1887
Volume 10, Issue 2
  • ISSN 2213-1272
  • E-ISSN: 2213-1280
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Abstract

Abstract

This paper examines the factors that influence the outcome of exchanges containing refusals, focusing specifically on the role of irony. For this purpose, we analyse spontaneous conversations in English (SPICE-Ireland Corpus and Spoken BNC) within a discursive framework (Eelen 2001Mills 2003Watts 2003) that considers the negotiation of opposing views as well as relationships between interlocutors. We propose a model that relies on the crucial distinction we draw between the ‘positional’ and the ‘interpersonal’ level, pointing at mismatches between the two when it comes to the presence of conflict. We determine the presence and (non-)resolution of interpersonal conflict based on evidence of relational work (Locher and Watts 2008) and show that although there is no fixed trajectory from irony type (Kapogianni 20112018) to interpersonal effect, some ironies are more interpersonally risky than others.

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2021-01-14
2024-12-11
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  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): interpersonal conflict; irony; multi-turn approach; refusals
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