The Contribution of General Pragmatic and Pragmalinguistic Characteristics of Sarcasm to the Recognition of Online Sarcasm: A Qualitative Study

Subject Areas : Journal of Language, Culture, and Translation

Zeynab Esmaeili ¹ , Mohsen Shahrokhi ² , Maryam Farnia ³

1 - Department of English, Shahreza Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahreza, Iran
2 - Department of English, Shahreza Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahreza, Iran
3 - Department of Language and Literature, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran

Received: 2023-07-05 Accepted : 2023-10-16 Published : 2023-11-01

Keywords: Sarcasm, Online sarcasm, Sarcasm recognition, EFL/ESL learners,

Abstract :

Sarcasm constitutes a main aspect of pragmatics. This study sought to identify the general pragmatic and pragmalinguistic characteristic of sarcasm that English native speakers and Iranian EFL/ESL learners draw on in the recognition of online sarcasm. In so doing, a qualitative thematic analysis design was used. The participants consisted of three groups (each consisting of 9 members) 1. natives 2. EFL 3. ESL , they were selected through snowball sampling. To collect the required data, a semi-structured interview was utilized. To analyze the collected data, manual thematic analysis of the data gathered through the semi-structured interview was conducted. According to the results, the following pragmalinguistic characteristics of sarcasm that English native speakers and Iranian EFL/ESL learners draw on in the recognition of online sarcasm were identified in the interviews: Emoticon, hyperbole, laughing and exclamation marks, and positive wording. Moreover, the general pragmatic characteristics of sarcasm that English native speakers and Iranian EFL/ESL learners draw on (as documented by the interviews) in the recognition of online sarcasm were allusion to antecedent, insincerity, contradiction, negative attitude, and victim. The findings have some implications for policymakers, curriculum planners, material developers, EFL teachers and researchers.

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