Changing the Topic Strategies of Maxim Flouting Performed by the Characters in This Boy
problem. In this case, Toby is breaking the rule of maxim of manner which manages people to be brief with the topic of the conversation.
Another example of being obscure is explained in the following example. Toby : What engine?
Dwight: I was downtown with Champ......and I met a guy who recognized him. Said hed seen my dog this morning. He told
me a story how he and the dog met. I thought youd like to hear about it.
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The example above happens when Dwight asks Toby about the engine of his car which was stolen by Toby the night before. In the dialogue, Dwight prefers to
give an obscure answer rather than to provide a clear answer about the engine which he means. The aim of his obscure words is to make a point that he already
knows what Toby did with his car. In summary, some characters in the movie flout the maxim of Cooperative
Principle in various ways. The characters who often flout the maxims are Dwight, Toby, and Caroline. It happens because they are the main characters who play
important role in the movie. The characters in the movie flout the maxims by using some strategies.
Maxim of quantity is flouted by overstatement and understatement strategy. Maxim of quality is flouted by hyperbole, metaphor, irony, banter, and sarcasm.
Meanwhile, maxim of relation is flouted by changing the topic. Lastly, maxim of manner is flouted by being obscure.
In This Boy ’s Life, quantity maxim flouting is the most often used types of
maxim flouting. The strategy which is mostly used to flout this maxim is overstatement. It happens because there is a character named Dwight who wants
to dominate the other characters. He often uses overstatement strategy to influence the other characters to follow what he wants. However, the other
characters do not want to be dominated. Toby is the character who does not want to be controlled by Dwight. He starts
to complain everything Dwight says about him. As the result, Toby often flouts the maxims by giving too much information to prove that what his stepfather
thinks to control the other characters is false. Furthermore, Caroline becomes the other character who often flouts maxims. It happens because she usually becomes
the one who mediate the fights between Dwight and Toby.