Chapter 3. In defense of an ecumenical approach to irony
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Robert Willison
Abstract
The term “irony” has such a broad and apparently diverse range of application that it’s difficult for researchers to coordinate on a single, operational concept of their target of investigation, suitable for designing and interpreting experiments aimed at uncovering irony’s nature. Restrictive strategies for addressing this difficulty advocate restricting the target of empirical irony studies to some scientifically tractable subset of the phenomena “irony” picks out in ordinary language. Ecumenical approaches, in contrast, retain the ambition to account for “irony” across its apparently diverse range of usage. In this paper, I highlight the limitations of the best developed restrictivist approaches, throwing into relief the potential value of ecumenical strategies still in early stages of development.
Abstract
The term “irony” has such a broad and apparently diverse range of application that it’s difficult for researchers to coordinate on a single, operational concept of their target of investigation, suitable for designing and interpreting experiments aimed at uncovering irony’s nature. Restrictive strategies for addressing this difficulty advocate restricting the target of empirical irony studies to some scientifically tractable subset of the phenomena “irony” picks out in ordinary language. Ecumenical approaches, in contrast, retain the ambition to account for “irony” across its apparently diverse range of usage. In this paper, I highlight the limitations of the best developed restrictivist approaches, throwing into relief the potential value of ecumenical strategies still in early stages of development.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Editors and contributors vii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. Interdisciplinary perspectives on irony
- Chapter 1. Irony performance and perception 19
- Chapter 2. How does irony arise in experience? 43
- Chapter 3. In defense of an ecumenical approach to irony 61
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Part II. Irony, thought and (media) communication
- Chapter 4. Introducing a three-dimensional model of verbal irony 87
- Chapter 5. On ironic puns in Portuguese authentic oral data 109
- Chapter 6. Irony and sarcasm in follow-ups of metaphorical slogans 127
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Part III. Approaches to verbal irony
- Chapter 7. Irony, pretence and fictively-elaborating hyperbole 145
- Chapter 8. Cognitive modeling and irony 179
- Chapter 9. Irony has a metonymic basis 201
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Part IV. Approaches to studying irony
- Chapter 10. Defaultness shines while affirmation pales 219
- Chapter 11. The standard experimental approach to the study of irony 237
- Chapter 12. Investigating sarcasm comprehension using eye-tracking during reading 255
- Name index 277
- Subject index 279
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Editors and contributors vii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. Interdisciplinary perspectives on irony
- Chapter 1. Irony performance and perception 19
- Chapter 2. How does irony arise in experience? 43
- Chapter 3. In defense of an ecumenical approach to irony 61
-
Part II. Irony, thought and (media) communication
- Chapter 4. Introducing a three-dimensional model of verbal irony 87
- Chapter 5. On ironic puns in Portuguese authentic oral data 109
- Chapter 6. Irony and sarcasm in follow-ups of metaphorical slogans 127
-
Part III. Approaches to verbal irony
- Chapter 7. Irony, pretence and fictively-elaborating hyperbole 145
- Chapter 8. Cognitive modeling and irony 179
- Chapter 9. Irony has a metonymic basis 201
-
Part IV. Approaches to studying irony
- Chapter 10. Defaultness shines while affirmation pales 219
- Chapter 11. The standard experimental approach to the study of irony 237
- Chapter 12. Investigating sarcasm comprehension using eye-tracking during reading 255
- Name index 277
- Subject index 279
