H. P. Grice virtually discovered the phenomenon of implicature (to denote the implications of an utterance that are not strictly implied by its content). Gricean theory claims that conversational implicatures can be explained and predicted using general psycho-social principles. This theory has established itself as one of the orthodoxes in the philosophy of language. Wayne Davis argues controversially that Gricean theory does not work. He shows that any principle-based theory understates both the intentionality of what a speaker implicates and the conventionality of what a sentence implicates. In developing his argument the author explains that the psycho-social principles actually define the social function of implicature conventions, which contribute to the satisfaction of those principles. This challenging book will be of importance to philosophers of language and linguists, especially those working in pragmatics and sociolinguistics.

A systematic critique of the Gricean theory of implicature, an established doctrine in the philosophy of language.
Reviews
'Implicature remains a stimulating and ambitious book which criticises Gricean pragmatics in a cogent and challenging way.' Cercles



Book Information
ISBN 9780521623193
Author Wayne A. Davis
Format Hardback
Page Count 216
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 402g
Dimensions(mm) 224mm * 145mm * 16mm