The Non-Observance of Gricean Maxims in The Dialogues of 'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'.
ABSTRACT
Di dalam skripsi ini, saya menganalisis pelanggaran maxim dalam percakapan
dari sebuah film berjudul Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Film ini merupakan film
komedi Amerika yang dibuat pada tahun 1994 dan dibintangi aktor komedi
ternama Amerika, Jim Carey.
Guna melakukan analisis tersebut, saya menggunakan teori yang
dikemukakan oleh H. P. Grice mengenai aturan-aturan dalam percakapan seharihari yang disebut Conversational Maxims. Teori ini mengatur mengenai
bagaimana seharusnya seorang penutur menciptakan suatu percakapan yang baik.
Analisis yang dilakukan adalah analisis jenis maxim yang dilanggar, alasan
pelanggaran. Grice memperkenalkan lima pelanggaran, yaitu, flouting, violating,
infringing, opting out, dan suspending a maxim.
Saya menyimpulkan bahwa dalam film Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
terdapat banyak pelanggaran aturan percakapan, seperti menutupi maksud
sebenarnya dari percakapan yang ada. Hal ini menjadikan film tersebut sangat
menarik untuk ditonton.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................... i
TABLE OF CONTENTS ...................................................................................... ii
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... iii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study............................................................................. 1
Statement of the Problem ............................................................................ 4
Purpose of the Study ................................................................................... 4
Methods of Research ................................................................................... 4
Organization of the Thesis .......................................................................... 5
CHAPTER TWO: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK...................................... 6
CHAPTER THREE: THE NON-OBSERVANCE OF GRICEAN
MAXIMS IN THE DIALOGUES OF
ACE VENTURA: PET DETECTIVE ..................................................... 13
CHAPTER FOUR: CONCLUSION ................................................................. 33
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................... 38
APPENDIX .......................................................................................................... 39
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APPENDIX
DATA
NON-OBSERVANCE
OF MAXIMS
Data 1:
Gruff Man
: What do you want?
HDS Man
: (1) HDS, sir. And how are you this
afternoon? Alrighty then! I have a
-
package for you.
Gruff Man
: It sounds broken.
HDS Man
: (2) Most likely, Sir! I‟ll bet it was
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
something nice though! Now…This is
an insurance form. If you‟ll just sign
-
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
here, here, and here, initial here, put
your name here, we‟ll get the rest of
the forms out to you as soon as we
can. That‟s a lovely dog you have. Do
-
Violating a maxim
-
Infringing the
you mind if I pet him, Sir?
Gruff Man
: (mumbles) I don’t give a rat’s ass.
HDS Man
: (3) (bends down and talks to the dog)
Oo ja boo bad a boo boo do boo!
Gruff Man
: (under breath) Brother.
HDS Man
: (4) That‟s fine Sir. I can finish the
rest. You just have yourself a good
day. Take care, now! Bye bye, then!
39
maxim
Data 2:
Landlord
: Veeentuuuraaaaa?
Ace
: (1) Yes, satan? (Ace turns around)
Oh, I‟m sorry, Sir. You sounded like
someone else.
Landlord
: Never mind the wisecracks Ventura.
You owe me rent!
Ace
-
: Mr. Shickadance… I told you, you’re
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
my first priority! I’m on a very big
case right now. Check this out. Look
at that. That’s an albino pigeon. Some
rich guy lost it. He’s offering a
$25,000 reward. As soon as I find this
-
bird, you’re paid!
Landlord
Violating a
maxim
: I heard animals in there Ventura! I
heard
them
again
this
morning,
scratching around.
Ace
: (2) I never bring my work home with
me, Sir.
Landlord
: Oh, yeah? What’s all this pet food
for?
Ace
: (3) (beat) Fiber. Want to look inside?
Come on! Come on! Go ahead, snoop
around.
Data 3:
Riddle
Melissa
: Roger, let me ask you one question!
-
Flouting the
How the hell do you lose a 500 pound
maxim of
fish? What?
Relation
: Sorry, I was just going to say… It‟s
40
not a fish, it‟s a mammal.
Riddle
: (stand up) Oh, thank you very much,
Mrs. Jacque Cousteau!
Podacter
: She didn’t mean anything by it.
Riddle
: I don’t give a good god damn about a
fish. Fillet it if you want to.
Data 4:
Melissa
: Hi, I’m Melissa Robinson.
Ace
: Pleased to meet you.
Melissa
: Did you have any trouble getting in?
Ace
: No, the guy with the rubber glove
-
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
was surprisingly gentle.
Melissa
: Security’s tight, Super Bowl week.
Ace
: Ahh…
Data 5:
-
Flouting the
Melissa
: Would you like an ashtray?
maxim of
Ace
: I don‟t smoke. It‟s a disgusting habit.
