Kinds of Speech Act

1.3              Kinds of Speech Act

            Speech act differs in their purpose. According Kreidler, speech act can be divided into 7 kinds. They are assertive utterance, Performative Uterance, Expressive Utterance, Verdictive Utterance, Directive Utterance, Commissive Utterance, and Phatic Utterance.

1.3.1        Assertive Utterance

In the assertive function the speakers use language to tell what they know or believe: assertive language is concerned with facts. The language concerned with knowledge, with cognition. It deals with data, what exists or existed, what is happening or has happened or not. So assertive utterance are either true or false and generally they can be verified or falsified – not necessarily at the time of the utterance or by those who hear them, but in general sense the are subject to empirical investigation. Assertive verbs include allege, announce, agree, report, remind, predict, protest (Kreidler, 1998;183-184). The examples of assvertive utterance are:

1)             We declare that most plastic are made from soy beans (Kreidler, 1998:184).

2)             I say that I voted for Aaronson in the last election (Kreidler, 1998:184)

In the example 1), the sentence is statement; this sentence expresses a direct assertive act the assertive act is declaring. In the example 2), the sentence is statement the sentence expresses a direct assertive act, that is the assertive act of reporting.

1.3.2        Performative Utterance

Speech acts that bring about the state of affairs they name are called performative. The act included  as performative utterance are act blessing, firings, baptisms, arrests, marrying, declaring a mistrial. Performative utterance are valid if spoken by someone whose right to make them is accepted in circumstances which are accepted as appropriate. The performative verbs consist of bet, declare, baptize, name, nominate, pronounce. Further the subject of the sentences must be I or we, as in: “I or we declare this meeting adjourned.” This expression is performantive utterance. However, we need to distinguish between explicit and implicit performatives. The examples of sentence regarded as performative utterance are:

    1) I declare this meeting (Kreidler, 1998:185)

    2) This meeting is adjourned (Kreidler, 1998:185)

In the example 1), the form of the sentence is statement. This sentence is explicit performative utterance because it uses the subject I or we, in example 2), the form of sentence is statement. This sentence implicit performative utterance because it does not use the subject I or we, the performative utterance is requesting.

Explicit performative is a performative which has a certain marker in the sentence and implicit performative is a performative which does not have certain marker.

Saeed says that explicit and implicit performatives are characterized by special features:

a. They tend to begin with a first person verb in a form we could describe as simple present: I bet, I warn, etc.

b. This verb belongs to a special class describing verbal activities, for example: promise, warn, sentence, name, bet, pronounce.

c. Generally their performative nature can be emphasized by inserting the adverb hereby, as described earlier, thus I hereby sentence you to ….

Utterances with these characteristic we can call explcit performatives.

Saaed quotes Austin statement implicit utterance which says the various linguistic means by which more implicit performatives could be marked, including the mood of the verb, auxiliary verb, intonation, etc (1975: 53-93).

1.3.3        Expressive Utterance

Kreidler explains the definition of expressive utterances. It is utterances spring from the previous actions – or failure to act – of the speaker, or perhaps the present result of those actions or failures. Expressive utterance are thus retrospective and speaker-involved (Kreidler, 1988:188).

It means that the speaker tells the hearer about something that is related about himself. The most common expressive verb are: acknownledge, admit, confess, deny and apologized. The examples the act in this sentence is the act of acknownledging:

1)             I acknownledge that I didn’t do what I should have done (Kreidler, 1998:188)

2)             We admit that we were mistaken (Kreidler, 1998:188)

In the example 1), the form of the sentence is statement, the Expressive act is acknowledging. In the example 2), I found that the form of the sentence is statement. The expressed in this sentence is the act of admitting.

2.3.4        Verdictive  Utterance

Verdictive are speech act in which the speaker makes assessment or judgment about the acts of another usually the addresses.  These include ranking, assessing, appraising. The verb verdictive blame, accuses, congratulate, admonish, and criticize (Kreidler, 1998:187). The examples of sentence which is identified as verdctive utterance is:

1)                  I accuse you of putting on airs (Kreidler, 1998:187).

2)        I congratulate you for performing so well (Kreidler, 1998:187).

In the example 1), the form of the sentence is statement. The act that this sentence expresses is a verdictive utterance, this utterance is marked on signed by uses of the act “accuse” this sentence shows the speaker’s utterance of accusing. In the example 2), I found that the form of sentence is statement. The utterance that this sentence expresses is a verdicitve utterance. This utterance is marked on signed by uses of the act ‘congratulate” this sentence shows the speaker’s utterance of congratulating.

