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14 - Irony and Humor

from Part V - Irony, Affect, and Related Figures

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 December 2023

By
Marta Dynel
Edited by
Raymond W. Gibbs, Jr  and
Herbert L. Colston
Herbert L. Colston
Affiliation:
University of Alberta
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Summary

This chapter examines the complicated relationship between irony and humor, primarily from the perspective of neo-Gricean pragmatics (e.g., an ironic utterance flouts/overtly violates the maxim of Quality). Not all irony is humorous, of course, in part because of the highly polysemous nature of irony. In this light, it is important to distinguish irony that is humorous from irony that is related to sarcasm, teasing, parody, and even playfulness. Dynel offers a formal test by which one may determine what forms of humor may be specifically viewed as “irony.” She also describes some of the reasons why irony sometimes expresses humor, focusing on the importance of contrast and incongruity in judgments of ironic humor, but extending this emphasis to include surprise, absurdity, and creativity as key facets of humorous irony. Even blindness to irony can elicit humorous responses in some interpersonal situations. Dynel’s chapter also considers some of the intricacies in the ways speakers use humorous irony to position themselves in various interactions with others.

Keywords

absurdityhumorneo-Gricean pragmaticsplayfulnesssarcasmsurpriseverbal ironyteasing
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Irony and Thought , pp. 237 - 254
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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