Exploring Maxim of Quantity in Spoken Academic Discourse

Abstract

Grice’s maxim of quantity is accredited to govern linguistic performance. Speakers are presumed to contribute as much information as required for referent identification, while listeners are ideally believed to expect clear, unambiguous and concise summarization of conversation. The Maxim of quantity is exploited to explore the quantity of information delivered in classroom sessions. The data for this study is gathered from undergraduate classroom sessions of three public sector universities in Pakistan. This study explores how far Grice’s maxim of quantity is relevant in determining the quantity of information in classroom discourse and how far speakers and hearers observe and non-observe Grice’s maxim of quantity in classroom discourse. This study is quantitative as well as qualitative in nature. Words per minute uttered by the speakers and the context/atmosphere of classroom sessions are explored. The findings of the study reveal that observance and non-observance of the maxim of quantity depend on the activities performed in classrooms, the needs of the students and the context of classroom sessions.