LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 18:2 February 2018
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.
         C. Subburaman, Ph.D. (Economics)
         N. Nadaraja Pillai, Ph.D.
         Renuga Devi, Ph.D.
         Soibam Rebika Devi, M.Sc., Ph.D.
         Dr. S. Chelliah, Ph.D.
Assistant Managing Editor: Swarna Thirumalai, M.A.

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Discourse-Syntax Interface: A Study of Gricean Maxims in
Computer-Mediated Discourse

Maria-Helen Ekah, Ph.D.
Aniedi Nsibiet Akpan, B.A.
University of Uyo, Nigeria

Abstract

This article discusses the ways in which Gricean maxims of the cooperative principle are left unobserved in computer-mediated discourse. Non-observance of the maxims is done by flouting, violating, infringing, suspending and opting out. As evident in the topic, the theoretical framework for this research is H.P Grice’s Cooperative Principle. The social media selected for this analysis are WhatsApp and Facebook. Seven chats were randomly selected from the researchers’ (A’s) chats with others. Results show that the Gricean maxims were mostly flouted in comparison with other ways of their non-observance. Of the four categories, the category of quantity is mostly flouted by the participants in the conversation. It is also discovered that interlocutors mostly deviated from the topic of discourse. This implies that the category or relation was mostly unobserved by the interlocutors.

Keywords: maxims, coopoerative principle, syntax, computer-mediated discourse

Introduction

Conversational Cooperation

Language is an essential tool for communication both in its written and spoken forms. Mastery of the language does not only involve competence in the language but also the manipulative use of it to achieve desired ends. When humans interact, the choice of words is dependent on two factors: humans want to explicitly state their stance to fellow interlocutors or leave fellow interlocutors to a wide range of possible interpretations. Whichever way, there is always a form of cooperation to achieve mutual conversational ends. This conversational cooperation manifests itself in the Gricean maxims, which we feel the need to abide by. Conversational Cooperation suggests that discourse has taken place. In making communication more effective and to make sentences more acceptable to the hearer, it can be measured by applying cooperative principle consisting of four maxims proposed by Grice (1975). When the principle is not obeyed by the speaker in any communication, the maxims are flouted or violated.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Maria-Helen Ekah, Ph.D.
Department of English
University of Uyo, Nigeria
dr.mariahelen@gmail.com

Aniedi Nsibiet Akpan, B.A.
Department of English
University of Uyo, Nigeria
aniediakpan44@yahoo.com

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