Relation
Data 6:
Ace
: (1) Captain‟s Log, Star Date 23,9,
round it off to the nearest decimal
point. We‟ve traveled back in time to
save
an
ancient
species
-
from
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
annihilation. So far…no sign from
aquatic life, but I am going to find it…
-
Flouting the
If I have to tear this universe another
maxim of
black hole I am going to find it. I„ve
Relation
got to, Mister.
41
Podacter
: (some reporters come) Oh, great! I’ll
try to head them off!
Melissa
: Ace, get out off the tank.
Ace
: (2) I just can‟t do it, Captain. I don‟t
have the power.
Melissa
: I said get out of the tank now!
Ace
: (3) For God‟s sake, Jim, I‟m a
doctor, not a pool man.
Data 7:
Reporter
: So, where is Snowflake?
Podacter
: (1) Snowflake is not available right
now.
Reporter
-
Flouting the
: I’ve been waiting all day. I must get
maxim of
a shot of his new trick for the evening
Relation
news.
Reporter 2
: What? Is he sick?
Reporter 3
:Did
something
happen
to
Snowflake? What are you hiding…?
-
Podacter
: (2) People…people…
Ace
: How can I get this work done mit all
Opting out of a
maxim
the shouting? What’s wrong mit ze
shouting?
Reporter
: Who the hell is that?
Melissa
: (3) That‟s…
Ace
: (4) Heinz Kissvelvet. I am trainer of
-
Flouting the
dolphins. You want to talk to the
maxim of
dolphin, you talk to me!
Quantity
Reporter
: What happened to the regular trainer?
Ace
: (5) What happened to him? What
happened to me? It is seven years I‟m
making the grade. We are making the
42
dolphins disappear, und the Roy is
coming mit the white tiger, und the
stuffing in the pants und I‟m gone.
Reporter
: Where is Snowflake?
Ace
: (6) Why do you care about the
dolphin? Do you know him? Does he
call you at home? Do you have dorsal
fin? (beat) To train the dolphin, you
-
must think like the dolphin. You must
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
be getting onside the dolphin‟s head
und communicating! I‟m saying to
Snowflake… “ee, eee, eee.” He said,
“Eee, eee, eee.” Und he is up on the
tail ee ee eeee. Und you can quote
him!
Podacter
: All right, it is just about time for
Coach Shula’s press conference. So
why don’t I take you folks over that
way and let Heinz do his job.
43
-
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
Data 8:
Mr. Camp
: Melissa.
Melissa
: Hi, Ron
Mr. Camp
: Glad you could come.
Melissa
: Thank you.
Mr. Camp
: You look wonderful. Who is he, a
-
friend?
Melissa
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
: (1) No. This is my date. He is a
lawyer.
Mr. Camp
: Well, does he have a name, or should
I call him “lawyer”?
Melissa
:
(2)
I‟m
sorry.
This
is
Ace
V…emm...Tom Ace.
-
Mr. Camp
: Pleased to meet you.
Ace
: (3) Congratulations on all your
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
success. You smell terrific. One of the
first things we learned back at
Stanford was about the growth of food
poisoning claims against wealthy
people
Data 9:
Einhorn
: This is official police business. We’ll
let you know if the coroner finds any
-
ticks.
Ace
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
: E, forget it. I wouldn’t want someone
tracing my steps and pointing out all
the mistakes I made.
Einhorn
Ace
-
Flouting the
: Oh, so, you don’t think this is an
maxim of
obvious suicide, Mr. Pet Detective?
Quantity
: Well, I wouldn‟t say that. Lord
44
knows, there is plenty of evidence here
to support your theory, except of
course that spot of blood on the
balcony.
Data 10:
Reporter 1
:
Why
weren’t
we
told
about
Snowflake?
Einhorn
: (1) Secrecy was essential. We could
-
not risk public interference.
Reporter 2
: Are the crimes related?
Reporter 3
: And what about Roger Podacter’s
Opting out of a
maxim
murder?
Einhorn
: (2) I‟m sorry. I can‟t comment
further. Now, if you‟ll excuse me.
Data 11:
Doctor
: Mrs. Robinson. I’m doctor Handly.
Hi.
Melissa
: Hi.
-
Doctor
: Now who is it you want us to look
at?
Melissa
: My brother… Larry…
Ace
: I’m ready to go in, Coach, just give
me a chance.
45
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Language is the main means of communication. It is used to express our
intentions or messages, both verbally and non-verbally. That makes language
something important in our life. In our daily life, the speaker, the hearer, and the
message will determine whether an oral communication will run smoothly or not.
In communicating with others, we try to build a good conversation. A
good conversation is based on the cooperative principle. The cooperative principle
here means that a speaker and a hearer should talk cooperatively and with good
intention.
