3. Violating the relation maxim
In communication, the speaker often gives
irrelevant answer intentionally in order to produce certain implicature. Look
at the examples,
(20) Lee has just walked into Rose’s office
and noticed all the work on her desk.
Lee: Oh! Has your boss gone crazy?
Rose: Let’s go get some coffee.
In the above example, Rose’s response flouts
the relation maxim. The implicature here is essentially that Rose cannot answer
the question in that context, because the boss may be nearby.
(21) A: Mrs. Zhang’s teaching is dull and
tedious, don’t you think?
B: She looks very young.
In example (21), B’s answer is irrelevant to
A’s remark. One reason may be that Mrs. ZHANG is right nearby. To avoid being
heard by her, B intends to change the topic. Another reason may be that B holds
different idea towards Mrs. ZHANG’s teaching, but he does not want to refute A
directly. The last possibility is that B considers it is not polite and proper
to comment Mrs. ZHANG’s teaching like A.
(22) Jack: Can we watch TV now, Mom?
Mother: How is your homework getting along,
Jack?
In this example, mother intends not to answer
Jack’s question so as to remind her child that he has no time to watch TV, he
should finish homework first.
4. Violating manner maxim
(a) To violate the first point of manner
maxim—avoid obscurity of expression is shown in the following example:
(23) A: Where are you going with the dog?
B: To the V-E-T.
In the local context of these speakers, the
dog is known to recognize the word ‘vet’, and to hate being taken there, so B
produces a more elaborate, spelled out way to answer A’s question, implying
that he does not want the dog to know the answer to the question just asked.
(b) To violate the second point of manner
maxim is to give ambiguity in remark on purpose to show the speaker’s
cleverness or humor. Look at the example which uses pun:
(24) A: Is life worth living?
B: It depends on the liver.
In this example, B’s answer has two
implictures. One is that it depends on the person who leads the life. The other
is that it is determined by the healthy condition of one’s liver.
(c) Violating the third point of manner
maxim, the speaker intends to produce prolix remarks in order to achieve
implicature.
(25) Interviewer: Did the United States
Government play any part in Duvalier’s departure? Did they, for example,
actively encourage him to leave?
Official: I would not try to steer you away
from that conclusion.
In this example, the official violates the
third point of manner maxim. It implies the answer “Yes” to the interviewer’s
question. He does not want to answer the question directly.
(d) To violate the forth point of the Manner
Maxim is to give disordered remark.
(26) Here are files of pins extend their
shining rows, puffs, powders, patches, Bibles, trifles, billet doux.
In this example, Bibles are put together with
other trifle things without order, to imply that the owner of these objects is
not loyal to God.