【外语学习】speech.ppt

Speech Act Theory
origin: late 1950s, British philosopher John Austin
great development: 1970s,1980s John Searle
nature: a philosophical explanation of the nature of
munication
aim: “What do we do when using language?”
How to do things with words? By Austin
1. Origin of Speech Act Theory
Austin’s original model of Speech Acts
: constative & performative utterance
constatives(表述句) are statements that either state or describe,
and thus verifiable; they have the true-value (true or false).
performatives(施为句) are not verifiable; they are uttered to
perform a certain act.
“I do.”(getting married)
“I name this ship Elizabeth.”(naming a ship)
“I give and bequeath my watch to my brother.”
(bequeathing)
“I bet you sixpence it will rain tomorrow.”
(betting)
When uttering the above sentences, the speaker is actually doing something, instead of stating or describing something. Besides the above four conventionalized cases, the idea of performing certain acts while speaking can be broadened to include non-conventional acts such as promising, requesting and suggesting. Hence the theory is known as the speech act theory.
The speaker must have the ability to perform the act;
The speaker should sincerely intend to carry out the act;
The speaker should not regret for what has been said.
Austin’s felicity conditions for performatives:
I + VP: “I promise…”, “I object…”, “I agree…”, “I swear…”
performative verb
elements :I, the present tense, declarative mood, and active voice are all indispensable to constitute the performative. (He promises…, I promised…×)
Passive form of “I + VP”:
Passengers are requested to cross the line by the footbridge only.(=I request you to …)
Criterion of “hereby”:
“I hereby warn you…”, “I hereby inform you…”
Linguistic format of performatives
Inadequacy of Austin’s format:
Will you close the door?
Do you mind closing the door?
I’d like you to close the door.
The door, please!...
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