However, a conversation can sometimes fail, which may cause the hearer
to misunderstand what the speaker means. This may happen because some of the
factors are not fulfilled according to what the speaker or hearer wants. If the
speaker tries to make a good conversation but the hearer does not, the
communication will fail. Therefore, the speaker and the hearer must work together
to have a good conversation. There are also other factors that will affect the
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conversation, for example irrelevant answers, ambiguous meanings, unwillingness
to answer questions, or lack of information.
There are conversations that do not run smoothly in our daily life. Those
unsuccessful conversations happen because of some factors between the speaker
and the hearer. Therefore, I take this topic because it is interesting to know more
deeply why conversations fail. It helps us understand the people’s characters and
interpretations of what people means in communicating with others in our daily
life. In this study, I use a film to represent the conversation in daily life.
In analyzing the thesis, I use a theory by H. P. Grice. Grice is one of the
founders of a modern study in Pragmatics. He introduces maxims, the rules of
speaking in conversation. Some rules that are stated by Grice need to be used to
make the conversation run smoothly. In other words, a conversation is successful
when both the speaker and hearer obey the rules, or in Grice’s terms, observe the
maxims. On the other hand, a conversation fails if the speaker and hearer do not
obey the rules; in other words, they fail to observe the maxims.
In this thesis, I would like to focus my research on the non-observance of
the Gricean maxims applied by the major characters in the film Ace Ventura: Pet
Detective. I choose this film instead of other films as the source of my data
because the characters in this film, especially Ace Ventura, often fail to observe
the maxims. I will analyze the types of the non-observance of Gricean maxims
which contains the implied meanings of the speaker’s utterances in this film, and
find out the reasons why the Gricean maxims are not observed in the utterances of
the major characters of this film. Thus the title of my thesis is “The NonObservance of Gricean Maxims in the Dialogues of Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.”
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To collect the data, I watched Ace Ventura: Pet Detective in DVD and
wrote down the conversations in that film. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective is a 1994
American comedy film written by Tom Shadyac and Jim Carey and directed by
Tom Shadyac. Jim Carey is also the main actor of this film. This film is about a
goofy detective named Ace Ventura, who really loves animals. He specializes in
captivating and taming animals. Ventura’s behavior is like that of a mischievous
animal. In this film, Ventura is hired by the Miami Dolphin, a place for taking
care of dolphins. Ventura is hired to find the Miami Dolphin’s missing mascot
named Snowflake. Snowflake is stolen just before the Super Bowl (name of a
local event of sport). Ventura is put on the case. He attempts to find the people
who have stolen the dolphin and the reasons why they did it.
Considering that the non-observance of Gricean maxims in the dialogues
of this film contains the implied meanings, I am of the opinion that this research is
worth analyzing. The purpose of my thesis is to show and make people interested
to know further about the speaker’s meanings in the non-observance of the
Gricean maxims in the conversations and be concerned about them, so that they
can react properly to the others without causing negative effect, such as
misunderstanding. In other words, with good understanding about the speaker’s
meanings, people are expected to enjoy their conversations with others in their
daily life.
730 words
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Statement of the Problem
In my thesis, there are three problems to be analyzed:
1. Which type of the non-observances of the Gricean maxims do the speakers
fail to observe in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective?
2. Why do the speakers fail to observe the Gricean maxims in Ace Ventura:
Pet Detective?
Purpose of the Study
This study is done
1. to show the type of the non-observances of the Gricean maxims that the
speakers fail to observe in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.
2. to explain why the speakers fail to observe the Gricean maxims in Ace
Ventura: Pet Detective.
Methods of Research
In this thesis, I took several steps to collect my data. After the library
research, I watched the Ace Ventura: Pet Detective from a DVD and wrote down
the conversation data in this film. Then, I chose the conversations which apply the
non-observance of the Gricean maxims and, as the final step; I analyzed each of
them based on the non-observance of the Gricean maxims and the reasons why
they do not obey the maxims. Finally, I wrote my thesis.
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Organization of the Thesis
My thesis consists of four chapters, which are Introduction, Theoretical
Framework, Data Analysis, and Conclusion, preceded by the Abstract. The first
chapter is the Introduction, which contains Background of the Study, Statement of
the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Methods of Research, and Organization of the
Thesis. The second chapter is the Theoretical Framework, in which I explain the
Gricean Maxim theory. The third chapter is the Data Analysis. The fourth chapter,
or the last chapter of my thesis, is the Conclusion. At the end of my thesis, I
present the Bibliography and the Appendix.
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CHAPTER FOUR
CONCLUSION
In this chapter, I will conclude my findings based on the analysis of all the
data that I have written in Chapter Three. Basically, Grice states that people must
obey the Gricean maxims to make a conversation go well (Thomas 62).
Nevertheless, Grice realizes that in reality people do not always obey the maxims.
The important thing is the speaker and the addressee can catch the real intention
and the sense of the conversation. However, in my thesis, I analyze the speakers
and the addressees who fail to observe the maxim rules in their conversation.
