The Maxims of Dialogue

Have you ever read a line of dialogue that just felt off? Grammatically, it was correct, but it didn’t sound right. Chances are, it was breaking a maxim of conversation.

            These unspoken rules of dialogue are used every day in the real world, governing what it means to speak properly and creating an uncanny valley affect when broken. You probably already know these maxims intuitively, but being able to put them into words will help you understand why dialogue may sound unbelievable, chunky, or even have unintentional connotations. Most importantly—you’ll understand how to fix it.

            The first maxim is the maxim of quantity: saying only what is required, no more and no less.

            If your character is asked by the city guard what their business there is, and he replies with a lengthy explanation of how their friends have been captured by a bridge troll until he can find the objects described by three riddles, he has broken the maxim of quantity. Instead, following the maxim, he need only express his search for a person versed in riddles. He could say the following: “I heard of a wise man who lives here, and I must see him about some riddles.” Unless further questions are asked, he is not required to give any more information.

            The second maxim is the maxim of quality: saying only what you believe to be true. This maxim is most often broken in cases of lying (or when the writer forgets a fact mid-draft), but it can also be broken if a person misleadingly says something they are not certain of.

            For example, suppose the guard says, “Ah, Grand Elder Mimlach. Yes, I’m sure he’ll see you today,” without knowing whether the Elder is holding audiences that day, he is breaking the maxim of quality. Of course, this particular maxim can be used for the plot without sounding off to the reader.

            The third maxim is the maxim of relevance: saying only what is appropriate to the topic. This rule is technically two: saying only what is relevant to the topic and knowing when words change with context.

            Take the characters’ words from before as an example: “I must see the Elder!” may have been interpreted as a plea by the city guard, but saying it after being informed that the Elder is resting may be taken as a form of defiance, even if it was out of concern. This is another maxim that can be violated for plot purposes, like getting  your main character thrown out of the Elder’s home, but it can also be a pitfall when the writer did not intend the meaning brought on by the context.

            The final maxim is the maxim of manner: to be brief and clear when speaking. This maxim can be tricky to grasp because it often overlaps with the maxim of quantity, but quantity is more related to the content of what is said whereas manner is related to how it is being said.

            Consider how our hero, upon sneaking into the Elder’s garden and finding him with his granddaughter, might respond to the question, “How did you get in here?!” Taking a literal approach to the question, the hero might give a detailed account of how he climbed over the garden wall and bribed the gardener not to call the guards. Or, understanding the rhetorical nature of the question, he might apologize for sneaking in and explain that he would not have done it if his mission weren’t urgent. No maxims violated.

            Being a wise man, the Elder would give his answers to the riddles concisely, only saying what is relevant and what he believed to be true about each, and not giving any unnecessary information about the objects.

            The maxims of conversations may seem complicated at first, especially given how they interact with each other, but they can be a great asset to any writer interested in writing realistic dialogue. It is also important to remember that the maxims aren’t really new. They’re just describing the way you speak every day. So whenever you’re unsure about a piece of dialogue, follow your instincts. You know good speech better than you think you do.