Differences in use and function of verbal irony between real and fictional discourse: (mis)interpretation and irony blindness

Eleni Kapogianni

doi:10.1515/humor-2014-0093

Article

Differences in use and function of verbal irony between real and fictional discourse: (mis)interpretation and irony blindness

Eleni Kapogianni
Eleni Kapogianni is a lecturer in English Language and Linguistics at the University of Kent. Her research lies in the areas of the semantics/pragmatics interface, experimental pragmatics, and intercultural pragmatics, with focus on the use and interpretation of nonliteral language in discourse.

Published/Copyright: October 8, 2014

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From the journal HUMOR Volume 27 Issue 4

Abstract

This paper presents a contrastive approach to the presence of two distinct types of verbal irony in real (natural, unscripted) versus fictional (scripted) discourse, with a special focus on irony blindness, i.e. the inability to recognize ironic utterances. Irony strategies are categorized into two general types, based on the relationship between the expressed and the intended meaning (Type 1: meaning reversal and Type 2: meaning replacement). First, the differences between these two types are discussed in terms of use, interpretation, and misinterpretation. It is found that the first type of irony strongly prevails in natural discourse, while the second type is considerably more present in fictional discourse than it is in natural discourse. At the same time, the first type of irony appears to be more at risk of misinterpretation in natural discourse, as opposed to the second type, which seems to be a safer (even though less frequently selected) option. These findings are then further analyzed in light of the discussion concerning fictional (comedic, in particular) irony blindness and the construction and role of the irony-blind characters. Interestingly, the causes of fictional irony blindness are found to correlate more strongly with the (more humorous) misinterpretation of the second type of irony.

Keywords: irony types; (mis)interpretation; irony blindness; natural discourse; fictional discourse

About the author

Eleni Kapogianni

Eleni Kapogianni is a lecturer in English Language and Linguistics at the University of Kent. Her research lies in the areas of the semantics/pragmatics interface, experimental pragmatics, and intercultural pragmatics, with focus on the use and interpretation of nonliteral language in discourse.

Published Online: 2014-10-8

Published in Print: 2014-10-1

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/humor-2014-0093

Keywords for this article

irony types; (mis)interpretation; irony blindness; natural discourse; fictional discourse