I have obtained some findings after searching for and analyzing the
conversations which fail to observe the Gricean maxims in Ace Ventura: Pet
Detective. The findings contain the type of the non-observance of the Gricean
maxims that the speakers do, the reasons why the speakers fail to observe the
Gricean maxims, and also the implied meanings of the speaker’s utterances.
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In total, I analyze eleven data, which come from ten scenes. There are ten
data which belong to flouting the maxim, two data which belong to violating the
maxim, two data which belong to opting out of the maxim, and one datum which
belongs to infringing the maxim. However, I cannot find any data that shows
suspending the maxim.
Many characters in the film do not observe the maxims. First, I find
flouting the maxim is the type of non-observance which the characters commit the
most in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Flouting the maxim can be found in data 1, 2,
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11.
There are six data that contain flouting the maxim of Manner by answering
someone’s question irrelevantly in data 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9. There are also five data
that show flouting the maxim of Quality, namely, data 1, 2, 7, 8, and 11. Some
characters in the film lie because they have hidden intentions in their
conversation.
Moreover, I find two data that contain flouting the maxim of Quantity,
namely data 7 and 9. In other words, some of the characters in this film give more
or less information than is needed in their conversation. In addition, flouting the
maxim of Relation can be found in four data: data 3, 5, 6, and 7. An addressee
gives an unclear answer which is irrelevant. People in this film usually do this
flouting because they want to divert someone’s attention or to cover some
mistakes that they have done.
Second, I find that violating a maxim is the type of non-observance of the
maxims which the characters do in data 1 and 2. When people violate the maxim,
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they have an intention to mislead or to trick someone. This is found in data 1,
when Ventura violates a maxim by bending down and talking to the dog, which
makes the big guy think he is friendly. In fact, Ventura does so to take the dog and
change it with a stuffed dog that looks similar to the real dog. Afterward, he keeps
the dog inside his uniform and goes quickly away from the big guy’s apartment.
In my opinion, Ventura’s violating a maxim in this scene creates humor because
he does so to trick that big guy and save the dog by pretending as an HDS man. In
reality, however, to make a good conversation, people should avoid misleading
the other participant(s).
Third, I find two data that show opting out of a maxim, which the
characters do in data 7 and 10. When the characters opt out of a maxim, it is
because the speaker has a strong reason for not giving information or answering
the question. This behavior is not desired by the hearer, who wants to get
feedback from the speaker.
Fourth, I find one datum that contains infringing a maxim, which is data 1.
The speaker may infringe a maxim when they are nervous, drunk, or excited. In
data 1, Ventura infringes a maxim by speaking in a hurry because he is nervous
and afraid that the big guy will know that he has already exchanged the dog.
In the data of my thesis, I cannot find any data that shows suspending a
maxim. I think it is due to the source of the data. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective is an
American comedy genre film about a pet detective named Ace Ventura, who is an
outspoken man. He is hired to find a dolphin called Snowflake. I cannot find any
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circumstances, events, or cultural reasons for the characters to suspend the
maxims.
From some of the data that I have analyzed in my thesis, many nonobservances of the maxims happen when many people fail to obey the Gricean
maxims. In order to avoid non-observance of maxims in conversations, people
should speak as informatively as is required, honestly, and straight to the point.
In addition, Gricean maxims help people understand the real meaning
behind the speakers’ utterance. In my study I found a strong point that flouting a
maxim really makes Ace Ventura: Pet Detective become a successful comedy
film. In my opinion, a film can be successful if the audience can understand what
the story is about through the acts and the words which are uttered. Most of the
conversations which contain non-observance maxims make this film more
interesting, because they make the audience realize the implied meanings behind
the characters’ utterances. The script writers of this film, Tom Shadyac and Jim
Carey, deserve praise for the success of this film because these two writers have
written a great script by applying non-observance of maxims through
conversations. Thus, I conclude that by being aware of the non-observance of the
Gricean maxims in the conversations, people can understand and enjoy this film
more.
Finally, for the readers of this thesis, I hope this thesis can help them to
understand more about the theory of Gricean maxims that are reflected through
the analysis of the dialogues in this film. For further research, I suggest that the
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researcher should use the data (containing non-observance of maxims) that belong
to different types of genre, such as drama, thriller, or children’s films.
1026 words
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Primary Text:
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Dir. Tom Shadyac. Prod. James. G. Robinson,
Morgan Creek Productions. Warner Bros. Pictures, 1994. DVD.
References:
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. 1994. Web. 14 Sept. 2011.
Thomas, Jenny. Meaning in Interaction: An Introduction to Pragmatics. London
and New York: Longman Group Limited, 1995. Print.
Yule, George. “Pragmatics.” 4shared. Oxford University Press (1996): 3. Web. 18
Sept. 2011.