2.3.5        Directive Utterance

Directive utterance are those in which the speaker are those tries to get the addresses to perform some act or refrain from performing an act. Three kinds of directive utterance can be recognized, among those: commands, request and suggestions (Kreidler, 1998:189-190). The examples of sentence which are identified as directive utterance are:

1)         I hereby order you to appear in court next Monday at 10 a.m. (Kreidler, 1998:190)

2)         You must appear in court next Monday at 10 a.m. (Kreidler, 1998:190)

3)         I am telling you not to waste your time on that (Kreidler, 1998:190)

In the example 1), this statement sentence is a directive utterance. The directive utterance expresses is the utterance of commanding, it is indicator by word “order”. In the example 2), this statement sentence is a directive utterance. This directive utterance ist the utterance of request, the utterance is indicator by word “must” then example 3), the form of sentence is statement. This directive utterance express is the utterance of suggesting whit the word “telling’.

2.3.6        Commissive Utterance

Speech acts that commit a speaker to a course of action are called commissive utterance. This utterance includes promises, pledges, threat, and vows.

Commisive verbs are illustrated by the verb ‘agree’, ‘ask’, ‘offer’, ‘refuse’, ‘swear’, all with following infinitives. They are prospective and concerned with the speaker’s commitment to future action (Kreidler, 1998:192). The example of sentences which is indentified as commissive utterance is:

1)            I promise to be on time (Kreidler, 1998:192)

2)            We volunteer to put up the decorations for the dance (Kreidler, 1998:192)

In the example 1), the form of the sentences is statement. The expression is a commissive utterance. This utterance shows an act of promising. In this utterance expresses the act of verb promising is indicator by the verb “promises” then example 2) I found that he form of sentence is statement. The expression is a commissive utterance. This utterance shows an act of vowing. In the utterance expresses the act of verb promising is indicator by the verb “volunteer”.

 

2.3.7        Phatic Utterance

Phantic utterance is to establish rapport between members of the same society, it does not require an answers because it is just social talk or responses. Phatic utterance consists of greetings, farewells, polite formulas (Kreidler, 1998:194). The examples which are identified as phatic utterance are:

1)         Excuse me (Kreidler, 1998:194).

2)         Thank you (Kreidler, 1998:194).

In the example 1), the form of the sentence is statement. This phatic utterance express is the utterance of excuses, the utterance is indicator by word “excuse” the example 2), this statement sentence is a phatic utterance. This phatic utterance expresses is the utterance of thanking. The utterance is indicator by word “thank”.

2.4               Performatie Verb

In explicit performative utterances, verb are used to indicated the function of particular utterance; such verb s called performative verb. Performative verb is said to be crucial constituentof an explicity performative because the  meaning of performative verb is the essence of the illocution, the verb effectively spells out the illocutionary force off the performative clause (Allan, 1986:167). For example:

1.      I promise that I shall be there (Allan, 1986:167)

2.      I shall be there (Allan, 1986:167)

All regular utterance like examples 1 and 2 have performative verb or not, there is both a ‘doing’ element and ‘saying’ elemen.

The following constitute the necessary conditions on the form of explicit performative clauses (Allan, 1986:174:175):

1)      The clause complies with the normal rules of English grammar.

2)      The main verb is the performative clause must be a performative verb, spells out the illocutionary point of the utterance.

3)      The performative verb must be in the present(non-past, non-future, non-perfect) tense, because the illocutionary act is defined on the moment of utterance.

4)      A performative clause must be realist, designate an actualization of the illocutionary act.

5)      The subject of the performative clause is conditioned by the fact that the speaker is agent for either himself of another, whichever takes responsivility for enforcing the illocutionary described by the performative verb.

6)      It is often said the performative verb necessarily occurs in the simple aspect; and it does normally do so, and may occur in the progressive aspect.

7)      A performative verb can typically by preceded by the adverb ‘hereby’ meaning inuttering this performative. This adverb will be preceded the negative constituent ‘not’ or auximiliary verb +not of a negative performative.

The performative occurs understandably enough, when speaker need to define his speech act as belonging to a particularly category. For example:

1)      I order you to stand up

The officer who says to a soldier I order you to stand up is making clear the official definition of his illocutionary as an order; just as he would retrospectively if he said: stand up that’s an order. The utterance in fact that is so defined may have clear consequences on itself as disciplinary action. With respect to related observation, brought out by this example is that a performative is metalinguistic and it is a kind of reported-speech utterance. The performatife metalinguistic character is in fact that key to the nature, they not only make clear their own (illocutionary) force, but also catagories it. For instance: sit down could have a variable in different circumstances, be called an invitation, a suggestion, an offer or an order. On he other hand, I order you to stand up, it is clear that this utterance is identified as performative.