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pragmatics SPEECH ACTS & EVENTS SPEECH ACTS Speech acts: Actions performed via utterances • Locutionary acts • Illocutionary acts • Perlocutionary acts Locutionary acts • Performed via producing a meaning linguistic expression Illocutionary acts • Performed via the communicative force of an utterance Perlocutionary acts • Performed via the effect of the utterance on the hearer. Problem • The same utterance can potentially have quite different illocutionary acts • How can speakers assume that the intended illocutionary act will be recognized by the hearer? Solution • Illocutionary Force Indicating Device (IFID) • Felicity conditions Illocutionary Force Indicating Device (IFID) • Performative verbs – Used in a simple positive present tense sentence – 1st person singular subject • I promise… • I sentence you… • I apologize… Test of performative verbs • I hereby V … – I _______ name the ship ‘Elizabeth’. – I _______ warn you not to sleep in class. – I _______ believe that there’s no Santa Claus. Felicity conditions • The appropriate circumstances for the performance of a speech act to be recognized. Felicity conditions “I promise to see you tomorrow’. • General conditions – The utterance is understood. • Content conditions – The content of the utterance is about a future event and the speaker is committed to the act. • Preparatory conditions – The event does not happen by itself. – The event will have a beneficial effect. • Sincerity conditions – The speaker does have a genuine intention to carry out the future act. • Essential conditions – The utterance changes the speaker’s state from non-obligation to obligation The performative hypothesis • To assume that every utterance (U) underlies a clause that contains a performative verb, which make the illocutionary forces explicit. • I (hereby) Vperformative you (that) U – Open the door. • Implicit/primary performatives – I hereby order you that you open the door. • Explicit performatives Speech act classification • Declarations • Representatives • Expressives • Directives • Commissives Declarations • The speech acts that change the state of the world via utterances. – I now pronounce you husband and wife – We find the defendant guilty. Representatives • The speech acts that states what the speaker believes to be the case or not. • Statements of fact, assertions, conclusions, and descriptions – The world is flat. – It is a sunny day. Expressives • The speech acts that state what the speaker feels. • Psychological stats (pleasure, pain, likes, joy, sorrow…) – I am sorry. – Congratulations. Directives • The speech acts used by the speaker to get someone else to do something. • Commands, orders, requests, suggestions. – Go away! Commissives • The speech acts that speakers use to commit themselves to some future actions • Promises, threats, refusals, pledges. – I can’t do that.