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Di dalam skripsi ini, saya menganalisis pelanggaran maxim dalam percakapan
dari sebuah film berjudul Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Film ini merupakan film
komedi Amerika yang dibuat pada tahun 1994 dan dibintangi aktor komedi
ternama Amerika, Jim Carey.
Guna melakukan analisis tersebut, saya menggunakan teori yang
dikemukakan oleh H. P. Grice mengenai aturan-aturan dalam percakapan seharihari yang disebut Conversational Maxims. Teori ini mengatur mengenai
bagaimana seharusnya seorang penutur menciptakan suatu percakapan yang baik.
Analisis yang dilakukan adalah analisis jenis maxim yang dilanggar, alasan
pelanggaran. Grice memperkenalkan lima pelanggaran, yaitu, flouting, violating,
infringing, opting out, dan suspending a maxim.
Saya menyimpulkan bahwa dalam film Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
terdapat banyak pelanggaran aturan percakapan, seperti menutupi maksud
sebenarnya dari percakapan yang ada. Hal ini menjadikan film tersebut sangat
menarik untuk ditonton.
iii
Maranatha Christian University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................... i
TABLE OF CONTENTS ...................................................................................... ii
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... iii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study............................................................................. 1
Statement of the Problem ............................................................................ 4
Purpose of the Study ................................................................................... 4
Methods of Research ................................................................................... 4
Organization of the Thesis .......................................................................... 5
CHAPTER TWO: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK...................................... 6
CHAPTER THREE: THE NON-OBSERVANCE OF GRICEAN
MAXIMS IN THE DIALOGUES OF
ACE VENTURA: PET DETECTIVE ..................................................... 13
CHAPTER FOUR: CONCLUSION ................................................................. 33
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................... 38
APPENDIX .......................................................................................................... 39
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APPENDIX
DATA
NON-OBSERVANCE
OF MAXIMS
Data 1:
Gruff Man
: What do you want?
HDS Man
: (1) HDS, sir. And how are you this
afternoon? Alrighty then! I have a
-
package for you.
Gruff Man
: It sounds broken.
HDS Man
: (2) Most likely, Sir! I‟ll bet it was
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
something nice though! Now…This is
an insurance form. If you‟ll just sign
-
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
here, here, and here, initial here, put
your name here, we‟ll get the rest of
the forms out to you as soon as we
can. That‟s a lovely dog you have. Do
-
Violating a maxim
-
Infringing the
you mind if I pet him, Sir?
Gruff Man
: (mumbles) I don’t give a rat’s ass.
HDS Man
: (3) (bends down and talks to the dog)
Oo ja boo bad a boo boo do boo!
Gruff Man
: (under breath) Brother.
HDS Man
: (4) That‟s fine Sir. I can finish the
rest. You just have yourself a good
day. Take care, now! Bye bye, then!
39
maxim
Data 2:
Landlord
: Veeentuuuraaaaa?
Ace
: (1) Yes, satan? (Ace turns around)
Oh, I‟m sorry, Sir. You sounded like
someone else.
Landlord
: Never mind the wisecracks Ventura.
You owe me rent!
Ace
-
: Mr. Shickadance… I told you, you’re
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
my first priority! I’m on a very big
case right now. Check this out. Look
at that. That’s an albino pigeon. Some
rich guy lost it. He’s offering a
$25,000 reward. As soon as I find this
-
bird, you’re paid!
Landlord
Violating a
maxim
: I heard animals in there Ventura! I
heard
them
again
this
morning,
scratching around.
Ace
: (2) I never bring my work home with
me, Sir.
Landlord
: Oh, yeah? What’s all this pet food
for?
Ace
: (3) (beat) Fiber. Want to look inside?
Come on! Come on! Go ahead, snoop
around.
Data 3:
Riddle
Melissa
: Roger, let me ask you one question!
-
Flouting the
How the hell do you lose a 500 pound
maxim of
fish? What?
Relation
: Sorry, I was just going to say… It‟s
40
not a fish, it‟s a mammal.
Riddle
: (stand up) Oh, thank you very much,
Mrs. Jacque Cousteau!
Podacter
: She didn’t mean anything by it.
Riddle
: I don’t give a good god damn about a
fish. Fillet it if you want to.
Data 4:
Melissa
: Hi, I’m Melissa Robinson.
Ace
: Pleased to meet you.
Melissa
: Did you have any trouble getting in?
Ace
: No, the guy with the rubber glove
-
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
was surprisingly gentle.
Melissa
: Security’s tight, Super Bowl week.
Ace
: Ahh…
Data 5:
-
Flouting the
Melissa
: Would you like an ashtray?
maxim of
Ace
: I don‟t smoke. It‟s a disgusting habit.
