LCS 221
Cross-Cultural
Communications
Lecture 9 :
Speech Acts
Performative, Perlocutionary &
Illocutionary
(Unit 8)
Lecturer:
Amy Hiss
2024
2
Politeness Strategy- 3 basic
factors :
Lecture 8 Recap:
Power (P): capacity to impose upon
Systems of
others /control their actions.
Politeness
Distance (D): degree of familiarity
between interlocutors.
Ranking of imposition (R): the Politeness Systems:
degree to which communication counts
as imposition
Solidarity Politeness System
Based on no power no social distance [-P –D]
Deference Politeness System
based on no power difference but social
distance between speakers [- P +D] .
Hierarchical Politeness System
Based on power difference between speakers,
and or no social distance [+P +/-D].
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K Speech acts by Austin & Searle
E Performative Acts
Y – Moods: Declarative, Interrogative & Imperative
C
O Perlocutionary act
N Illocutionary act
C Felicity conditions
E
P AIM:
Define and explain the above concepts
T
Apply concepts to real experiences / contexts
S
LECTURE 9: OBJECTIVE
4 philosopher John Langshaw
Austin Austin and Searle
Austin, J. L. (1975). How to do things with worked together on
words (vol. 88). Oxford university press.
Speech Act Theory
And further developed by American and argued that our
language philosopher John Roger
Searle language does not
only describe reality
“speaking a language but that it canacts,
be
SPEECH ACTS
is performing speech
used to
acts such as making statements, perform
giving commands,acts
asking questions or making promises… [And] that all
linguistic communication involves linguistic (speech)
acts. In other words, speech acts are the basic or
minimal units of linguistic communication.” JR Searle
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3 TYPES OF SPEECH
ACTS
ILLOCUTIONARY
PERLOCUTIONARY
SPEECH ACTS
PERFORMATIVE
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PERFORMATIVE SPEECH ACT
Austin defines a performative as an utterance which contains a
special type of verb (a performative verb) which it performs an action.
A person is not just saying something but is actually doing
something
An utterance that describes the act it performs - i.e. it performs an
act and describe it simultaneously (at the same time).
E.g.: I pronounce you husband and wife
I name this child Ethan
SPEECH ACTS
Give me a high five
Will you marry me? – in this instance a speaker performs the act of
proposing supposedly by bending on his knees and asking the question
Non-performative utterances - simply describe something
rather than performing it simultaneously.
e.g.: You are stupid! - in this example, the speaker is simply
describing the hearer rather than performing simultaneously the
act of making him stupid.
I will slap you
They are married/ We’re getting married
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PERFORMATIVE SPEECH ACT
All utterances are acts of some sort even
though they may not name these acts as
performatives do.
Examples:
i. It’s hot outside. = expressing assertion
ii. Where are you going after this class? = …
Question
iii. Stay away from that boy! =…
SPEECH ACTS
Order/command
(vs. I order you to stay away from that boy)
These expressions are associated with
different MOODS
(a) Assertion –with declarative mood
(b) Question –with Interrogative
mood
(c) Order – with Imperative mood
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PERFORMATIVE SPEECH ACT
There are exceptions to these
moods and they are determined
by a context
e.g. 1: Why are your clothes all
over the place?/ Why are you
standing there?
Although this utterance is in
SPEECH ACTS
interrogative mood, the act is not a
question but an order to put the
clothes where they belong. There are two types of
acts that an utterance
e.g. 2: Have some more juice. may perform:
(This is in Imperative mood, but
performs the act of I. Perlocutionary
Offering/questioning rather than II. Illocutionary
Ordering).
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PERLOCUTIONARY SPEECH ACT
An act of having an effect on
the hearer through utterance.
If someone says to you:
You look so amazing!
You may:
-feel good about yourself
-walk with confidence
SPEECH ACTS
Or
You smell a bit funky, Bru:
The effects an utterance may have on
- Feel self-conscious/watched
the hearer are beyond our control.
-Feel embarrassed
Or
Your utterance might have the opposite
You talk too much! effect to the hearer than the intended
-Feel unwanted/disliked one.
-shut down, rejected e.g.: You may say something which is not meant to be
amusing BUT you find people laughing
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ILLOCUTIONARY SPEECH ACT
This is an act that an utterance
seems to perform by definition.
IN saying
An act
something, or the
speaker’s intention in producing
that utterance.
e.g.: “Stop doing that!”
SPEECH ACTS
This is an act of ordering - e.g. to
Types of illocutionary acts
assert authority
Ordering (e.g. Just leave me alone!)
Greeting (e.g. Molo, Awe, Hi there)
Requesting (e.g. Do you mind turning down the volume?).
Apologizing (e.g. I am sorry for keeping you waiting for
so long).
Promising (e.g. Yes, Mommy I will be back before 12am).
Warning/Advice (e.g. Be careful with that guy, he is a
crook).
Making Statements (e.g. This song is banging!)
Etc.
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FELICITY CONDITIONS
For speech acts (e.g. a command) to be successfully
performed, certain contextual conditions need to be met.
These are called “felicity conditions ”
(felicity= appropriacy)
e.g. A command can be a command only if:
SPEECH ACTS
a. The speaker has the authority over the hearer
b. The action which the speaker mentions is possible
(e.g. Get up from your seat vs. Walk on your head!)
(possible) (impossible)
These conditions can also be violated and that leads to a
failure/misfires/defective/unsuccessful
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DEGREES/CONDITIONS OF FELICITY
Speaker A: Hey Honey I know you’re not feeling well, but have you prepared me
a meal yet?
Speaker B: Why yes, Babe, I even cooked your favourite meal, pasta, with
buffalo wings and salad on the side. I also made a lekke lamb curry and for
dessert I made you brownies which will be served with vanilla ice-cream and
chocolate sauce.
Preparatory Preparatory
Condition Condition
SPEECH ACTS
Context/setting must be Speaker B is not
appropriate, and speaker appreciative of speaker A
must have the right to asking her whether she
has prepared a meal for
perform theCondition
Sincerity act Sincerity Condition
him in her state of being ill
This has to do with the Speaker B responds by
attitude of the speaker. In being sarcastic and
other words, a person who providing speaker B with a
is performing the act must menu that she supposedly
be genuine that he will carry prepared just for him –
it out
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What is the Speech
Act?
What is the degree
of Felicity
condition?
Perlocutionary
Speech Act,
Context: Interview with popular 90’s
Sincerity Condition
female group, ‘Destiney’s Child’ (misfire)
“ [indercernable…claimed
that there was - The interviewer clearly states
favouritism, that Beyonce these claims with some
was favourite. Given that intentionality at presumably
she is rising now as a star, triggering a negative response-
when you look back …
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What is the speech act?
What is the degree of
Felicity condition?
Illocutionary Speech
Act, Preparatory
Condition
Context: Celebrity/Family entertainment
show
-The context in which the host
“(Kim laughs) and Psalm is ‘Ellen’ makes her statement can
the one that was uh that was be taken as appropriate ,
wearing the giant chain however, the interviewee’
around his neck (Kim: Yes), is doesn’t appreciate the claim
about ‘fake gold chain” – leads
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SPEECH ACTS
END
