MOUNT CARMEL COLLEGE OF CASIGURAN, Inc.
CASIGURAN, AURORA
3204
EL 121 – STYLISTICS AND DISCOURSE ANALYSIS
BACHELOR OF SECONDARY EDUCATION – ENGLISH 3
Reporter:
PRECIOUS JEWEL P. BERNAL
DENVER M. ALACANTARA
What Is Speech Act?
Speech-act theory is a subfield of
pragmatics. This area of study is concerned with
the ways in which words can be used not only to
present information but also to carry out actions.
It is used in linguistics, philosophy, psychology,
legal and literary theories, and even the
development of artificial intelligence.
Speech Act Theory is concerned with
the ways in which language can be used. It
originated with Austin, but was developed by
Searle. The theories of Austin and Searle are
described and several problem areas are
identified. If it is to be a viable theory of
language usage, speech act theory must be able
to integrate with a theory of discourse structure,
because if speech acts are identifiable as units of
language, then it must be possible include them
in a model of discourse. The second chapter
examines discourse structure, examining two
rival theories: the discourse analysis approach
and the
Discourse analysis is an approach to the
study of language that demonstrates how
language shapes reality. Discourse is understood
as a way of perceiving, framing, and viewing the
world. For example: A dominant discourse of
gender often positions women as gentle and men
as active heroes. Conversational analysis
approach. Discourse analysis is broadly
sympathetic to speech act theory, whereas,
conversational analysis is not. The claims of
conversational analysis are examined and are
found to be wanting in several respects.
Speech Act Theory is then discussed
with a particular emphasis on the problem of
relating speech acts to each other within a larger
unit of discourse. It is noted that Austin, by
including the expositive class of speech acts,
allows for the possibility of relations between
speech acts, whereas Searle's description of
speech acts effectively rules out any relations
between speech acts.
The third chapter develops speech acts
in terms of a schematic model consisting of
cognitive states, a presumed effect of the speech
act and an action. The cognitive states are
represented using modal and deontic operators
on the proposition within epistemic logic. This
idea of the description of a speech act in terms
of cognitive states is developed in Chapter Four.
Title of Report:
SPEECH ACTS
In Chapter Four, speech acts are
related using a communicated cognitive state to
pair two speech acts together into a primary and
secondary speech act. It is noted that the idea of
a primary and secondary speech act is present
within the discourse analysis model of discourse
(in the form of the initiation-response cycle of
exchanges) and also in the conversational
analysis approach to discourse (in the form of
the adjacency pair). The conclusion from this is
that the two approaches are perhaps not so
incompatible as might first appear.
Chapter Five deals with grammatical
sentence types and their possible use in
communicating cognitive states. It also
examines modal auxiliary verbs and their
possible relationship to the modal and deontic
operators used in the cognitive state model.
In Chapter Six, theories of indirect
speech acts are described. An explanation of
indirect speech acts is developed using
pragmatic maxims and cognitive states to
explain why certain indirect forms are chosen.
This leads to a theory of linguistic politeness and
a use model of speech acts
Speech-act theory was introduced in
1975 by Oxford philosopher J.L. Austin in "How
to Do Things with Words" and further developed
by American philosopher J.R. Searle. It
considers three levels or components of
utterances: locutionary acts, illocutionary acts,
and perlocutionary acts.
LOCUTIONARY ACTS
The locutionary act is the act of making an
expressive meaning, extending the spoken
language preceded by silence and then followed
by silence or a change of speaker – also known
as a locution or utterance act.
An utterance act is a language that
comprises of the verbal employment of units of
expression such as words and sentences, where-
as Propositional acts are clear and expressive
with a specific definable point, as opposed to
mere utterance acts, which may be meaningless
sounds.
Examples:
 I warn you to stop smoking
 The dog is on the floor – Declarative
sentence form denotes a statements
  Do you want some coffee? –
Interrogative sentence form used to ask
questions
 Close the door – Imperative Sentence
used to give direction
ILLOCUTIONARY ACTS
Illocutionary acts, carry a directive for the
audience. It might be a promise, an order, an
apology, or an expression of thanks—or merely
an answer to a question, to inform the other
person in the conversation. These express a
certain attitude and carry with their statements a
certain illocutionary force, which can be broken
into families.
The speaker’s intent in saying those
words and sentences (i.e., the locution). That is,
what the speaker intends to see accomplished as
a result of the words he speaks/writes.
In an illocutionary act, it is not just the
act of saying something but the act of saying
something for the purpose of:
• Stating an opinion, confirming or denying
something
• Making a prediction, a promise, request
• Issuing an order or a decision
• Giving an advice or permission
Searle’s Classifications of Speech Act As a
response to Austin’s Speech Act Theory, John
Searle (1976), a professor from the University
of California, Berkeley, classified illocutionary
acts into five distinct categories.
1. Assertive – a type of illocutionary act in
which the speaker expresses belief about the
truth of a proposition. Some examples of an
assertive act are suggesting, putting forward,
swearing, boasting, and concluding.
Example: No one makes better pancakes
than I do.
2. Directive – a type of illocutionary act in
which the speaker tries to make the
addressee perform an action. Some
examples of a directive act are asking,
ordering, requesting, inviting, advising, and
begging. Example: Please close the door.
3. Commissive – a type of illocutionary act
which commits the speaker to doing
something in the future. Examples of a
commissive act are promising, planning,
vowing, and betting. Example: From now
on, I will participate in our group activity.
4. Expressive – a type of illocutionary act in
which the speaker expresses his/her feelings
or emotional reactions. Some examples of an
expressive act are thanking, apologizing,
welcoming, and deploring. Example: I am so
sorry for not helping out in our group
projects and letting you do all the work.
5. Declaration – a type of illocutionary act
which brings a change in the external
situation. Simply put, declarations bring into
existence or cause the state of affairs which
they refer to. Some examples of declarations
are blessing, firing, baptizing, bidding,
passing a sentence, and excommunicating.
Example: You are fired! By saying that
someone is fired, an employer causes or
brings about the person’s unemployment,
thus changing his external situation.
EXAMPLE:
 I will see you later – we could find
three different assumptions of its
meaning – prediction, promise and a
warning
 I promise you to pay back – is an
illocutionary act as it is communicating
 There is too much homework in this
subject – opinion
 I will do my homework later – promise
 Go do your homework – order
PERLOCUTIONARY ACTS.
This describes the effects, results, outcome,
change that the speaker expects, hopes,
anticipates, or envisions the audience would
produce because of his words. The perlocution
“is the consequent effect on the hearer which the
speaker intends should follow from his
utterance.”
On the other hand, bring about a
consequence to the audience. They have an
effect on the hearer, in feelings, thoughts, or
actions, for example, changing someone's mind.
Unlike illocutionary acts, perlocutionary acts
can project a sense of fear into the audience.
The examples of perlocutionary
acts which includes persuading, convincing,
scaring, enlightening, inspiring, or otherwise
affecting the interlocutor.
EXAMPLES:
 Would you mind closing the window
 Look out for a tiger in a jungle
 I want you to remain with me
 I don’t want to be seen with him
anymore
 I want to convince myself of getting
married