Analysis of Grice’s Conversational Implicature in Discourse of Chandler Bing

Abstract

Grice’s conversational implicature and non-observance of maxims are one of the most principle concepts in the area of pragmatics. This study aims to inspect how Grice’s conversational implicature is produced in the verbal act of Chandler Bing, an iconic character of the sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S from season 1 to season 10, by abandoning following cooperative principles. In addition to that, this research analyses that conversational implicature, found in Chandler Bing’s discourse, serves two purposes- i. creating humor in Chandler Bing’s speech, ii.constructing defense mechanisms through the usage of humor. To conduct the investigation, the researcher collects qualitative data- total 157 statements of Chandler Bing from the entire 10 seasons of the sitcom- F.R.I.E.N.D.S. To analyze these data, several episodes are given multiple watches with subtitles, and notes are taken on: important dialogues of Chandler Bing, the context of his speech, traits of his personality, and record of his childhood experience. The analysis from the perspective of Grice’ non-observance of maxim of the first season of this sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S is thoroughly elaborated and the analysis of the rest nine seasons are presented through charts. The findings show that there is a relation among Chandler’s conversational implicature, non-observance of maxims, humor, and defense mechanism. The findings also conclude that flouting of the maxim is mostly used (98 whereas, no suspension of the maxim is found in his discourse. To create humor, Chandler applies verbal irony (38) the most repeatedly. The findings of this research complement previous knowledge belonging to this same repertoire and open new horizons by showing the connection between conversational implicature and defense mechanisms.

Key Words: Conversational Implicature, Non-observance of Maxims, Humor, Defence Mechanism, Chandler Bing