ''Relevance: Communication and Cognition'', Oxford: Blackwell. | |||
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{{dc}} | {{dc}} | ||
[[Category:Semantics]] | [[Category:Semantics]] | ||
[[Category:Pragmatics]] | [[Category:Pragmatics]] | ||
Revision as of 19:20, 15 September 2009
The maxim of manner is one of the Gricean conversational maxims which constitute the Cooperative Principle. It makes the following requirements:
- ‘Be perspicuous’
- Avoid obscurity of expression.
- Avoid ambiguity.
- Be brief (avoid unnecessary prolixity).
- Be orderly.
The maxim of manner thus relates "not [...] to what is said but, rather, to HOW what is said to be said [...]" (Grice 1975: 46).
An elaboration of the Gricean maxim of manner was proposed by Leech (1983: 100), who distinguishes two kinds of clarity: "One kind consists in making unambiguous use of syntax and phonology of the language in order to construct a clear text. Another type [...] consists in framing a clear message, ie a message which is perspicuous or intelligible in the sense of conveying the intended illocutionary goal to the addressee."
Examples
- A: I hear you went to the opera last night; how was the lead singer?
- B: The singer produced a series of sounds corresponding closely to the score of an aria from 'Rigoletto'. (Levinson 1983: ***)
B flouts the maxim of manner, as the sentence is unnecessarily prolix.
See also
- M-Principle
Link
Utrecht Lexicon of Linguistics
References
- Atlas, J. and S. Levinson (1981) It-clefts, informativeness, and logical form, In: P. Cole ed., Radical Pragmatics, 1-61, New York: Academic Press
- Horn, Lawrence. (1984) Toward a new taxonomy for pragmatic inference: Q-based and R-based implicature, In: D. Schiffrin ed., Meaning, Form and Use in Context (GURT '84), 11-42, Washington: Georgetown University Press.
- Levinson, S. 2000. Presumptive Meanings: The Theory of Generalized Conversational Implicature. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Sperber, D. and D. Wilson (1986) Relevance: Communication and Cognition, Oxford: Blackwell.
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