Illocutionary act - Wikipedia

According to the conception adopted by Bach and Harnish in 'Linguistic Communication and Speech Acts' (1979), an illocutionary act is an attempt to communicate, ... Illocutionaryact FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia Jumptonavigation Jumptosearch TheconceptofillocutionaryactswasintroducedintolinguisticsbythephilosopherJ.L.Austininhisinvestigationofthevariousaspectsofspeechacts.Inhisframework,locutioniswhatwassaidandmeant,illocutioniswhatwasdone,andperlocutioniswhathappenedasaresult. Whensomebodysays"Isthereanysalt?"atthedinnertable,theillocutionaryactisarequest:"pleasegivemesomesalt"eventhoughthelocutionaryact(theliteralsentence)wastoaskaquestionaboutthepresenceofsalt.Theperlocutionaryact(theactualeffect),mightbetocausesomebodytopassthesalt. Contents 1Overview 2Approachestodefining"illocutionaryact" 3Classesofillocutionaryacts 4Illocutionaryforce 5Illocutionaryforceindicatingdevices(IFIDs) 6Illocutionarynegations 7Seealso 8References 9Furtherreading Overview[edit] ThenotionofanillocutionaryactiscloselyconnectedwithAustin'sdoctrineoftheso-called'performative'and'constativeutterances':anutteranceis"performative"if,andonlyifitisissuedinthecourseofthe"doingofanaction"(1975,5),bywhich,again,Austinmeanstheperformanceofanillocutionaryact(Austin1975,6n2,133).AccordingtoAustin'soriginalexpositioninHowtoDoThingsWithWords,anillocutionaryactisanact: (1)fortheperformanceofwhichImustmakeitcleartosomeotherpersonthattheactisperformed(Austinspeaksofthe'securingofuptake'),and (2)theperformanceofwhichinvolvestheproductionofwhatAustincalls'conventionalconsequences'as,e.g.,rights,commitments,orobligations(Austin1975,116f.,121,139). Thus,forexample,inordertomakeapromiseImustmakecleartomyaudiencethattheactIamperformingisthemakingofapromise,andintheperformanceoftheactIwillbeundertakingaconventionalobligationtodothepromisedthing:thepromiseewillunderstandwhatitmeanstomakeapromiseandfulfillit.Thus,promisingisanillocutionaryactinthepresentsense.SinceAustin'sdeath,thetermhasbeendefineddifferentlybyvariousauthors. Onewaytothinkaboutthedifferencebetweenanillocutionaryact(e.g.,adeclaration,command,orapromise),andaperlocutionaryact(e.g.,alistener'sreaction)istonotehowintheformercase,byutteringtheobject—forexample,"Iherebypromiseyou"—(andassumingthatallothernecessaryfeaturesoftheperformativesituationpertain),thentheacthastakenplace:apromisewasmade.Theperlocutionaryresult(howthepromiseereacts)mightbeacceptance,orskepticism,ordisbelief,butnoneofthesereactionsaltertheillocutionaryforceofthestatement:thepromisewasmade. Thatistosay,ineachcaseadeclaration,command,orpromisehasnecessarilytakenplaceinvirtueoftheutteranceitself,whetherthehearerbelievesinoractsuponthedeclaration,command,orpromiseornot. Ontheotherhand,withaperlocutionaryact,theobjectoftheutterancehasnottakenplaceunlessthehearerdeemsitso—forexample,ifoneutters,"Iherebyinsultyou,"or"Iherebypersuadeyou"—onewouldnotassumeaninsulthasnecessarilyoccurred,norpersuasionhasnecessarilytakenplace,unlessthehearerweresuitablyoffendedorpersuadedbytheutterance. Approachestodefining"illocutionaryact"[edit] WhereasAustinused"performative"totalkaboutcertainkindsofutterancesashaving"force,"histerm"illocution"rathernamesaqualityoraspectofallutterances.Theywillhavealocutionarysenseormeaning,anillocutionaryforce,andaperlocutionaryresult.Thisapproachhasencouragedtheviewthateventrue/falseconstativestatementshaveillocutionaryforce(asin"Iherebystateandaffirm")andevenperformativescanbeevaluableastrue/falsestatements(as"guilty"verdictmightberightorwrong). ItisalsooftenemphasisedthatAustinintroducedtheillocutionaryactbymeansofacontrastwithotheraspectsof"doing"by"speaking."Theillocutionaryact,hesays,isanactperformedinsayingsomething,ascontrastedwithalocutionaryact,theactofsayingsomething,andalsocontrastedwithaperlocutionaryact,anactperformedbysayingsomething.Austin,however,eventuallyabandonedthe"insaying"/"bysaying"test(1975,123). AccordingtotheconceptionadoptedbyBachandHarnishin'LinguisticCommunicationandSpeechActs'(1979),anillocutionaryactisanattempttocommunicate,whichtheyanalyseastheexpressionofanattitude.AnotherconceptionoftheillocutionaryactgoesbacktoSchiffer'sbook'Meaning'(1972,103),inwhichtheillocutionaryactisrepresentedasjusttheactofmeaningsomething. Accordingtoawidespreadopinion,anadequateandusefulaccountof"illocutionaryacts"hasbeenprovidedbyJohnSearle(e.g.,1969,1975,1979).Inrecentyears,however,ithasbeendoubtedwhetherSearle'saccountiswell-founded.Awide-rangingcritiqueisinFCDoerge2006.CollectionsofarticlesexaminingSearle'saccountare:Burkhardt1990andLepore/vanGulick1991. Classesofillocutionaryacts[edit] Searle(1975)setupthefollowingclassificationofillocutionaryspeechacts: