Speech Acts Actions performed via utterances e.g. You are fired You are so delicious 2. Speech acts are group of utterances with a single interactional function such as apology, complaint, invitation, promise, and request.

Speech Event Circumstances surrounding the utterance e.g. This tea is really cold The same utterance can be interpreted as two different kinds of speech act.

On any occasion, the action performed by producing an utterance will consist of three related acts. 1.Locutionary acts. Illocutionary acts Perlocutionary acts.

A locutionary act, is the basic act of utterance, or producing a meaningful linguistic expressions. e.g. “Aha mokofa” doesn’t produce locutionary act I’ve just made some coffee

The illocutionary act is formed via communicative force of an utterance. We form an utterance with some kind of function in mind. e.g. I’ve just made some coffee It can be an offer or explanation or statement.

The perlocutionary act reveals the effect the speaker wants to exercise over the hearer. E.g. Would you close the door, please?

ILLOCUTIONARY FORCE INDICATING DEVICES (IFIDs) The most obvious device for indicating the illocutionary force is an expression (a verb) that explicitly names the illocutionary act being performed. e.g. performative verbs (Vp) promise, warn I (Vp) you that…… Possible IFIDs in English include: word order, stress, and intonation (Page 50)

Speech Acts Classification five general functions of speech acts Declaration: are those kinds of speech acts that change the world via utterances e.g. preist: I now pronounce you husband and wife The speaker has to have special institutional role to perform declaration (the speaker changes the world via words)

2. Representative: are those kinds of speech acts that state what the speaker believes to be the case or not e.g. The earth is flat It was a warm day Fact, assertion, conclusion, and description (the speaker makes words fit the world)

3. Expressive: are those kinds of speech acts that state what the speaker feels. They express psychological states e.g. I’m really sorry Congratulation Pleasure, pain, likes, dislikes, joy, sorrow (the speaker makes words fit the world of feeling)

4. Directives:are those kinds of speech acts that speakers use to get someone else to do something.. They express what the speaker wants Commands, orders, requests, suggestion e.g. Don’t touch that. / could you lend me a pen please? (the speaker attempts to make the world fit the words via hearer)

5. Commissive: are those kinds of speech acts that speakers use to commit themselves to some future actions. They express what the speaker intends Promise, threat, refusal, pledges e.g. I’ll be back. /we will not do that. (the speaker undertakes to make the world fit the words via the speaker)

Types of speech acts Direct speech act: You wear a seat-belt(Declarative) Do you wear a seat belt? (Interrogative) Wear a seat belt! (Imperative) Move out of the way(Imperative)

2. Indirect speech act I here by request of you that you close the door (Declarative) Do you have to stand in front of the T.V ?(interrogative) You are standing in front of the T.V (Declarative) You would make a better door than a window(Declarative) P 55

Indirect speech acts are generally associated with greater politeness in English than direct speech Indirect speech act Could you pass the salt? Would you open this? Here, we don’t expect only an answer, we expect action) P 56

In about one page, write about: Felicity conditions and the performative hypothesis Speech event In about 4 pages Politeness and interaction

100 20 Mid-Term-Exam 1st Quiz 10 2nd Quiz 10 Presentation +Participation 50 Final-Exam