In Qutadgu Bilig, Ay-Toldi functions as a discourse actor who employs strategic communication in a deliberate manner. This study examines the passive-aggressive patterns in his speech through the lenses of indirectness and politeness. The central issue concerns the function of indirect discourse produced by a subordinate within a hierarchical order where open criticism remains constrained. The dialogues between Ay-Toldi and the ruler Kün-Togdi are analyzed at a micro level with regard to implicature, indirect speech acts, face strategies, irony, and semiotic elements. The theoretical framework draws on Grice, Searle, and Brown and Levinson. The findings show that Ay-Toldi uses indirect discourse as a functional strategy that tests and guides power, supported by nonverbal cues such as the ball metaphor, deliberate overlooking, and turning away. In this respect, the passive-aggressive discourse of wisdom allows a historical pragmatic reassessment of advisor-ruler relations in ethical, political, and communicative terms.
Qutadgu Bilig, discourse analysis, indirectness and face theory, passive-aggressive wisdom discourse, Ay-Toldi’s language of authority.