Crice’s Maxims and implicature role in creation of humor in Oscar Wilde an ideal husband and importance of being Earnest

Abstract

Humor is a socio-cultural phenomenon that varies from one society to another and from one culture to another. It is a laughable thing, whether it is a situation or a word. This thesis focuses on the creation of humor in two English plays (An Ideal Husband and Important of Being Ernest) from pragmatic perspective. Implicature and Paul Grice‘s Cooperative Principle (CP); maxim of Quantity, maxim of Quality, maxim of Relation, and maxim of Manner, are the framework of this study. In this way, it is possible that the hidden meaning is creating Humor. Basically, this thesis attempts to shed light on the pragmatic aspects of humor in these plays. Pragmatically, Concerning Grice's maxims, it is found that humorous instances which are introduced by the author of these plays tend to disobey at least one of these maxims. So, the finding shows  that implicature and non-observance of maxims have main role in creation humor in these plays.