Speech Act Theory and Pragmatics

Speech Act Theory and Pragmatics PDF

Author: John Searle

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 9400989644

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In the study of language, as in any other systematic study, there is no neutral terminology. Every technical term is an expression of the assumptions and theoretical presuppositions of its users; and in this introduction, we want to clarify some of the issues that have surrounded the assumptions behind the use of the two terms "speech acts" and "pragmatics". The notion of a speech act is fairly well understood. The theory of speech acts starts with the assumption that the minimal unit of human communica tion is not a sentence or other expression, but rather the performance of certain kinds of acts, such as making statements, asking questions, giving orders, describing, explaining, apologizing, thanking, congratulating, etc. Characteristically, a speaker performs one or more of these acts by uttering a sentence or sentences; but the act itself is not to be confused with a sentence or other expression uttered in its performance. Such types of acts as those exemplified above are called, following Austin, illocutionary acts, and they are standardly contrasted in the literature with certain other types of acts such as perlocutionary acts and propositional acts. Perlocutionary acts have to do with those effects which our utterances have on hearers which go beyond the hearer's understanding of the utterance. Such acts as convincing, persuading, annoying, amusing, and frightening are all cases of perlocutionary acts.

Essays in Speech Act Theory

Essays in Speech Act Theory PDF

Author: Daniel Vanderveken

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 360

ISBN-13: 9789027250940

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Any study of communication must take into account the nature and role of speech acts in a broad context. This book addresses questions such as: - What do we mean? - How do we say it? and - How is it understood? in the broad context of universal, socio-cultural and psychological issues that bear on human communication. It presents an overview of current issues in speech act theory that are at the center of human and social sciences dealing with language, thought and action, building on John Searle's famous article 'How Performatives Work' (included in this book). The contributions by linguists, psychologists, computer scientists, and philosophers thus address issues of communication that are crucial in conversation analysis, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, psychology and philosophy, and a general understanding of how we communicate. The book is suitable for courses with an extensive bibliography for further reading and an Index.

Foundations of Speech Act Theory

Foundations of Speech Act Theory PDF

Author: S.L. Tsohatzidis

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2002-09-11

Total Pages: 518

ISBN-13: 1134866984

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Foundations of Speech Act Theory investigates the importance of speech act theory to the problem of meaning in linguistics and philosophy. The papers in this volume, written by respected philosophers and linguists, significantly advance standards of debate in this area. Beginning with a detailed introduction to the individual contributors, this collection demonstrates the relevance of speech acts to semantic theory. It includes essays unified by the assumption that current pragmatic theories are not well equipped to analyse speech acts satisfactorily, and concludes with five studies which assess the relevance of speech act theory to the understanding of philosophical problems outside the area of philosophy of language.

Speech Act Theory and Communication

Speech Act Theory and Communication PDF

Author: Phyllis Kaburise

Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing

Published: 2011-05-25

Total Pages: 195

ISBN-13: 1443831263

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Speech Act Theory: A Univen Study was undertaken to investigate the pragmatic value of the utterances of selected students at the University of Venda, South Africa. Utterances of second-language users of a language reflect the wealth of their language experiences and hence caution has to be exercised when conducting an investigation into such utterances. It is within this background that this investigation was conducted into the meaning-creation strategies and abilities of the participants in this study. The very idiocyncratic utterances investigated demonstrated vividly the multi-dimensional thought process exploited by the creators of these samples. Also demonstrated by the analyses is the nature of communication and the amount of linguistic interaction necessary for interlocutors to create meaning.

New Work on Speech Acts

New Work on Speech Acts PDF

Author: Daniel Fogal

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2018-07-12

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 0191059021

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Speech-act theory is the interdisciplinary study of the wide range of things we do with words. Originally stemming from the influential work of twentieth-century philosophers, including J. L. Austin and Paul Grice, recent years have seen a resurgence of work on the topic. On one hand, a new generation of linguists, philosophers, and cognitive scientists have made impressive progress toward reverse-engineering the psychological underpinnings that allow us to do so much with language. Meanwhile, speech-act theory has been used to enrich our understanding of pressing social issues that include freedom of speech, racial slurs, and the duplicity of political discourse. This volume presents fourteen new essays by many of the philosophers and linguists who have led this resurgence. The topics span a methodological range that includes formal semantics and pragmatics, foundational issues about the nature of linguistic representation, and work on a variety of forms of indirect and/or uncooperative speech that occupies the intersection of the philosophy of language, ethics, and political philosophy. Several of the contributions demonstrate the benefits of integrating the methodologies and perspectives of these literatures. The essays are framed by a comprehensive introductory survey of the contemporary literature written by the editors.

