Analysis of the Non-Observance of the Gricean Maxims which Help Build the Conflict in House Season 1 & 2.

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ABSTRACT

Dalam tugas akhir ini saya mengambil topik Analysis of the

Non-Observance of the Gricean Maxims which Helps Build the Conflict in House Seasons 1 & 2. Saya menganalisis pelanggaran-pelanggaran yang terjadi dalam

sebuah percakapan dalam serial televisi House musim 1 dan 2 dengan menggunakan teori bidal dari Grice. Pelanggaran tersebut biasanya memiliki implikatur yang dapat menyebabkan sejumlah konflik di antara para tokoh dalam serial televisi ini.

Analisis yang dilakukan adalah analisis mengenai jenis bidal yang dilanggar, alasan pelanggaran, dan juga bagaimana pelanggaran tersebut menjadi pemicu yang mengakibatkan terjadinya konflik. Dari dua puluh satu data yang dianalisis, saya menemukan bentuk pelanggaran yang terbanyak adalah flouting, dan bidal yang paling sering dilanggar adalah bidal hubungan karena penutur memberikan respon yang tidak berkaitan dengan apa yang sedang dibicarakan oleh lawan bicara. Dalam serial televisi House ditemukan banyak pelanggaran aturan percakapan Grice yang menimbulkan konflik, dan hal ini membuat serial televisi ini menjadi menarik untuk ditonton.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .

BLE OF CONTENTS . . . …... . . i

ABSTRACT . . . ii

CHAPTER ONE : INTRODUCTION Background of the Study . . . .1

Statement of the Problem . . . 4

Purpose of the Study . . . 4

Method of Research . . . 4

Organization of the Thesis . . . 5

CHAPTER TWO : THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK . . . 6

CHAPTER THREE : ANALYSIS OF THE NON-OBSERVANCE OF THE GRICEAN MAXIMS WHICH HELPS BUILD THE CONFLICT IN HOUSE SEASONS 1 & 2 . . . 17

CHAPTER FOUR : CONCLUSION . . . .33

BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . 37


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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

As social beings, we need to interact with others. One of the many kinds of interaction is through communicaton. Communication is the act of giving information from one person to another through verbal and non-verbal messages.

There are two types of verbal messages: oral (face-to-face, telephone, radio, television, and other media) and written (letters, e-mails, books, magazines, newspapers, etc.). In non-verbal messages, there are body language, gestures, facial expression, etc.

With communication, we use language to deliver the message or make a conversation and it is one of the important things that humans do to get information. Yet, sometimes the utterance we use to deliver the message may have a hidden or implied meaning. We sometimes do not say what we want to say or we often say less or more than what we need to say to others.

The hidden or implied meaning that is contained in the utterance can create a misunderstanding. When people try to produce one sentence, it can mean


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differently to others because there is something behind it. From that, we have to try to guess what the speaker is actually saying. For example:

A : How are we getting there?

B : Well, we’re getting there in Dave’s car.

(Thomas 69)

From the conversation, we can see there might be an additional or implied meaning which is known as an implicature. The word we in B’s utterance does not include A. The answer has an implied meaning. The implicature from this utterance is B does not want A to come together with him or her.

The topic of implicature belongs to Pragmatics. Pragmatics is the study of speaker meaning (Thomas 1). Hence, through Pragmatics, people can learn to know the meaning of others’ utterances.

The reason why I choose Pragmatics is because I am interested in learning more about how communication runs in a conversation, which, of course, depends on context and it is important to understand the rules of communication.

I choose the non-observance of the Gricean maxims because from H. P.

Grice’s theory, which is written in Jenny Thomas’ book, I finally understand there

are implied meanings contained in utterances. Therefore, by using his theory, I hope I will understand the implicature used in utterances or conversations.

I also choose to analyze the non-observance of the Gricean maxims leading to conflict because I want to know how communication can make people have conflict with others. Besides, I realize nowadays people often fail to say what they want to say. They know that they have to say something straight to the


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point but they choose not to. Therefore, they fail to observe the maxims. Sometimes, failing to observe the maxims leads to conflict.

The data is taken from House series Seasons 1 and 2. I choose to take the data from a television series because I like watching movies and analyzing their conversations. I choose this series because in this series there are many conflicts that take place not only because of people’s attitudes but also their utterances. Their attitudes lead them to a conflict and through their utterances they may end up with a worse conflict.

In House series, the main character, Dr. Gregory House, is a critical, stubborn, risk-tasking and antisocial man. Yet, he is a smart doctor who leads a team of diagnostics at the Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital (PPTH) consisting of Dr. Allison Cameron, Dr. Robert Chase, and Dr. Eric Foreman.

