An examination of metapragmatic comments on Facebook

Abstract

Despite the increasing interest in studying (im)politeness on Facebook, both in Anglo-centered societies and across cultures, very little explicit scholarly consideration has been given to the (im)politeness implications in Coronavirus pandemic-relate discussions. The aim of this paper is to (1) explore the basis on which metapragmatic comments are produced in Covid-related interaction on Facebook and (2) determine the perspectives (i.e., instigator or target) from which Facebook users express metapragmatic comments. The findings show that metapragmatic comments are expressed in order to react to negative attitudes (such as laughs and disregard) targeting Giuliani, indicating the commentators’ awareness of the appropriate conduct in a situation of despair such as dealing with COVID-19.