Topic 12 - Meaning between the lines (Session A) > Practising Gricean Analysis > Task C > Our answer

Practising Gricean Analysis

Task C - Our answer

'You make my heart sing ' flouts the maxim of quality. Hearts can't literally sing. [Note that in terms of foregrounding theory this is a semantic deviation and a metaphor. Many (but not all) metaphors flout the maxim of quality.] The singer of the song is male, presumably (this fits with the stereotype for 1960s pop songs, and the lead singer - and indeed the rest of the group - were male). So the song appears to be a direct address to a young woman (this is typical of the genre), leading to the implicature that the singer is declaring strong love/attraction for the to the young woman.

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