He also good at making diagnoses and loves the challenges of his patients’ medical problems he must solve in order to save lives. His behavior shows he is an antisocial. He also has an unconventional thinking and flawless instincts which make other people respect him. He often diagnoses his patients’ illnesses based on his controversial thought which sometimes do not make sense. He also breaks many hospital rules and frequently leads him into conflicts with his boss, Dr. Lisa Cuddy, other doctors, and some patients. Because of that, in this movie, Dr. House is involved in many conflicts. Still, he has a very good friend, Dr. James Wilson, who will help him solve his problems. (House TV Show)

By reading this thesis, people will learn about how to choose critically the right word or utterance when talking to others. They will also know that conflict is


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not just caused by physical action but also verbal action. Therefore, I believe this thesis is significant.

Words : 734 words

1.2 Statement of the Problem

In my thesis, I would like to answer the following questions:

1. Which utterance in the movie does not observe the Gricean maxim? 2. What kind of non-observance of the maxim is it?

3. What is the implicature?

4. How does the non-observance of Gricean maxim help build the conflict?

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The purposes of the study are:

1. To find out the utterance that does not observe the Gricean maxim. 2. To classify the type of non-observance of the maxim.

3. To find out the implicature of the utterance.

4. To show how the non-observance of the Gricean maxim helps build the conflict.

1.4 Method of Research

The first step to get the data is finding the movie I would like to analyze. After that I started to watch it and collected the data. I analyzed the data by classifying the types of non-observance of the maxims used in the conversation.


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1.5 Organization of the Thesis

The thesis consists of four chapters. Background of the Study, Statement of the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Method of Research, and Organization of the Thesis are presented in Chapter One, which is Introduction. Theoretical Framework is presented in Chapter Two. The analysis of the data is in Chapter Three. Chapter Four states the conclusion. Bibliography and Appendix are presented at the end of this thesis.


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CHAPTER FOUR

CONCLUSION

In this chapter I would like to give my personal comments on the findings about the conflicts caused by the observance of the maxims. The only non-observance type found is flouting a maxim. Throughout the analysis, there are some utterances violating a maxim or opting out of a maxim in the television series, but the data are not significant and they do not lead to conflict. Therefore, I do not put them as my data in this thesis.

This study has pointed out the use of the non-observance of maxims in

House seasons 1 and 2, which leads to a conflict between the characters in the

television series and the meaning behind their utterances. It is revealed that the characters use various types of non-observance of maxims. Some of the types of non-observance of maxims occur more often than the others.

In total, I analyze twenty-three data, which come from five scenes. The major type of non-observance of maxims which leads to conflicts is flouting the maxim of relation. From all the data, there are seventeen data of the flouting of the maxim of relation. The second most often flouted maxim is the maxim of manner


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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Primary Text

Shore, David. “House.” Unaired Pilot. 16 November. 2004. DVD-ROM. NBC Universal Television Studio. 2004-2012

References

American Cancer Society. “What is Rhabdomyosarcome?” 21 November 2014. Web. 2 September 2015.

Chen, Yi-Bin. “Blood Clots”. U.S. National Library of Medicine. 29 May 2014. Web. 2 September 2015.

Gerster, Todd. “Do-not-resuscitate order”. Patient Instructions. U.S. National

Library of Medicine. 5 July 2014. Web. 9 February 2015.

House. House TV Show, n.d. Web. 30 April 2015

Jones, James H., “Tuskegee Syphilis Study”. Bad Blood: The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment. New York: Free Press. 5 December. 1992. Web. 23 April 2014.


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Today. MNT Knowledge Center. 26 September 2014. Web. 9 February 2015.

Leech, Geoffrey. Principles of Pragmatics. London and New York: Longman. 1993. Web. 23 April. 2014.

McMahon, Mary. “What is Exploratory Surgery?” wiseGEEK Health. 7 August 2015. Web. 2 September 2015.

MVA & Trauma Recovery. Mills Psychology. 2000. Web. 27 August 2015.

Raceanu, Marina Alexandra. “Speech Acts in Professional English”. 3 October 2013. Web. 30 September 2015.

Shaw, Harry. Dictionary of Literary Terms. McGraw-Hill. 1976. Print.

Swierzewski, Stanley J.. “What Is a Neurologist?” Remedy’s Health Communitites. 31 December 1999. Web. 2 September 2015.

The ALS Foundation. “What is ALS?” The ALS Association. 2010. Web. 9

February 2015.

Thomas, Jenny. Meaning in Interaction: an Introduction to Pragmatics. London and New York: Longman Group Limited, 1995. Print.

WebMD Home. Heart Disease Health Center. “Angiogram”. 9 September 2014. Web. 2 September 2015.


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point but they choose not to. Therefore, they fail to observe the maxims. Sometimes, failing to observe the maxims leads to conflict.

The data is taken from House series Seasons 1 and 2. I choose to take the data from a television series because I like watching movies and analyzing their conversations. I choose this series because in this series there are many conflicts that take place not only because of people’s attitudes but also their utterances. Their attitudes lead them to a conflict and through their utterances they may end up with a worse conflict.

In House series, the main character, Dr. Gregory House, is a critical, stubborn, risk-tasking and antisocial man. Yet, he is a smart doctor who leads a team of diagnostics at the Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital (PPTH) consisting of Dr. Allison Cameron, Dr. Robert Chase, and Dr. Eric Foreman.