Relation
Data 6:
Ace
: (1) Captain‟s Log, Star Date 23,9,
round it off to the nearest decimal
point. We‟ve traveled back in time to
save
an
ancient
species
-
from
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
annihilation. So far…no sign from
aquatic life, but I am going to find it…
-
Flouting the
If I have to tear this universe another
maxim of
black hole I am going to find it. I„ve
Relation
got to, Mister.
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Podacter
: (some reporters come) Oh, great! I’ll
try to head them off!
Melissa
: Ace, get out off the tank.
Ace
: (2) I just can‟t do it, Captain. I don‟t
have the power.
Melissa
: I said get out of the tank now!
Ace
: (3) For God‟s sake, Jim, I‟m a
doctor, not a pool man.
Data 7:
Reporter
: So, where is Snowflake?
Podacter
: (1) Snowflake is not available right
now.
Reporter
-
Flouting the
: I’ve been waiting all day. I must get
maxim of
a shot of his new trick for the evening
Relation
news.
Reporter 2
: What? Is he sick?
Reporter 3
:Did
something
happen
to
Snowflake? What are you hiding…?
-
Podacter
: (2) People…people…
Ace
: How can I get this work done mit all
Opting out of a
maxim
the shouting? What’s wrong mit ze
shouting?
Reporter
: Who the hell is that?
Melissa
: (3) That‟s…
Ace
: (4) Heinz Kissvelvet. I am trainer of
-
Flouting the
dolphins. You want to talk to the
maxim of
dolphin, you talk to me!
Quantity
Reporter
: What happened to the regular trainer?
Ace
: (5) What happened to him? What
happened to me? It is seven years I‟m
making the grade. We are making the
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dolphins disappear, und the Roy is
coming mit the white tiger, und the
stuffing in the pants und I‟m gone.
Reporter
: Where is Snowflake?
Ace
: (6) Why do you care about the
dolphin? Do you know him? Does he
call you at home? Do you have dorsal
fin? (beat) To train the dolphin, you
-
must think like the dolphin. You must
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
be getting onside the dolphin‟s head
und communicating! I‟m saying to
Snowflake… “ee, eee, eee.” He said,
“Eee, eee, eee.” Und he is up on the
tail ee ee eeee. Und you can quote
him!
Podacter
: All right, it is just about time for
Coach Shula’s press conference. So
why don’t I take you folks over that
way and let Heinz do his job.
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-
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
Data 8:
Mr. Camp
: Melissa.
Melissa
: Hi, Ron
Mr. Camp
: Glad you could come.
Melissa
: Thank you.
Mr. Camp
: You look wonderful. Who is he, a
-
friend?
Melissa
Flouting the
maxim of Quality
: (1) No. This is my date. He is a
lawyer.
Mr. Camp
: Well, does he have a name, or should
I call him “lawyer”?
Melissa
:
(2)
I‟m
sorry.
This
is
Ace
V…emm...Tom Ace.
-
Mr. Camp
: Pleased to meet you.
Ace
: (3) Congratulations on all your
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
success. You smell terrific. One of the
first things we learned back at
Stanford was about the growth of food
poisoning claims against wealthy
people
Data 9:
Einhorn
: This is official police business. We’ll
let you know if the coroner finds any
-
ticks.
Ace
Flouting the
maxim of Manner
: E, forget it. I wouldn’t want someone
tracing my steps and pointing out all
the mistakes I made.
Einhorn
Ace
-
Flouting the
: Oh, so, you don’t think this is an
maxim of
obvious suicide, Mr. Pet Detective?
Quantity
: Well, I wouldn‟t say that. Lord
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knows, there is plenty of evidence here
to support your theory, except of
course that spot of blood on the
balcony.
Data 10:
Reporter 1
:
Why
weren’t
we
told
about
Snowflake?
Einhorn
: (1) Secrecy was essential. We could
-
not risk public interference.
Reporter 2
: Are the crimes related?
Reporter 3
: And what about Roger Podacter’s
Opting out of a
maxim
murder?
Einhorn
: (2) I‟m sorry. I can‟t comment
further. Now, if you‟ll excuse me.
Data 11:
Doctor
: Mrs. Robinson. I’m doctor Handly.
Hi.
Melissa
: Hi.
-
Doctor
: Now who is it you want us to look
at?
Melissa
: My brother… Larry…
Ace
: I’m ready to go in, Coach, just give
me a chance.
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Flouting the
maxim of Quality
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Language is the main means of communication. It is used to express our
intentions or messages, both verbally and non-verbally. That makes language
something important in our life. In our daily life, the speaker, the hearer, and the
message will determine whether an oral communication will run smoothly or not.
In communicating with others, we try to build a good conversation. A
good conversation is based on the cooperative principle. The cooperative principle
here means that a speaker and a hearer should talk cooperatively and with good
intention.
