H.P. Grice and the Cooperative Principle in Conversation

H.P. Grice describes the "cooperative principle" in conversation. He said that conversations or dialogues work only when people have mutual trust for each other. In those situations four principles of conversation are taken for granted.

  1. First is the principle of quantity. When it is a person's turn to contribute to the conversation, he or she should say enough to help the other person understand, but should not dominate the conversation by holding the floor too long.
  2. Second is the principle of quality. Basically this means that a person should never say anything she knows to be untrue or to leave out pertinent information she knows to be true.
  3. Third is the principle of relevance. Participants expect that each new contribution is linked in some way to what has just been said or to the common thread of the conversation.
  4. Fourth is the principle of manner. This principle says that conversants expect people to be clear in their communications.

One of Garrison Keillor's "Lake Wobegon" stories does a good job of exemplifying these principles. Here's a patch for your listening pleasure (username is english and password is minard).