Making Sense of Literal and Nonliteral Falsehood

How do typically developing children grasp the meaning of verbal irony?

“…That is, they should recognize that the speaker's statement does not reflect the speaker's belief; the speaker's true belief is that the research is not at all fascinating. This alone, however, is not sufficient for irony comprehension as the assessment of the speaker's true belief does not distinguish ironic remarks from lies (Demorest et al, 1984;Demorest, Silberstein, Gardner, & Winner, 1983;Sullivan, Winner, & Hopfield, 1995;Winner & Leekam, 1991;Winner et al, 1987). Winner and colleagues have argued that the distinction between irony and lies involves the speaker's intent with respect to the listener's beliefs about the statement.…”

Two Cues for Verbal Irony: Hyperbole and the Ironic Tone of Voice

“…Winner and Gallagher (1983), who studied adults, found that behavioral cues for irony, such as pointing or laughing, were more informative than intonational cues. Winner et al (1987) assessed the comprehension of spoken and written irony with 8-and 10-year-old children, and found that, at least by 8 years of age, irony was understood just as well when it was presented without intonational cues as when these cues were present. Finally, Winner and Leekam (1991) asked 5-to 7-year-olds to listen to stories and then to make attributions of beliefs about the characters.…”

Contrast of Kind Versus Contrast of Magnitude: The Pragmatic Accomplishments of Irony and Hyperbole

“…blatt, Gibbs & O'Brien, 1991;Gibbs, O'Brien, & Doolittle, 1995;Giora, 1995;Giora, Fein, & Schwartz, 1998;Glucksberg, 1995;Jorgensen, Miller, & Sperber, 1984;Katz & Lee, 1993;Katz & Pexman, 1997;Kreuz, Long, & Church, 1991; Kumon-Nakamura, Glucksberg, & Brown, 1995;Winner, 1988;Winner & Gardner, 1993;Winner, Levy, Kaplan, & Rosenblatt, 1989;Winner et al, 1987).…”