p6 Speechacts

Hauptseminar Introduction to Pragmatics
http://ifla.uni-stuttgart.de/~jilka/index.html
Speech acts and events
BASIC CONCEPTS
Speakers can perform actions while making utterances
Situation: At work, boss has great deal of power
You're fired
more than just a statement, actually ends your employment
Other examples:
You're so fantastic (compliment)
You're welcome (acknowledgement of thanks)
You're crazy! (expression of surprise)
Actions performed via utterances are called speech acts (e.g., apology, complaint,
compliment, invitation, promise, request)
The speaker normally expects that his or her communicative intention will be recognized by the hearer -
both speaker and hearer are helped by the circumstances surrounding the utterance.
These circumstances (including other utterances) are called the speech event
The tea is really cold!
Situation A: On a wintry day, the speaker reaches for a cup of tea, believingthat it has been freshly
made, takes a sip, and produces the utterance complaint
Situation B: On a really hot summer's day the speaker is being given a glass of iced tea, takes a sip,
and produces the utterance praise
No simple utterance-to-action correspondence is possible!!!
PHILOSOPHICAL BACKGROUND
1930s: - logical positivism (unless a sentence can be tested for its truth or falsity,
it is strictly speaking meaningless)
vs.
- Wittgenstein: Meaning is use
Austin 1962: - theory of Speech Acts
- series of lectures (posthumouslypublishedas How to do things with words)
truth conditions are not central to language understanding
- performatives vs. constatives
I christen this ship the Imperial Flagship Mao
- speech act goes wrong if
+ship already has another name
+I am not authorized to name it
+there are no witnesses, slipways, bottles of champagne
felicity conditions (conditions performatives must meet to succeed)
Searle 1969: - systematization of Austins work, creating speech act theorys impact
on linguistics
- felicity conditions constitute various speech acts (illocutionary acts)
- typology of speech acts
SPEECH ACTS
An action performed by producing an utterance consists of three related acts
locutionary act: basic act of utterance, producing a meaningful linguistic expression
Aha mokofa (not a locutionary act)
I've just made some coffee (locutionary act)
illocutionary act:function/communicative force of the utterance (also called illocutionary
force), can be a statement, offer, explanation etc.
perlocutionary act:intended effect of the action (also called perlocutionary effect)
- speecht acts are often interpreted narrowly as just the illocutionary force of an utterance
- the same locutionary act can count as different illocutionary forces
I'll see you later
can be a prediction, promise or warning
How can speakers be sure that the intended illocutionary force will be recognized by the
hearer? IFIDs and felicity conditions
IFIDS
An IFID (Illocutionary Force Indicating Device) is an expression with a slot for a verb
that explicitly names the illocutionary act being performed.
- such verbs are called performative verbs
I promise/warn you that ...
- they are not always made this explicit in conversation
A: Can I talk to Mary?
B: No, she's not here.
A: I'm asking you - can I talk to her?
B: And I'm telling you - She is not here!!!!
- most of the time there is no performative verb mentioned
Other IFIDs beside performative verbs: word order, stress, intonation, voice quality
(lowered for warnings/threats)
You're going! [I tell you X]
You're going? [I request confirmation about X]
Are you going? [I ask you if X]
FELICITY CONDITIONS
Felicity conditions: expected or appropriate circumstances for a speech act to be recognized
as intended
I sentence you to six months in prison
- performance will be infelicitous if the speaker is not a judge in a courtroom
general conditions: language is understood, no play-acting, nonsense
content conditions: e.g. for promises/warnings the content of the utterance must be
about a future event (promise: the event will be an act by the speaker)
preparatory conditions: pre-existing conditions about the event, e.g.,
promise: event will not happen by itself, event will be beneficial
warning: it's not clear if the hearer knows that the event will occur,
the event will not have a beneficial effect
sincerity conditions: attitude of the speaker, e.g.,
promise: speaker genuinely intends to carry out the future action
warning: speaker genuinely believes the future event will not have
a beneficial effect
essential conditions: change of state in the speaker, e.g.,
promise: change of state from non-obligation to obligation to carry
out action
warning: change of state from non-information of bad future event
to information
THE PERFORMATIVE HYPOTHESIS I
Performative Hypothesis:
One way to think about the speech acts being performed via utterances is to assume that
underlying every utterance (U) there is a clause containing a performative verb (Vp) which
makes the illocutionary force explicit
I (hereby) Vp you that U
- the subject must be first person
- the adverb 'hereby' indicates that utterance counts as an action
- Vp in the present tense
- indirect object in second person singular
Clean up this mess I hereby order you to clean up this mess
The work was done by Elaine and myself I hereby tell you that the work was done
by Elaine and myself
implicit performatives explicit performatives
(primary perormatives)
any definite noun phrase
THE PERFORMATIVE HYPOTHESIS II
This type of analysis makes clear what elements are involved in the production and
interpretation of utterances:
in syntax a reflexive pronoun (like 'myself') requires an antecedent ('I') within the same
sentence structure (it can be found in the explicit performative!!)
it can be shown that some adverbs naturally attach to the explicit performative clause
rather than the implicit version:
Honestly, he's a scoundrel (I hereby honestly tell you that he is a scoundrel)
What time is it, because I may be late? (I hereby ask you because I may be late ...)
problem: explicit utterance may change interpretation (versions are not equivalent)
I hereby order you to clean up this mess You're dumber than a rock
has a more serious impact than does not really work as an insult as
