A Pragmatic Analysis of the Expression and Interpretation of Sarcasm in Chats on Facebook Messenger

master's thesis

• Title (croatian): Pragmatička analiza izražavanja i interpretacije sarkazma u razgovorima putem aplikacije Facebook Messenger
• Author: Vjera Krašek
• Mentor: Marina Grubišić (mentor)
• Committee member: Anđel Starčević (predsjednik povjerenstva)
• Committee member: Janja Čulig (član povjerenstva)
• Granter: University of Zagreb; Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; (Department of English language and literature); Zagreb
• Defense date and country: 2021-09-23, Croatia
• Scientific / art field, discipline and subdiscipline: HUMANISTIC SCIENCES; Philology; Anglistics

Abstract

Sarcasm is most typically defined as a type of speech that draws attention to discrepancies between an utterance and its intended meaning, or the current and counterfactual situation, often as a way of dampening critical remarks or being humorous. Sarcastic intent can be signaled with the use of a variety of multimodal cues in face-to-face communication, mainly verbal cues, gestures, facial expressions, and prosody. Computer-mediated communication has for a long time constrained our ability to express sarcasm multimodally, but the computer-mediated environment has undergone significant developments since the dawn of the Internet, producing replacements for multimodal cues. This thesis analyzes the translation of potential sarcastic cues from face-to-face to computer-mediated communication on a sample of conversations in Facebook Messenger. Among the most common cues are punctuation, GIFs, code-switching, and emoji, though some other innovative cues have also been found: the alternating caps technique and use of hashtags. GIFs and code-switching are especially prevalent in the collected samples, illustrating the value of quotation, dramatization, and exaggeration in communicating sarcasm. Previous research and the presented analysis also highlight the significance of context in the correct interpretation of sarcasm. Results indicate the need for further research concerning sarcastic communication, the occurrence of code-switching in computer-mediated communication, and the significance of GIFs in communicating sarcasm in this environment.

Abstract (croatian)

Sarkazam se najčešće opisuje kao vrsta govora kojom se skreće pozornost na razlike između samog izričaja i njegova značenja, odnosno između trenutne i suprotne situacije, a često se koristi za ublažavanje kritika ili izražavanje humora. Sarkazam u komunikaciji licem u lice možemo signalizirati uporabom različitih multimodalnih znakova; uglavnom su to verbalni znakovi, geste, izrazi lica te prozodija. Računalno posredovana komunikacija dugo je ograničavala naše mogućnosti multimodalnog izražavanja sarkazma, no računalno posredovano okruženje doživjelo je značajan razvoj od pojave interneta, tijekom kojeg su predstavljene razne zamjene za multimodalne znakove. Ovaj rad analizira prijenos potencijalnih sarkastičnih znakova iz komunikacije licem u lice u računalno posredovanu komunikaciju na uzorku razgovora u aplikaciji Facebook Messenger. Interpunkcija, GIF-ovi, prebacivanje koda i emojiji među najčešćim su znakovima, iako su pronađeni i drugi, inovativni znakovi: tehnika izmjenjivanja velikih i malih slova (alternating caps) te upotreba hashtagova (#). GIF-ovi i prebacivanje koda osobito su zastupljeni u prikupljenim uzorcima, što ukazuje na vrijednost citiranja, dramatizacije i preuveličavanja u komuniciranju sarkazma. Pethodna istraživanja i ova analiza također ističu važnost konteksta u ispravnoj interpretaciji sarkazma. Rezultati ukazuju na potrebu za daljnjim istraživanjima u područjima sarkastične komunikacije, prebacivanja koda u računalno posredovanoj komunikaciji te uporabe GIF-ova u računalno posredovanoj sarkastičnoj komunikaciji.

• Keywords: sarcasm; computer-mediated communication; multimodality; GIF; code-switching; context
• Keywords (croatian): sarkazam; računalno posredovana komunikacija; multimodalnost; GIF; prebacivanje koda; kontekst
• Language: english
• URN:NBN: urn:nbn:hr:131:381237
• Study programme: Title: English Language and Literature (double major); specializations in: Linguistics, Literature and Culture, Translation; Course: Linguistics; Study programme type: university; Study level: graduate; Academic / professional title: magistar/magistra engleskog jezika i književnosti (magistar/magistra engleskog jezika i književnosti)
• Type of resource: Text
• File origin: Born digital
• Access conditions: Open access
• Created on: 2021-09-28 21:53:49