Functions of ‘Uptalk’ in Australian English: A Tool to Express Humor

Abstract: ‘Uptalk’ is a frequent intonation pattern in Australian English (AusE) and has been thoroughly researched. Previous studies showed that ‘uptalk’, i. e., a raised pitch at the end of an intonation unit that is realized on declarative utterances, where a lowered pitch would be expected, may fulfill several interactional and more general functions in AusE. Among these are keeping a turn, expressing positive emotions, reducing the social distance between interlocutors, and establishing common ground. In this paper, the functions of uptalk in the speech of two AusE speakers, who recorded a podcast episode, are examined. The results coincide with prior findings. Notably, uptalk was used to express humor, jokes, or irony, which is an additional interactional function that has not yet been discussed in previous studies. In this study, an auditive impressionistic analysis was conducted. The findings need to be interpreted under the premise that they are based on a subjective research method. Since few researchers have investigated the connection between uptalk and humor, irony, and jokes, and because the scope of this study is limited, further research on the functionality of uptalk is needed. Lastly, this study demonstrated that using podcasts as data is a valid alternative to other methods.