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Speech Act Theory

This document discusses speech act theory and its types. It defines a speech act as an utterance used to achieve an intended effect, such as apologizing, greeting, or refusing. There are three types of speech acts: locutionary acts, which are the actual utterance; illocutionary acts, which are the social functions conveyed by the utterance, like requesting or concluding; and perlocutionary acts, which are the resulting effects of the utterance based on context. Illocutionary acts are further divided into five categories - assertive, directive, commissive, expressive, and declarative.

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221 views3 pages

Speech Act Theory

This document discusses speech act theory and its types. It defines a speech act as an utterance used to achieve an intended effect, such as apologizing, greeting, or refusing. There are three types of speech acts: locutionary acts, which are the actual utterance; illocutionary acts, which are the social functions conveyed by the utterance, like requesting or concluding; and perlocutionary acts, which are the resulting effects of the utterance based on context. Illocutionary acts are further divided into five categories - assertive, directive, commissive, expressive, and declarative.

Uploaded by

Meshu Qadir
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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National College of Business Administration &

Economics

Submitted To:
Ma’am Summiyah

Submitted By:

Manahil Ishtiaq
Subject:
Discourse studies

Speech act theory and its types


Speech act:
Speech act is an utterance that a speaker makes to achieve an intended effect.
Some of the functions which are carried out using speech acts are offering an
apology, greeting, request, complaint, invitation, compliment, or refusal. A
speech act might contain just one word or several words or sentences.
For example:
“Thanks” and “thank you for always being there for me. I really appreciate it”
both show appreciation regardless of the length of the statement.
Types of speech act theory
a) Locutionary act:
It is the actual act of uttering.
“PLEASE DO THE DISHES.”
b) Illocutionary act:
It is the social function of what is said by uttering the locution. “PLEASE DO
THE DISHES,” the speaker requests the addressee to wash the dishes.
 Illocutionary acts into five distinct categories.
1. Assertive:
A type of illocutionary act in which the speaker expresses belief about the
truth of a proposition. Some examples of an assertive act are suggesting,
putting forward, swearing, boasting, and concluding.
Example:
No one makes better pancakes than I do.
2. Directive:
A type of illocutionary act in which the speaker tries to make the addressee
perform an action. Some examples of a directive act are asking, ordering,
requesting, inviting, advising, and begging.
Example:
Please close the door.
3. Commissive:
A type of illocutionary act which commits the speaker to doing something in
the future. Examples of a Commissive act are promising, planning, vowing,
and betting. Example: From now on, I will participate in our group activity.
4. Expressive:
A type of illocutionary act in which the speaker expresses his/her feelings or
emotional reactions. Some examples of an expressive act are thanking,
apologizing, welcoming, and deploring.
Example:
I am so sorry for not helping out in our group projects and letting you do all
the work.
5. Declaration:
A type of illocutionary act which brings a change in the external situation.
Simply put, declarations bring into existence or cause the state of affairs
which they refer to. Some examples of declarations are blessing, firing,
baptizing, bidding, passing a sentence, and excommunicating.
Example:
You are fired! By saying that someone is fired, an employer causes or brings
about the person’s unemployment, thus changing his external situation.

c) Perlocutionary act:
It is the resulting act of what is said. This effect is based on the particular
context in which the speech act was mentioned. “PLEASE DO THE DISHES”
would lead to the addressee washing the dishes.

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