Speech Acts

SPEECH ACTS
John L. Austin John Searle

SPEECH ACT
An utterance the speaker makes to
achieve an intended effect.
Itcould be an apology, greeting,

request, complaint, invitation,
compliment, or refusal.
TYPES OF SPEECH ACTS
(GIVEN THE RIGHT CIRCUMSTANES OR
CONTEXT)
BY J.L. AUSTIN, A PHILOSOPHER OF LANGUAGE
1.Locutionary (Utterance)
2.Illocutionary (Intention)
3.Perlocutionary (Response)
TYPES OF SPEECH ACTS
1.LOCUTIONARY ACT is the act

of uttering and the literal and
direct meaning of the
utterance.
“Please do the dishes.”

2. ILLOCUTIONARY ACT is the social function of
what is said. It is understanding a
communication act on the basis of the
speaker’s intention, the context when it was
said or as dictated by social conventions.
“I love you” can have several meaning

depending on the real intention of the
speaker.
Don: I have no assignment tonight. I also have no
scheduled exams tomorrow.
( He is indirectly asking permission to play with the
computer.)
Mother: Good! Now you can help me display our

purchases in the store.
( The mother did not pick up Don’s intended
meaning.)
3. PERLOCUTIONARY ACT is the
resulting act of what is said. This
effect is based on a particular
context in which the speech act was
mentioned.
Noel: (Excitedly meeting his old classmate)
Wow! You must be rich now, Rod. You’re
as big as an elephant.
Rod: (turns his back and leaves)
Noel: What’s up with him?
Ariel: You’ve hit a sore point. He’s been

diagnosed with diabetes and he’s on a
strict diet.
SPEECH ACT
 May contain just one word:
“Thanks.”
 Or several words in the sentence:
“Thank you for always being there for me. I
really
appreciate it.”
*These both show appreciation regardless of the

There are also indirect speech acts which occur when there
is no direct connection between the form of utterance an
the intended meaning. They are different in force i.e.,
intention from the inferred speech act.
Example:
“Could you pass the rice?”
Inferred speech act: Do you have the ability to hand over
the rice?
Indirect speech: Please pass the rice.
So while the utterance literally asks the addressee if he/she has the
ability to hand a plate of rice, it actually indirectly requests the
addressee to pass the rice to the speaker.
PERFORMATIVES
 Statements which enable the speaker to perform
something by just stating it.
 Verbs that execute the speech act that they
intend to effect.
 A performative utterance said by the right
person under the right circumstances results in a
change in the world.
 Note that certain conditions have to be met
when making a performative utterance.
“I now pronounce you husband
and wife”
Felicity Condition
 v
Searl’s classification of speech acts
as a response to Austin’s speech acts, he classified illocutionary acts into 5 categories
1. Assertive
2. Directive
3. Commissive
4. Expressive
5. Declarative
classification of speech acts
1.Assertive
The speaker expresses belief about
the truth of a proposition.
Some examples are suggesting,
putting forward, swearing, boasting,
and concluding.
“No one makes better pancakes than I

2. Directive
The speaker tries to make the
addressee perform an action.
Some examples are asking, ordering,
requesting, inviting, advising, and
begging.
“Please close the door.”

3. Commissive
Commits the speaker to doing
something in the future.
Some examples are promising,
planning, vowing, and betting.
“From now on, I will participate in our

group activity.”
4. Expressive
The speaker expresses his/her feelings
or emotional reactions.
Some examples are thanking,
apologizing, welcoming and
deploring.
“I am sorry for not helping out in our
group projects and letting you do all
the work.”
5. Declarative
Brings a change in the external situation.
Bring into existence or cause the state of
affairs which they refer to.
Some examples are blessing, firing,
baptizing, bidding, passing a sentence
and excommunicating.
“You are fired!”

Take note!
Speech acts include concrete life

interactions that require the
appropriate use of language within
a given culture.
COMMUNICATIVE
COMPETENCE
Communicative competence (ability to
use linguistic knowledge to effectively
communicate with others) is essential for a
speaker to be able to use or understand
speech acts. Idioms or other nuances in a
certain language might be lost or
misunderstood by someone who doesn’t
grasp the language yet.
References:
 Chiongson, J.J. W., Dalagan, J.D. & Panda, M.G.V. (2016). Oral
communication in context: A worksheet for k-12 learners. Cebu City,
Philippines: MegaTEXTS Phil, Inc.
 Sipacio, P. J. F. & Balgos, A. R.G. Oral Communication in Context for
Senior High School. Quezon City, Philippines: C & E Publishing, Inc.
 slideshare.com

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SPEECH ACTS

John L. Austin John Searle

Itcould be an apology, greeting,

1.LOCUTIONARY ACT is the act

“Please do the dishes.”

“I love you” can have several meaning

Mother: Good! Now you can help me display our

Rod: (turns his back and leaves)

Noel: What’s up with him?

Ariel: You’ve hit a sore point. He’s been

*These both show appreciation regardless of the

“No one makes better pancakes than I

“Please close the door.”

“From now on, I will participate in our

“You are fired!”

Speech acts include concrete life

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