The Application of Conversational Implicature in the Novel “Thread of Blood” by Jamal Abu Hamdan Based on Grice’s Theory

Abstract

This attempts to investigate Conversational Implicature in the novel “Thread of Blood” by the Jordanian writer Jamal Abu Hamdan. It explores the four maxims of conversation, namely, quality, quantity, manner, and relation, and analyzes them pragmatically employing the Cooperative Principle proposed by Paul Grice. The study also addresses the violation of maxims in light of the context presenting these maxims. Pragmatics as a recent linguistic approach is employed in this study. It aims at studying literary and non-literary texts within the context, considering the parties interacting within a paired or group conversation. One of the most significant findings of this study is the enrichment of narrative text with dialogic violations of Grice's maxims due to its inherent dramatic quality based primarily on dialogue. In addition, there is a multiplicity of intellectual and social positions among the interacting characters.