Are ironic acts deliberate?

Many figurative language scholars maintain that ironic acts, involving linguistic and nonlinguistic behaviors, are deliberate and quite consciously performed for special pragmatic purposes. This article explores some of these common assumptions about irony as a deliberate pragmatic action in light of contemporary research in psycholinguistics and cognitive science on meaning, consciousness and human action. My claim is that ironic acts may not be as “deliberate” in their creation and use as is often believed, especially in the sense that ironic meanings arise from completely conscious states of mind. I propose an alternative, dynamical view of intentional action that better explains the psychological complexities of how ironic acts are created and understood.

► Examine deliberate use of irony.
► Argue against deliberateness as main strategy of ironic communication.
► Discuss alternative view of intentional communication.