When 6-year-old Sebastian asks the waitress in a restaurant for a fork, he says "Give me a fork." This illustrates a violation of rules in
A) semantics.
B) syntax.
C) phonology.
D) pragmatics.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Sebastian's request violates the rules of pragmatics, which deals with the social rules and conventions of language use in context, including politeness and appropriate ways to make requests. His direct demand lacks the politeness typically expected in such social interactions.

When 6-Year-Old Sebastian Asks the Waitress in a Restaurant for a Fork