Six days later, at Fox News City Hall, Sean Hannity asked Trump about these statements about the increase in tests.
“Sometimes I jokingly or ironically say it. If I didn’t test it, it would look great,” he replied.
This looks like a pattern. Two months ago, the president was pondering the beneficial effects of injecting a disinfectant into the body to fight COVID-19.Trump after many health officials expressed their disappointment He repeatedly claimed to be just ironic..
That same month, he wrote the “Nobel Prize” after he misspelled the “Nobel Prize” in a tweet. He deleted the tweet Before relying on the familiar excuses: Irony.
Ironically, what makes it a very useful excuse for those who are trying to stay away from what they said?
As I explain My book Irony and irony Most cognitive scientists and other linguists consider irony to be a form of verbal irony. Both ways of speaking include saying the opposite of what you are saying. But ironic and ironic goals are actually different.
For example, suppose someone slowly says, “What a beautiful weather!” On cold and rainy days, it’s clear that they’re ironically talking about a disappointing situation. Irony is commonly used to provide commentary on unexpected negative consequences.
Irony, on the other hand, is most often used to despise the behavior of others. If someone tells you that you are a true genius after forgetting to meet for an important promise, they obviously do not mean that you are mentally talented. Simply put, irony is commentary, but irony is criticism.
That seems easy enough. But in reality, the line between irony and irony is blurry and confusing. Many claim that it is ironic, though it is actually ironic, as in the previous weather example.
The expansion of the ironic territory, ironically, is a language change that has been going on for some time.In fact, linguist Geoffrey Nunberg Called attention to this phenomenon 20 years ago.. Therefore, it is difficult to blame the president for confusing the two.
Another factor that is ironically difficult to grasp is related to saying the opposite of meaning. The recipient of such a statement is not supposed to receive it literally.
For this reason, if you use verbal irony or irony, May use clues to indicate non-literal intent.. For example, you may speak with a slower, lower, and louder voice tone than you normally would. Our pitch can plummet up and down. Ironic remarks are often accompanied by facial indications such as laughter and eye rotation.
That’s why when you say irony in text or email, Use pictograms to convey non-letter intent.. Of course, there is still no guarantee that the recipient will interpret the message correctly.
President Trump sometimes takes advantage of the irony. for example, At a rally in December 2019 in Hershey, PA“I understand the number of votes, but I’m sure it has nothing to do with it,” he said, referring to the House’s imminent decision to initiate the impeachment process. .. He shows his body by using absolute words such as “certainly” and “nothing” and gesturing widely with both hands. He also pauses to give the audience time to interpret his remarks as the opposite of what he said – in fact, “my high vote has to do with impeachment.” The statement is ironic because it has clear goals: Democrats in Parliament.
However, at both the Tulsa rally and his April press conference, the president’s controversial remarks had no such accompanying verbal and non-verbal clues. He wasn’t critical of anyone. He simply claimed that the test would lead to more infections, and asked what seemed to be a sincere question about the use of disinfectants to fight the virus. Maybe he literally meant what he said.
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As the President has repeatedly shown, the intended ironic allegations can be used to trace back criticized or otherwise unsuccessful statements. Thanks to our slippery understanding of the term, along with a way the irony can be easily overlooked, it can act like a “jailbreak” card: the speaker takes a mulligan of conversation and things. You can try to get it right.
All of us have said that we later regretted and complained that we were “joking” and “ironically.” But when we habitually reach for such excuses and escape linguistic sins, they become less and less effective, like the little boy who cried the wolf.
This article will be republished from conversation, A non-profit news site aimed at sharing ideas from academic experts. It was written by: Roger J. Kreuz, University of Memphis..
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Roger J. Kreuz does not work, consult, own shares, or receive funds for any company or organization that benefits from this article.