Pragmatics of Speech Actions

Pragmatics of Speech Actions PDF

Author: Marina Sbisà

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2013-07-31

Total Pages: 748

ISBN-13: 3110214385

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This volume provides extensive critical information about current discussions in the study of speech actions. Its central reference point is classic speech act theory, but attention is also paid to nonstandard developments and other approaches that study speech as action. The first part of the volume deals with main concepts, methodological issues and phenomena common to different kinds of speech action. The second part deals with specific kinds of speech actions, including types of illocutionary acts and some discourse and conversational phenomena. Reduced series price (print) available! [email protected].

Language and Action

Language and Action PDF

Author: Danilo Marcondes de Souza Filho

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 1985-01-01

Total Pages: 177

ISBN-13: 9027279640

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This work consists of an examination and revision of some of the main theses of Speech Act Theory in relation to the problem of ideology and action-guiding language. Starting from the idea that linguistic philosophy must take into account how the social structure of the linguistic community may influence and direct the way its language is used, a critical method of analysis is proposed, developing Speech Act Theory in a way suitable for this purpose. The main guideline of this proposal is the consideration that a theory of action rather than a theory of meaning should be taken as central in the analysis of language. The notion of illocutionary force, the problem of intentions and conventions in the constitution of speech acts, the definition of context, and the classification of speech acts, are then discussed. Based on the conclusions of this discussion a pragmatic method for the analysis of language is formulated.

Speech Act Performance

Speech Act Performance PDF

Author: Alicia Martínez-Flor

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 2010-02-10

Total Pages: 293

ISBN-13: 9027288364

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Speech acts are an important and integral part of day-to-day life in all languages. In language acquisition, the need to teach speech acts in a target language has been demonstrated in studies conducted in the field of interlanguage pragmatics which indicate that the performance of speech acts may differ considerably from culture to culture, thus creating communication difficulties in cross-cultural encounters. Considering these concerns, the aim of this volume is two-fold: to deal with those theoretical approaches that inform the process of learning speech acts in particular contextual and cultural settings; and, secondly, to present a variety of methodological proposals, grounded on research-based ideas, for the teaching of the major speech acts in second/foreign language classrooms. This volume is a valuable theoretical and practical resource not only for researchers, teachers and students interested in speech act learning/teaching but also for textbook writers wishing to have an informed opinion on the pedagogical implications derived from research on speech act performance.

Corpus Pragmatics

Corpus Pragmatics PDF

Author: Karin Aijmer

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 481

ISBN-13: 1107015049

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The first handbook to survey and expand the burgeoning field of corpus pragmatics, the intersection of pragmatics and corpus linguistics.

Teaching and Learning Pragmatics

Teaching and Learning Pragmatics PDF

Author: Noriko Ishihara

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-07-16

Total Pages: 383

ISBN-13: 1317863097

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An understanding of sociocultural context is crucial in second language learning – yet developing this awareness often poses a real challenge to the typical language learner. This book is a practical language teachers’ guide that focuses on how to teach socially and culturally appropriate language for effective communication. Moving beyond a purely theoretical approach to pragmatics, the volume offers practical advice to teachers, with hands-on classroom tasks included in every chapter. Readers will be able to: · Identify possible causes of learner errors and choices in cross-cultural communication · Understand second language acquisition theories that support their classroom practices · Develop a pragmatics-focused instructional component, classroom-based assessments, and curricula · Help learners to become more strategic about their learning and performance of speech acts · Incorporate technology into their approach to teaching pragmatics This book aims to close the gap between what research in pragmatics has found and how language is generally taught today. It will be of interest to all language teachers, graduate students in language teaching and linguistics, teacher educators, and developers of materials for teaching language.