Acting Against Principles : How the violation of conversation rules in dialoguecreates a clever TV character

• Main Author: Hagman, Gustav
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Högskolan Väst, Avd för utbildningsvetenskap och språk 2014
• Subjects: politeness theory; the cooperative principle; turn-taking; drama dialogue; witty; character creation; Specific Languages; Studier av enskilda språk
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hv:diva-6836

This paper studies the use of violations of conversation principles in the written dialogue of Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones. The aim is to establish if and how these violations aid in making him seem clever. The character's dialogues are matched against three theoretical principles: Politeness Theory, The Cooperative Principle and Turn-taking Principles. The findings suggest that by breaking basic principles of conversation, Tyrion provides entertaining dialogue and manages to create unexpected solutions to different threatening situations. Results show an even distribution of strategic violations, among the three theoretical approaches, which could suggest that the dialogue is consciously written to help make the audience feel impressed by the character's features. Tyrion's violations of conversation principles is a contribution in what makes him seem witty. This ability in the character seems to be closely linked to a lack of fear for any negative social consequences. The character's ability to act free from rules of social behavior could be considered one of the reasons behind his popularity among fans of the show.