However, a conversation can sometimes fail, which may cause the hearer
to misunderstand what the speaker means. This may happen because some of the
factors are not fulfilled according to what the speaker or hearer wants. If the
speaker tries to make a good conversation but the hearer does not, the
communication will fail. Therefore, the speaker and the hearer must work together
to have a good conversation. There are also other factors that will affect the
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conversation, for example irrelevant answers, ambiguous meanings, unwillingness
to answer questions, or lack of information.
There are conversations that do not run smoothly in our daily life. Those
unsuccessful conversations happen because of some factors between the speaker
and the hearer. Therefore, I take this topic because it is interesting to know more
deeply why conversations fail. It helps us understand the people’s characters and
interpretations of what people means in communicating with others in our daily
life. In this study, I use a film to represent the conversation in daily life.
In analyzing the thesis, I use a theory by H. P. Grice. Grice is one of the
founders of a modern study in Pragmatics. He introduces maxims, the rules of
speaking in conversation. Some rules that are stated by Grice need to be used to
make the conversation run smoothly. In other words, a conversation is successful
when both the speaker and hearer obey the rules, or in Grice’s terms, observe the
maxims. On the other hand, a conversation fails if the speaker and hearer do not
obey the rules; in other words, they fail to observe the maxims.
In this thesis, I would like to focus my research on the non-observance of
the Gricean maxims applied by the major characters in the film Ace Ventura: Pet
Detective. I choose this film instead of other films as the source of my data
because the characters in this film, especially Ace Ventura, often fail to observe
the maxims. I will analyze the types of the non-observance of Gricean maxims
which contains the implied meanings of the speaker’s utterances in this film, and
find out the reasons why the Gricean maxims are not observed in the utterances of
the major characters of this film. Thus the title of my thesis is “The NonObservance of Gricean Maxims in the Dialogues of Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.”
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To collect the data, I watched Ace Ventura: Pet Detective in DVD and
wrote down the conversations in that film. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective is a 1994
American comedy film written by Tom Shadyac and Jim Carey and directed by
Tom Shadyac. Jim Carey is also the main actor of this film. This film is about a
goofy detective named Ace Ventura, who really loves animals. He specializes in
captivating and taming animals. Ventura’s behavior is like that of a mischievous
animal. In this film, Ventura is hired by the Miami Dolphin, a place for taking
care of dolphins. Ventura is hired to find the Miami Dolphin’s missing mascot
named Snowflake. Snowflake is stolen just before the Super Bowl (name of a
local event of sport). Ventura is put on the case. He attempts to find the people
who have stolen the dolphin and the reasons why they did it.
Considering that the non-observance of Gricean maxims in the dialogues
of this film contains the implied meanings, I am of the opinion that this research is
worth analyzing. The purpose of my thesis is to show and make people interested
to know further about the speaker’s meanings in the non-observance of the
Gricean maxims in the conversations and be concerned about them, so that they
can react properly to the others without causing negative effect, such as
misunderstanding. In other words, with good understanding about the speaker’s
meanings, people are expected to enjoy their conversations with others in their
daily life.
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Statement of the Problem
In my thesis, there are three problems to be analyzed:
1. Which type of the non-observances of the Gricean maxims do the speakers
fail to observe in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective?
2. Why do the speakers fail to observe the Gricean maxims in Ace Ventura:
Pet Detective?
Purpose of the Study
This study is done
1. to show the type of the non-observances of the Gricean maxims that the
speakers fail to observe in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.
2. to explain why the speakers fail to observe the Gricean maxims in Ace
Ventura: Pet Detective.
Methods of Research
In this thesis, I took several steps to collect my data. After the library
research, I watched the Ace Ventura: Pet Detective from a DVD and wrote down
the conversation data in this film. Then, I chose the conversations which apply the
non-observance of the Gricean maxims and, as the final step; I analyzed each of
them based on the non-observance of the Gricean maxims and the reasons why
they do not obey the maxims. Finally, I wrote my thesis.
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Organization of the Thesis
My thesis consists of four chapters, which are Introduction, Theoretical
Framework, Data Analysis, and Conclusion, preceded by the Abstract. The first
chapter is the Introduction, which contains Background of the Study, Statement of
the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Methods of Research, and Organization of the
Thesis. The second chapter is the Theoretical Framework, in which I explain the
Gricean Maxim theory. The third chapter is the Data Analysis. The fourth chapter,
or the last chapter of my thesis, is the Conclusion. At the end of my thesis, I
present the Bibliography and the Appendix.
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CHAPTER FOUR
CONCLUSION
In this chapter, I will conclude my findings based on the analysis of all the
data that I have written in Chapter Three. Basically, Grice states that people must
obey the Gricean maxims to make a conversation go well (Thomas 62).
Nevertheless, Grice realizes that in reality people do not always obey the maxims.
The important thing is the speaker and the addressee can catch the real intention
and the sense of the conversation. However, in my thesis, I analyze the speakers
and the addressees who fail to observe the maxim rules in their conversation.
