Meiosis in the courtroom

by JLS
for the GC

Kramer in "Controversial Grice", comments:

"Because the lawyer knows that the witness
was intoxicated, he thinks it would be a good idea
for the jury, which does not know that fact, to ask
the witness "Were you intoxicated?""

This reminds me of Grice, WoW: 34

"Examples that involve exploitation, that is, a
procedure by which a maxim is flouted for the
purpose of getting a conversational implicature
by means of something of the nature of a figure
of speech."


"Meiosis. Of a man known to have broken up all
the furniture one says 'He was a little intoxicated'."

----

Griceish in the courtroom:

A: Were you intoxicated.
B: Slightly.

---

Variants:

A: Were you intoxicated.
B: Slightly.
A: What do you mean, 'slightly'?
B: A little. I grant I was a little intoxicated.
A: Which would amount to your breaking
--- up all the furniture.
--------- (Giggling in court).

---


A: I was a little intoxicated.
B: You broke up all the furinture.
A: "All" is, technically, a hyperbole.

-----

A: Were you intoxicated?
B: A little.
A: So you were.
B: We all are, you know, technically. There are
---- toxins in your organism as you speak.
A: I mean regarding the incident of your
---- breaking up all the furniture.
A: It wasn't all.

----

Etc.

One trusts the jury gets the drift. Etc.