Clean up this mess ? I hereby insult you that you're dumber than a rock
('insult' may not be a performative verb)
We don't how many performative verbs there are in any language!!
SPEECH ACT CLASSIFICATION I
declarations: - speech acts that change the world via their utterance
- the speaker has to have a special institutional role, in a specific situation
Priest: I now pronounce you husband and wife
Referee: You're out
Jury Foreman: We find the defendant guilty
the speaker changes the world via words
representatives:- speech acts that state what the speaker believes to be the caseor not
- statements of fact, assertions, conclusions and descriptions are all
examples of the speaker representing the world as he/she believes it is
The earth is flat
Chomsky didn't write about peanuts
It was a warm sunny day
the speaker makes words fit the world (of belief)
expressives: - speech acts that state what the speaker feels
- they express psychological states and can be statements of pleasure, pain,
likes, dislikes, joy, sorrow ...
I'm really sorry
Congratulations!
Oh yes, great, mmmmm!!
the speaker makes words fit the world (of feeling)
SPEECH ACT CLASSIFICATION II
directives: - speech acts that speakers use to get someone else to do something
- they express what the speaker wants, they are commands, orders, requests,
suggestions and can be positive or negative
Gimme a cup of coffe. Make it black
Could you lend me a pen, please?
Don't touch that
the speaker attempts to make the world fit the words via the hearer
commissives: - speech acts that speaker use to commit themselves to some future action
- they express what the speaker intends, they are promises, threats, refusals, pledges
- they can be performed by the speaker alone, or by as a member of a group
I'll be back
I'm going to get it right next time
We will not do that
the speaker undertakes to make the world fit the words via the speaker
Summary
Speech Act Type Direction of fit Form (S =speaker, X =situation)
Declarations words change the world S causes X
Representatives make words fit the world S believes X
Expressives make words fit the world S feels X
Directives make the world fit words S wants X
Commissives make the world fit words S intends X
EXERCISE
Classify the following speech acts
1 Ill make him an offer he cant refuse (Mario Puzo)
commissive
2 I baptize this baby J ohn
declarative
3 Better remain silent and be thought a fool, than open your
mouth and remove all possible doubt (Chinese proverb)
directive
4 Ifd known I was gonna live that long, Id have taken
better care of myelf (Eubie Blake)
expressive
5 I came, I saw, I conquered (J ulius Caesar)
representative
DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH ACTS I
Whenever there is a direct relationship between a structure and a function
Direct Speech Act
You wear a seat belt. (declarative)
Do you wear a seat belt? (interrogative)
Wear a seat belt! (imperative)
If the relationship between structure and function is indirect
Indirect Speech Act
Example: A declarative used to make a statement is a direct speech act, a declarative used to
make a request is an indirect speech act.
It's cold outside
I hereby tell you about the weather (direct speech act)
I hereby request that you close the door (indirect speech act)
Example: Speaker wants hearer not to stand in front of the TV
Move out of the way! (Imperative -> direct speech act)
Do you have to stand in front of the TV? (Interrogative -> indirect speech act)
You're standing in front of the TV (Declarative -> indirect speech act)
You'd make a better door than a window (Declarative -> indirect speech act)
DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH ACTS II
There is a typical pattern in English whereby asking a question about the hearer's
assumed ability ('can you', 'could you') or future likelihood with regard to doing
something ('will you', 'would you') normally counts as a request to actually do that
something.
Could you pass the salt?
Would you open this?
Indirect speech acts are generally associated with greater politeness than direct
speech acts.
SPEECH EVENTS I
An indirect request can be interpreted as question whether the necessary conditions for a
request are in place, i.e., a preparatory condition would be that the speaker assumes that
the hearer is able ('CAN') to perform the action. A content condition concerns the future
action that the hearer WILL perform the action.
Content condition Future act of hearer 'WILL you do X?'
(=hearer will do X)
Preparatory condition Hearer is able to perform act 'CAN you do X?'
(=hearer CAN do X)
Questioning a hearer-based condition for making a request results in an indirect request.
- there is a definite difference between asking someone to do X and asking someone if the
preconditions for doing X are in place.
- asking about preconditions technically doesn't count as making a request, but allows the
hearer to react as if the request had been made (=less of an imposition on the hearer, smaller
risk of refusal)
An utterance is part of a larger social situation involving people with some kind of social
relationship and particular goals
Speech Event =the set of utterances produced in such a situation
SPEECH EVENTS II
A speech event is an activity in which participants interact via language in some
conventional way to arrive at some outcome.
- may include one obvious central speech act
- may include other utterances leading up to and subsequently reacting to that central action
A: Oh, Mary, I'm glad you're here.
B: What's up?
A: I can't get my computer to work. the request is the whole speech event,
B: Is it broken? not a single speech act.
A: I don't think so.
B: What's it doing? no actual request is made
A: I don't know. I'm useless with computers.
B: What kind is it?
A: It's a Mac. Do you use them?
B: Yeah.
A: Do you have a minute?
B: Sure.
A: Oh, great
- the question 'Do you have a minute?' could be characterized as apre-request, allowing the hearer to
say that she's busy or that she has to be somewhere else.
- the response 'Sure' is taken to be an acknowledgement not only of having time available, but a
willingness to perform the unstated action.

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Hauptseminar Introduction to Pragmatics

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