I have obtained some findings after searching for and analyzing the
conversations which fail to observe the Gricean maxims in Ace Ventura: Pet
Detective. The findings contain the type of the non-observance of the Gricean
maxims that the speakers do, the reasons why the speakers fail to observe the
Gricean maxims, and also the implied meanings of the speaker’s utterances.
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In total, I analyze eleven data, which come from ten scenes. There are ten
data which belong to flouting the maxim, two data which belong to violating the
maxim, two data which belong to opting out of the maxim, and one datum which
belongs to infringing the maxim. However, I cannot find any data that shows
suspending the maxim.
Many characters in the film do not observe the maxims. First, I find
flouting the maxim is the type of non-observance which the characters commit the
most in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Flouting the maxim can be found in data 1, 2,
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11.
There are six data that contain flouting the maxim of Manner by answering
someone’s question irrelevantly in data 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9. There are also five data
that show flouting the maxim of Quality, namely, data 1, 2, 7, 8, and 11. Some
characters in the film lie because they have hidden intentions in their
conversation.
Moreover, I find two data that contain flouting the maxim of Quantity,
namely data 7 and 9. In other words, some of the characters in this film give more
or less information than is needed in their conversation. In addition, flouting the
maxim of Relation can be found in four data: data 3, 5, 6, and 7. An addressee
gives an unclear answer which is irrelevant. People in this film usually do this
flouting because they want to divert someone’s attention or to cover some
mistakes that they have done.
Second, I find that violating a maxim is the type of non-observance of the
maxims which the characters do in data 1 and 2. When people violate the maxim,
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they have an intention to mislead or to trick someone. This is found in data 1,
when Ventura violates a maxim by bending down and talking to the dog, which
makes the big guy think he is friendly. In fact, Ventura does so to take the dog and
change it with a stuffed dog that looks similar to the real dog. Afterward, he keeps
the dog inside his uniform and goes quickly away from the big guy’s apartment.
In my opinion, Ventura’s violating a maxim in this scene creates humor because
he does so to trick that big guy and save the dog by pretending as an HDS man. In
reality, however, to make a good conversation, people should avoid misleading
the other participant(s).
Third, I find two data that show opting out of a maxim, which the
characters do in data 7 and 10. When the characters opt out of a maxim, it is
because the speaker has a strong reason for not giving information or answering
the question. This behavior is not desired by the hearer, who wants to get
feedback from the speaker.
Fourth, I find one datum that contains infringing a maxim, which is data 1.
The speaker may infringe a maxim when they are nervous, drunk, or excited. In
data 1, Ventura infringes a maxim by speaking in a hurry because he is nervous
and afraid that the big guy will know that he has already exchanged the dog.
In the data of my thesis, I cannot find any data that shows suspending a
maxim. I think it is due to the source of the data. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective is an
American comedy genre film about a pet detective named Ace Ventura, who is an
outspoken man. He is hired to find a dolphin called Snowflake. I cannot find any
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circumstances, events, or cultural reasons for the characters to suspend the
maxims.
From some of the data that I have analyzed in my thesis, many nonobservances of the maxims happen when many people fail to obey the Gricean
maxims. In order to avoid non-observance of maxims in conversations, people
should speak as informatively as is required, honestly, and straight to the point.
In addition, Gricean maxims help people understand the real meaning
behind the speakers’ utterance. In my study I found a strong point that flouting a
maxim really makes Ace Ventura: Pet Detective become a successful comedy
film. In my opinion, a film can be successful if the audience can understand what
the story is about through the acts and the words which are uttered. Most of the
conversations which contain non-observance maxims make this film more
interesting, because they make the audience realize the implied meanings behind
the characters’ utterances. The script writers of this film, Tom Shadyac and Jim
Carey, deserve praise for the success of this film because these two writers have
written a great script by applying non-observance of maxims through
conversations. Thus, I conclude that by being aware of the non-observance of the
Gricean maxims in the conversations, people can understand and enjoy this film
more.
Finally, for the readers of this thesis, I hope this thesis can help them to
understand more about the theory of Gricean maxims that are reflected through
the analysis of the dialogues in this film. For further research, I suggest that the
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researcher should use the data (containing non-observance of maxims) that belong
to different types of genre, such as drama, thriller, or children’s films.
1026 words
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Primary Text:
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Dir. Tom Shadyac. Prod. James. G. Robinson,
Morgan Creek Productions. Warner Bros. Pictures, 1994. DVD.
References:
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. 1994. Web. 14 Sept. 2011.
Thomas, Jenny. Meaning in Interaction: An Introduction to Pragmatics. London
and New York: Longman Group Limited, 1995. Print.
Yule, George. “Pragmatics.” 4shared. Oxford University Press (1996): 3. Web. 18
Sept. 2011.
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