He also good at making diagnoses and loves the challenges of his patients’ medical problems he must solve in order to save lives. His behavior shows he is an antisocial. He also has an unconventional thinking and flawless instincts which make other people respect him. He often diagnoses his patients’ illnesses based on his controversial thought which sometimes do not make sense. He also breaks many hospital rules and frequently leads him into conflicts with his boss, Dr. Lisa Cuddy, other doctors, and some patients. Because of that, in this movie, Dr. House is involved in many conflicts. Still, he has a very good friend, Dr. James Wilson, who will help him solve his problems. (House TV Show)

By reading this thesis, people will learn about how to choose critically the right word or utterance when talking to others. They will also know that conflict is


(2)

not just caused by physical action but also verbal action. Therefore, I believe this thesis is significant.

Words : 734 words

1.2 Statement of the Problem

In my thesis, I would like to answer the following questions:

1. Which utterance in the movie does not observe the Gricean maxim? 2. What kind of non-observance of the maxim is it?

3. What is the implicature?

4. How does the non-observance of Gricean maxim help build the conflict?

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The purposes of the study are:

1. To find out the utterance that does not observe the Gricean maxim. 2. To classify the type of non-observance of the maxim.

3. To find out the implicature of the utterance.

4. To show how the non-observance of the Gricean maxim helps build the conflict.

1.4 Method of Research

The first step to get the data is finding the movie I would like to analyze. After that I started to watch it and collected the data. I analyzed the data by classifying the types of non-observance of the maxims used in the conversation. Then I related it to the emergence of conflicts. Finally, I wrote the research report.


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1.5 Organization of the Thesis

The thesis consists of four chapters. Background of the Study, Statement of the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Method of Research, and Organization of the Thesis are presented in Chapter One, which is Introduction. Theoretical Framework is presented in Chapter Two. The analysis of the data is in Chapter Three. Chapter Four states the conclusion. Bibliography and Appendix are presented at the end of this thesis.


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CHAPTER FOUR

CONCLUSION

In this chapter I would like to give my personal comments on the findings about the conflicts caused by the observance of the maxims. The only non-observance type found is flouting a maxim. Throughout the analysis, there are some utterances violating a maxim or opting out of a maxim in the television series, but the data are not significant and they do not lead to conflict. Therefore, I do not put them as my data in this thesis.

This study has pointed out the use of the non-observance of maxims in House seasons 1 and 2, which leads to a conflict between the characters in the television series and the meaning behind their utterances. It is revealed that the characters use various types of non-observance of maxims. Some of the types of non-observance of maxims occur more often than the others.

In total, I analyze twenty-three data, which come from five scenes. The major type of non-observance of maxims which leads to conflicts is flouting the maxim of relation. From all the data, there are seventeen data of the flouting of the maxim of relation. The second most often flouted maxim is the maxim of manner


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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Primary Text

Shore, David. “House.” Unaired Pilot. 16 November. 2004. DVD-ROM. NBC Universal Television Studio. 2004-2012

References

American Cancer Society. “What is Rhabdomyosarcome?” 21 November 2014. Web. 2 September 2015.

Chen, Yi-Bin. “Blood Clots”. U.S. National Library of Medicine. 29 May 2014. Web. 2 September 2015.

Gerster, Todd. “Do-not-resuscitate order”. Patient Instructions. U.S. National

Library of Medicine. 5 July 2014. Web. 9 February 2015. House. House TV Show, n.d. Web. 30 April 2015

Jones, James H., “Tuskegee Syphilis Study”. Bad Blood: The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment. New York: Free Press. 5 December. 1992. Web. 23 April 2014.

Kabafusion Patient Focused Infusion Therapy. “What is IVIG?” 2012. Web. 9 February 2015.


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Today. MNT Knowledge Center. 26 September 2014. Web. 9 February 2015.

Leech, Geoffrey. Principles of Pragmatics. London and New York: Longman. 1993. Web. 23 April. 2014.

McMahon, Mary. “What is Exploratory Surgery?” wiseGEEK Health. 7 August 2015. Web. 2 September 2015.

MVA & Trauma Recovery. Mills Psychology. 2000. Web. 27 August 2015. Raceanu, Marina Alexandra. “Speech Acts in Professional English”. 3 October

2013. Web. 30 September 2015.

Shaw, Harry. Dictionary of Literary Terms. McGraw-Hill. 1976. Print.

Swierzewski, Stanley J.. “What Is a Neurologist?” Remedy’s Health Communitites. 31 December 1999. Web. 2 September 2015.

The ALS Foundation. “What is ALS?” The ALS Association. 2010. Web. 9

February 2015.

Thomas, Jenny. Meaning in Interaction: an Introduction to Pragmatics. London and New York: Longman Group Limited, 1995. Print.

WebMD Home. Heart Disease Health Center. “Angiogram”. 9 September 2014. Web. 2 September 2015.