| Since its establishment in the 1970 s, all kinds of research have boomed in pragmatics. With the deepening of the study, pragmatic analysis method is applied to various fields. Many scholars take the step of applying pragmatic theories in pedagogy, translation and literature.The Kite Runner is the first novel of Afghan-born American writer Khaled Hosseini. The novel was also first on the New York Times bestseller list from 2003 to 2005 and was listed as the best book by the Observer in 2005 in the UK. The novel explores many contemporary issues such as sexual abuse, social disarray in war, religious and cultural ideology and the perceptions of power in relationships within these multiple contexts.This thesis qualitatively examines three research questions based on Literary Pragmatics. 1.How do the main characters in the novel flout the Cooperative Principle(CP)? 2.How do the main characters in the novel observe the Politeness Principle(PP)?3.What are the underlying causes of violation of the CP and observation of PP? By elaborating on the conversational implicatures generated by the examples, we can get a better understanding of the characters and an appreciation of the writer’s style.The thesis analyzes the conversations between Amir, Amir’s father, Hassan and Assef from the perspective of the CP and PP to define the intentional meaning of the main characters. CP and PP are components of Literary Pragmatics which is an overarching analytical tool.Using CP and PP to analyze and interpret the writing, and examining and analyzing the conversational implicature in the dialogues of The Kite Runner, it was found that the dialogues were very effective in assisting the reader to more clearly grasp the characters’ personalities and psychological status. The underlying causes of the violation and observance of the CP and PP were found to be ethnic and religious identity, and economically defined social position.Application of pragmatic theories to novels may further testify the feasibility and validity of applying pragmatic theories to literature works and deepen the readers understanding of the characters. This analysis may also enrich the research of this novel. |
