PRAGMATICS 2

PERFORMATIVES

Against logical positivism (the only meaningful statements are those that can be tested and evaluated in terms of truth/ falsity), Austin considered that most utterances have
not trust conditions. I am all ears.

Constatives: Descriptive sentence (can be described under condition truth /falsity) I sneeze.

Performatives: Utterances designed to change the state of affairs and do something. Test for performatives: Insert of “hereby”.

I pronounce you man and wife. We declare war upon Japan

*Austin later argued that this distinction wasn´t right as say something implies do something.

Types:

A. METALINGUISTIC: The clearest, direct and explicit. I apologize for my acts (vs non performative, I´m sorry for my acts).
B. RITUAL: Associated with certain rituals or very formal events. I sentence you to several years of condemn.
C. COLLABORATIVE: Requires another person in collaboration. I challenge you to a battle.
D. GROUP: All people involved in collaboration normally uttered by more than 1. Combines
a. Group + metalinguistic: We, the people of U.S. do establish.
b. Group + Ritual: Jury We find you guilty of first degree murder.
c. Group + Collaborative: We beneath all our properties to our son.
d.
EXPLICIT AND IMPLICIT PERFORMATIVES

Explicit: Speaker is very specific and unambiguous. I saw him cheating. I conclude that he is a dishonest person. I order you to leave this room immediately.

Implicit: Speaker is less specific and instead of using a performative verb, uses other devices, such as discourse makers, adverbs, mood or even intonation to indicate what
is intended. I saw him cheating. Therefore, he is a dishonest person (use of discourse marker). Leave this room immediately (use of imperative mood to indicate this is an
order)
 FELICITY CONDITIONS

There are some ways in which performatives can go wrong. I pronounce you man and wife uttered by a child.

Main Categories of felicity conditions (Austin) Infelicities

MISINVOCATIONS
Accepted conventional procedure including the uttering
A1 of certain words by certain persons in certain E.g.: an unauthorized
A Circumstances person celebrating a
marriage ceremony

A2 Appropriate persons and circumstances

MISEXECUTIONS
B1 Procedure executed by all participants correctly
E.g.: Appropriate
B authority baptizes a
B2 Completely child using the wrong
names

ABUSES
C1 People involved have required thoughts and feeling
C E.g.: Insincere,
promises, fake
C2 They conduct themselves subsequently apologies or
congratulations,
unfulfilled invitations.
 TYPES OF SPEECH ACTS

AUSTIN
LOCUTIONARY, ILLOCUTIONARY, PERLOCUTIONARY ACTS. Would you help me with the dishes? Said john to Susan. Speaker: Perlocutor

LOCUTIONARY ACT: Act involved in the construction of the utterance. Locution: Saying or pronouncing the utterance (what you say). Hearer: Illocutor

ILLOCUTIONARY ACT: Act that conveys the force or intention behind the words. Illocution: The request inferred (help with the dishes)

PERLOCUTIONARY ACT: The effect that the illocutionary act causes on hearer. May be or not in accordance with the speaker´s intention. Perlocution: Intention (To convince
or persuade Susan to help him). Prototypical perlocutionary acts: persuading, confronting, inspiring, inciting, humiliating.

SEARLE
F(P) – F= Propositional act; P= Illocutionary act. I Promise (F) I will come (P)

1. REPRESENTATIVES: Acts which commit the speaker to the truth of the expressed proposition. Yes, we can (Obama).
Verbs: Assert, conclude, boast, complain, deduce, recite

2. DIRECTIVES: Speaker attempts the hearer to do something. Warning, high voltage.

Verbs: Ask, beg, order, command, pray, warm, defy, challenge, forbid

3. COMMISIVES: Commits the speaker to some future course of action. I swear to uphold the constitution of the USA against the enemies.
Verbs: Promise, offer, swear, guarantee, volunteer, warrant, threaten

4. EXPRESSIVES: Express a psychological state. Congratulations!

Verbs: thank you, congratulate, deplore, apologize, condole, welcome, regret

5. DECLARATIONS: acts that bring about immediate changes in the institutional state of affairs (tend to be extra linguistic). I now pronounce you husband and wife.
Verb: Appoint, nominate, christen, declare (war), pronounce (husband and wi
 INDIRECT SPEECH ACTS

The main meaning of an utterance may not be the literal one.

Leo: Henry, could you open the door? (Literal: Is henry able to open the door? Indirect: a request).

Lily: We should pay the gardener today.

Will: We have no cash in the house

Primary speech (illocutionary) act: Rejection to Lily´s suggestion

Secondary illocutionary act: statement that they don´t have cash

This co-occurrence of acts allows us to understand how it is possible for someone to say something and mean it, but at the same time mean something else.

MOOD, FORM AND FUNCTION

. MOOD CLAUSE TYPE ASSOCIATED EXAMPLE

ILLOCUTION
INDICATIVE declarative Asserting, stating
Interrogative Eliciting information Utterances can be interpreted as having an
Exclamative Expressing emotion illocutionary force different from the literal
SUBJUNTIVE Hoping Wishing meaning. It will all depend on the context.
IMPERATIVE Ordering, requesting,
Can you pass me the salad? (imperative in
recommending
interrogative form)