When I was taking a class about
Viking sagas, the
professor told all of us students about the laconic
style of writing. To put it simply, it's
gearing a
story towards a
specific audience. The
author will
expect the
reader (
listener back then) to already
know about certain people and other things specific to
the
culture.
The audience likes this type of story telling because it
makes them feel smarter and a part of a community.
They don't want to be retold the family lineage of a
chieftain when they already know it.
It's easy to find this in many places today. If I said
Bill and Monica,
chances are you would instantly know exactly who I was
talking about. You use it when talking to friends. There
are also lots of acronyms found on the Internet,
such as ROFL and LOL.