Transcript COOPERATION & IMPLICATURE

pragmatics
SPEECH ACTS &
EVENTS
SPEECH ACTS
Speech acts:
Actions performed via utterances
• Locutionary acts
• Illocutionary acts
• Perlocutionary acts
Locutionary acts
• Performed via producing a meaning linguistic
expression
Illocutionary acts
• Performed via the communicative force of an
utterance
Perlocutionary acts
• Performed via the effect of the utterance on the
hearer.
Problem
• The same utterance can potentially have quite
different illocutionary acts
• How can speakers assume that the intended
illocutionary act will be recognized by the
hearer?
Solution
• Illocutionary Force Indicating Device (IFID)
• Felicity conditions
Illocutionary Force Indicating
Device (IFID)
• Performative verbs
– Used in a simple positive present tense sentence
– 1st person singular subject
• I promise…
• I sentence you…
• I apologize…
Test of performative verbs
• I hereby V …
– I _______ name the ship ‘Elizabeth’.
– I _______ warn you not to sleep in class.
– I _______ believe that there’s no Santa Claus.
Felicity conditions
• The appropriate circumstances for the
performance of a speech act to be recognized.
Felicity conditions
“I promise to see you tomorrow’.
• General conditions
– The utterance is understood.
• Content conditions
– The content of the utterance is about a future event and the speaker is
committed to the act.
• Preparatory conditions
– The event does not happen by itself.
– The event will have a beneficial effect.
• Sincerity conditions
– The speaker does have a genuine intention to carry out the future act.
• Essential conditions
– The utterance changes the speaker’s state from non-obligation to
obligation
The performative hypothesis
• To assume that every utterance (U) underlies a
clause that contains a performative verb, which
make the illocutionary forces explicit.
• I (hereby) Vperformative you (that) U
– Open the door.
• Implicit/primary performatives
– I hereby order you that you open the door.
• Explicit performatives
Speech act classification
• Declarations
• Representatives
• Expressives
• Directives
• Commissives
Declarations
• The speech acts that change the state of the
world via utterances.
– I now pronounce you husband and wife
– We find the defendant guilty.
Representatives
• The speech acts that states what the speaker
believes to be the case or not.
• Statements of fact, assertions, conclusions, and
descriptions
– The world is flat.
– It is a sunny day.
Expressives
• The speech acts that state what the speaker
feels.
• Psychological stats (pleasure, pain, likes, joy,
sorrow…)
– I am sorry.
– Congratulations.
Directives
• The speech acts used by the speaker to get
someone else to do something.
• Commands, orders, requests, suggestions.
– Go away!
Commissives
• The speech acts that speakers use to commit
themselves to some future actions
• Promises, threats, refusals, pledges.
– I can’t do that.