What are Grice's Maxims?

Grice's 4 Maxims are used when looking at speech. In an exam this may come in the form of a transcript. The Maxims are a great way of analysing relationships between those in the conversation, and quite often one maxim analysis will lead into another. They are: Quantity - How much information is given during the conversation? A lecture may have a high quantity of information, whereas passing somebody in the street may not. Quality - How truthful is the conversation and information? This can lead to asking about the intentions of a conversation. Relevance - Does the conversation flow and stay on one subject? This is a handy of analysing how interested people are in the conversation subject. Manner - How clear is the conversation? If somebody is lying, for example, the information they give may be more vague and avoiding answering the question.