assertives=speechactsthatcommitaspeakertothetruthoftheexpressedproposition directives=speechactsthataretocausethehearertotakeaparticularaction,e.g.requests,commandsandadvice commissives=speechactsthatcommitaspeakertosomefutureaction,e.g.promisesandoaths expressives=speechactsthatexpressonthespeaker'sattitudesandemotionstowardstheproposition,e.g.congratulations,excusesandthanks declarations=speechactsthatchangetherealityinaccordwiththepropositionofthedeclaration,e.g.baptisms,pronouncingsomeoneguiltyorpronouncingsomeonehusbandandwife Theclassificationisintendedtobeexhaustivebuttheclassesarenotmutuallyexclusive:JohnAustin'swell-knownexample"Ibetyoufivepoundsitwillrain"isbothdirectiveandcommissive. Illocutionaryforce[edit] Severalspeechacttheorists,includingAustinhimself,makeuseofthenotionofanillocutionaryforce.InAustin'soriginalaccount,thenotionremainsratherunclear.[accordingtowhom?]SomefollowersofAustin,suchasDavidHoldcroft,viewillocutionaryforceasthepropertyofanutterancetobemadewiththeintentiontoperformacertainillocutionaryact—ratherthanasthesuccessfulperformanceoftheact(whichissupposedtofurtherrequiretheappropriatenessofcertaincircumstances).Accordingtothisconception,theutteranceof"Ibetyoufivepoundsthatitwillrain"maywellhaveanillocutionaryforceeveniftheaddresseedoesn'thearit.However,BachandHarnishassumeillocutionaryforceif,andonlyifthisorthatillocutionaryactisactually(successfully)performed.Accordingtothisconception,theaddresseemusthaveheardandunderstoodthatthespeakerintendstomakeabetwiththeminorderfortheutterancetohave'illocutionaryforce'. Ifweadoptthenotionofillocutionaryforceasanaspectofmeaning,thenitappearsthatthe(intended)'force'ofcertainsentences,orutterances,isnotquiteobvious.Ifsomeonesays,"Itsureiscoldinhere",thereareseveraldifferentillocutionaryactsthatmightbeaimedatbytheutterance.Theutterermightintendtodescribetheroom,inwhichcasetheillocutionaryforcewouldbethatof'describing'.Butshemightalsointendtocriticisesomeonewhoshouldhavekepttheroomwarm.Oritmightbemeantasarequesttosomeonetoclosethewindow.Theseforcesmaybeinterrelated:itmaybebywayofstatingthatthetemperatureistoocoldthatonecriticisessomeoneelse.Suchaperformanceofanillocutionaryactbymeansoftheperformanceofanotherisreferredtoasanindirectspeechact. Illocutionaryforceindicatingdevices(IFIDs)[edit] SearleandVanderveken(1985)oftenspeakaboutwhattheycall'illocutionaryforceindicatingdevices'(IFIDs).Thesearesupposedtobeelements,oraspectsoflinguisticdeviceswhichindicateeither(dependentonwhichconceptionsof"illocutionaryforce"and"illocutionaryact"areadopted)thattheutteranceismadewithacertainillocutionaryforce,orelsethatitconstitutestheperformanceofacertainillocutionaryact.InEnglish,forexample,theinterrogativeissupposedtoindicatethattheutteranceis(intendedas)aquestion;thedirectiveindicatesthattheutteranceis(intendedas)adirectiveillocutionaryact(anorder,arequest,etc.);thewords"Ipromise"aresupposedtoindicatethattheutteranceis(intendedas)apromise.PossibleIFIDsinEnglishinclude:wordorder,stress,intonationcontour,punctuation,themoodoftheverb,andperformativeverbs. Illocutionarynegations[edit] AnothernotionSearleandVandervekenuseisthatofan'illocutionarynegation'.Thedifferenceofsuchan'illocutionarynegation'toa'propositionalnegation'canbeexplainedbyreferencetothedifferencebetween"Idonotpromisetocome"and"Ipromisenottocome".Thefirstisanillocutionarynegation—the'not'negatesthepromise.Thesecondisapropositionalnegation.IntheviewofSearleandVanderveken,illocutionarynegationschangethetypeofillocutionaryact. Seealso[edit] Directionoffit J.L.Austin JohnSearle Linguistics Performativeutterance Perlocutionaryact Pragmatics Semantics Speechact References[edit] Alston,WilliamP.IllocutionaryActsandSentenceMeaning.Ithaca:CornellUniversityPress.2000 Austin,JohnL.HowToDoThingswithWords.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.1975[1962]ISBN 0-19-281205-X Burkhardt,Armin(ed.).SpeechActs,MeaningandIntentions:CriticalApproachestothePhilosophyofJohnR.Searle.Berlin/NewYork1990ISBN 0-89925-357-1 Doerge,FriedrichChristoph.IllocutionaryActs–Austin'sAccountandWhatSearleMadeOutofIt.Tuebingen2006.[1] Lepore,Ernest/vanGulick,Robert(eds).JohnSearleandhisCritics.Oxford:BasilBlackwell1991.ISBN 0-631-15636-4 Searle,JohnR.SpeechActs.CambridgeUniversityPress.1969ISBN 0-521-07184-4 Searle,JohnR.“ATaxonomyofIllocutionaryActs”,in:Günderson,K.(ed.),Language,Mind,andKnowledge,Minneapolis,vol.7.1975 Searle,JohnR.ExpressionandMeaning.CambridgeUniversityPress.1979ISBN 0-521-22901-4 Searle,JohnR.andDanielVanderveken.FoundationsofIllocutionaryLogic.CambridgeUniversityPress.1985.ISBN 0-521-26324-7 Furtherreading[edit] Discussionofillocutionaryactsinsec.1ofStanfordEncycolopediaofPhilosophy,"Assertion". 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