Theoretical Grammar

1. The Maxim of Quality
Do not say what you believe to be false 
Do not say for what you lack adequate evidence 
2. The Maxim of Quantity 
Make your contribution as informative as required 
Do not make your contribution more informative than is required 
3. The Maxim of Relevance 
Be relevant 
4. The Maxim of Manner 
Be clear 
Be orderly 
3. Implicatures of discourse. 
Communicative maxims make it possible to generate inferences which are defined as conversational 
implicatures and conventional implicatures. Conversational implicatures are such components of an 

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utterance that are not expressed semantically but are understood by communicants in the process of 
communication: Was it you who broke the cup? This question presupposes: Someone has broken the cup. If you 
did not do that your normal reaction would be: What cup?, while the answer I didn’t do that shows that you 
know about the fact. Conversational implicatures are universal, they do not depend on the language used. The 
second type of implicatures, conventional implicatures, are derived from a definite lexical or grammatical 
structure of an utterance: I saw only John (conventional implicature – I didn’t see anyone else), Even Bill is 
smarter than you (Everybody is smarter than John, John is stupid). 
4. Implicatures and indirectness. 
Both kinds of implicatures are of great interest for discourse analysis. When there is a mismatch 
between the expressed meaning and the implied meaning we deal with indirectness. Indirectness is a universal 
phenomenon: it occurs in all natural languages. Let us see how conversational implicatures arise from Maxims 
of Conversation and thus create indirectness. 
A). In the following example Polonius is talking to Hamlet: 
Polonius: What do you read, My Lord? 
Hamlet: Words, words, words. 
In this dialogue Hamlet deliberately gives less information than is required by the situation and so flouts the 
Maxim of Quantity. At the same time he deliberately fails to help Polonius to achieve his goals, thereby 
flouting the Maxim of Relevance. The Maxim of Quantity is also flouted when we say: Law is law, woman is 
woman, students are students. This makes us look for what these utterances really mean. 
B). In the utterance You’re being too smart! the Maxim of Quality is flouted and the hearer is made to look for 
a covert sense. Similarly, the same maxim is flouted with metaphors. If I say: He is made of iron, I am either 
non-cooperative or I want to convey something different. 
C). The Maxim of Relevance can also be responsible for producing a wide range of standard implicatures: 
A: Can you tell me the time? 
B: The bell has gone. 
It is only on the basis of assuming the relevance of B’s response that we can understand it as an answer to A’s 
question. 
D). A number of different kinds of inference arise if we assume that the Maxim of Manner is being observed. 
The utterance The lone ranger rode into the sunset and jumped on his horse violates our expectation that events 
are recounted in the order in which they happen because the Maxim of Manner is flouted.