the literary fiction¿ ¿ a state of affairs where the implied author (or narrator) expresses their impolite beliefs to the reader through the text, which has face-threatening consequences for the audience, e.g. moral shock or disgust, dissociation from the protagonist, feeling hurt or ¿put out¿. Extradiegetic impoliteness, one of the key characteristics of McEwan¿s fiction, offers an alternative to the literary concept of ¿a secret communion of the author and reader¿ (Booth 1961), describing an ideal connection, or good rapport, between these two participants of fictional communication. This book aims to unite literary scholars and linguists in the debate on the benefits of combining pragmatics and stylistics in literary analysis, and it will be of interest to a wide audience in both fields.