The power of inversion

The aim of this paper is to analyze irony as a violation of the maxim of quality, thus extending the definition established by Grice. More specifically, it demonstrates how this definition may result in a highly productive model taking advantage of the neo-gricean description of meaning. Therefore, irony will be examined as an inverting procedure which may affect not only what is said and what is inferred but also discursive typologies and textual traditions. Similarly, this proposal seeks to offer a contiguous definition of irony and humor as contrastive mechanisms. Finally, from a more general point of view, the paper will show how irony may be embedded in different types of discourse.