Faradina Primarini NS

1923042001
Questions

1. What are Searle's speech acts?

2. What are the sub-speech acts in each type of Searle's speech acts?

3. What are direct speech acts? Why do people perform direct speech acts?

4. What are indirect speech acts? Why do people perform indirect speech acts?

Answers

1. Searle used the idea of illocutionary force as the central idea of his theory. He stated that
part of the meaning of an elementary is that its literal utterance in a given context constitutes
the performance of an illocutionary act of a particular illocutionary force. From Searle's
view, there are only five illocutionary points that speakers can achieve on propositions in an
utterance, namely: the assertive, commissive, directive, declaratory and expressive
illocutionary points.
- Assertives : They commit the speaker to something being the case. Directives: They try to
make the addressee perform an action.
- Commisives: They commit the speaker to doing something in the future.
- Expressives: They express how the speaker feels about the situation.
- Declarations: They change the state of the world in an immediate way

2. Each type of Searle’ speech acts has sub-speech acts as follows:

Assertives speech acts:

- Claim: It puts forward some view, like assert, but it is a more forceful because the
speaker in making a claim is expecting opposition and has evidence to back up the claim.
- Assure: It is described as asserting with the prelocutionary intention of convincing the
hearer of the truth of the propositional content in the world of the utterance.
- Argue: It differs from assure only in that speaker gives supporting for (P)
- Inform: To inform is to assert to a hearer with the additional preparatory condition that
the hearer does not already what he is being informed of
- Conjecture: It is to weakly assert that (P) while presupposing that one has at least some
evidence for P. Conjecture implies that the speaker at least has thought about P but does
not know the answer, effectively, it is based on some evidence but not enough to form a
complete picture.
- Swear: To swear that P is an attempt to make the hearer have to believe that what we are
saying is true often by calling something upon that is sacred to the speaker as a witness to
the truthfulness of the statement.
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Commissive speech acts

- Promise: The effect of promise is to cause the hearer to believe that the speaker will
undertake to do the P
- Consent: It takes place in response to a particular request.
- Refuse: It is the illocutionary denegation of consent. It is like consent in that it is a
response to an actual or implied request.

Directive speech acts

- Request: A directive illocution that allows for the possibility of refusal.

- Tell: It can be used in sense of telling someone to do something. On the other hand, it can
be used in the sense of telling a story.
- Require: it carries a greater degree of strength, and that there is only an additional
preparatory condition that it needs to be done. It appears to imply an element of
obligation, but the speaker has no authority over the hearer.
- Permit: May take place without the knowledge that the hearer is actively seeking
permission.

Declarativ speech acts:

- Baptise and excommunicate

Expressive speech acts:

- Greeting, regret, joy, and sorrow.

3. Direct speech acts are whenever there is a direct relationship between a structure and function
of the utterance. People tend to perform direct speech acts in order to avoid misunderstanding in
a conversation and get satisfactory and clear answers.

4. Indirect speech acts are utterances that contain illucotionary act but which is uttered to
perform another type of illucotionary act. In other words, this is speaker's act of communicating
with hearer more than what is actually said. It relies on the knowledgeable background
information about the conversation shared by both speaker and hearer. Searle in Smith (1991)
mentions politeness as a reason for the use of indirect speech acts since the speaker diminish the
unpleasant message contained in requests and orders for instance.
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Title of the movie: Reach (Health Mental Awareness)

Summary of content from the movie:

This movie focuses on a life of a girl named Rachika who fights against feelings of depression,
anxiety, and fear towards her surrounding and herself. There is a state when depression and
anxiety attack her and she feels worthless and useless. Whenever those feelings come, Rachika
tries to calm herself yet she knows that happiness or peaceful life is temporary. She starts
remembering her past which is the cause of her fear, depression, and anxiety. This time, Rachika
is exhausted since she has been coping with those feelings and her past for years. She thinks
whether being saved or killed is a fine option as long as she can reach to the happiness.

The analysis of personal deixis

1. I hope reports will be completed today (I refers to Vikram when he talks to Rachika,
01:43)
2. Yes, I am planning to finish it by today 4…. 4:30 (I refers to Rachika, 01:48)
3. You need to understand this Rachika (You refers to Rachika, 01: 52)
4. I can’t afford time validating your reports (I refers to Vikram, around 01:54)
5. And I don’t want to see any errors this time (I refers to Vikram, 02:01)
6. If you have any doubts (You refers to Rachika, 2:03)
7. I will (I refers to Rachika, 02:04)
8. As I have a meeting, I won’t be available for next 4 hours (I refers to Vikram, 02:05)
9. And one more thing. I hope you are ready for the presentation today (I here refers to
Vikram while you refers to Rachika, 02:14)
10. Are you sure it will be completed by today? (You refers to Rachika, 2:19)
11. We were supposed to… (We refers to Vikram plus the management, excluding the
participants of meeting, 04:01)
12. Are you with me? (you refers to Rachika while me refers to Vikram, 04:16).
13. I hope you are ready with the presentation (I refers to Vikram and you refers to Rachika,
04:20).
14. So I talk about the marketing mix modeling today (I refers to Rachika, 04:26)
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Movie 2: Letting Go

Summary of What I can learn:

This short movie teaches people that they shall let their beloved person go and learn to stand on
their own feet.

Spatial deixis

1. Dinner is ready. Are you coming? (Coming refers to location where speaker and hearer
will have to go, 1:09).
2. Like this (this refers to magic show which is performed near hearer, 1:29)
3. Let’s go inside (Go refers to the location that is acknowledged neither speaker nor hearer
is inside, 1:39)
4. They cannot be here already (here refers to the house, 2:48)
5. We get there (There refers to the distant place that the speaker and hearer are heading to,
3:03)
6. But father never came back (Came is spatial deixis since it refers to the father’s position
which is acknowledged not at home, 3:55)
7. Mother, I have to go, I can stop him (Go refers to speaker’s movement to her brother’s
locaition, 3:42)
8. This is your last chance, go back (Go refers to hearer’s place which is distant, 6:22)

Temporal deixis

1. I can’t believe it is already tonight (Tonight refers to time when something is going to
happen (present time, 1:52).
2. You will get things you need (Will get refers to the future time when the hearer can get
what he needs, 3:03)
3. Don’t worry, I will be back soon (Back soon refers to time when he will return home
someday in the future (unrecognized time), 3:21)
4. The two of us will have nothing to bear (Will have is identified as temporal deixis using
tense, it refers to future moment, 4:11)
5. It is just you and I now (Now refers to the present time and current moment, 4:14)
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6. Nadia, go home now (Now refers to the present when the speaker wants the hearer to go
home, 5:31)