Austins-Speech-Act-Theory

Chapter12ActingandConversingPresentedbyYuLiangIntroductionInspeakingtooneanother,wemakeuseofsentences,ortobemoreprecise,utterances(话段).Wecanattempttoclassifytheseutterancesinanyoneofavarietyofways.Wecantrytoclassifythembylength,e.g.,bycountingthenumberofwordsineachutterance.Wecantrytoclassifythembygrammaticalstructurealonganumberofdimensions,e.g.,theirclausaltypeandcomplexity:active-passive;statement-question-request-exclamatory;variouscombinationsofthese;andsoon.Wemayeventrytoworkoutasemanticorlogicalstructureforeachutterance.Butitisalsopossibletoattemptaclassificationintermsofwhatsentencesdo,i.e.,totakea‘functional’approach,butonethatgoessomewhatbeyondconsiderationofsuchfunctionsasstating,questioning,requesting,andexclaiming.Inrecentyearsanumberofphilosophershavehadinterestingthingstosayaboutwhatutterancesdoaswellasmean,observingthatpartofthetotalmeaningisthisverydoing.IntroductionAssoonaswelookcloselyatconversationingeneral,weseethatitinvolvesmuchmorethanusinglanguagetostatepropositionsorconveyfacts.Throughconversationweestablishrelationshipswithothers,achieveameasureofcooperation(orfailtodoso),keepchannelsopenforfurtherrelationships,andsoon.Theutterancesweuseinconversationenableustodothesekindsofthingsbecauseconversationitselfhascertainpropertieswhicharewellworthexamining.OurConcerninthischapter:1Wewillbeconcernedbothwithwhatutterancesdoandhowtheycanbeused.2Specificallywithhowweusetheminconversation.IntroductionPartI---SpeechActs:AustinandSearlePartII---CooperationandFace:GriceandGoffmanPartIII---SomeFeaturesofConversationPartISpeechActsProposition(命题):Onethingthatmanyutterancesdoismakepropositions:theydothismainlyintheformofeitherstatementsorquestionsbutothergrammaticalformsarealsopossible.E.g.:‘Ihadabusydaytoday,’‘Haveyoucalledyourmother?,’and‘Yourdinner’sready!’Suchutterancesareconnectedinsomewaywitheventsorhappeningsinapossibleworld,i.e.,onethatcanbeexperiencedorimagined,aworldinwhichsuchpropositionscanbesaidtobeeithertrueorfalse.Theyhavebeencalledconstativeutterances(陈述话段).Adifferentkindofproposition-----theethicalproposition(伦理命题):E.g.:‘Bigboysdon’tcry,’‘Godislove,’‘Thoushaltnotkill,’‘Youmusttellthetruth.’Justlikeanordinaryproposition,anethicalpropositionmaybetrueorfalse.Buttruthandfalsityarenottherealpurposeofethicalpropositions;theirrealpurposeistoserveasguidestobehaviorinsomeworldorother.‘Bigboysdon’tcry’isobviouslyvalue-ladeninawayinwhich‘Youdinnerisready!’definitelyisnot.Phaticutterances(情感话段):Anotherkindofutteranceisthe‘phatic’type,e.g.,‘Niceday!’,‘Howdoyoudo?,’and‘You’relookingsmarttoday!’Weemploysuchutterancesnotfortheirpropositionalcontentbutratherfortheiraffectivevalueasindicatorsthatonepersoniswillingtotalktoanotherandthatachannelofcommunicationiseitherbeingopenedorbeingkeptopen.Phaticutterancesdonotreallycommunicateanything;rather,theiruseallowscommunicationtooccurshouldtherebeanythingofconsequencetosay.SpeechActTheory言语行为理论Thefirstmajortheoryinthestudyoflanguageinuse.ByJohnAustinHowtoDoThingswithWords(1962)《怎样用词做事》Thephilosopher,J.L.Austin(1962),distinguishedstillanotherkindofutterance,theperformativeutterance(施为话段).Inusingaperformativeutterance,apersonisnotjustsayingsomethingbutisactuallydoingsomethingifcertainreal-worldconditionsaremet.Britishphilosopher,J.L.AustinPerformative:sayingitselfaccomplishingacertainaction,affecting,orchangingtheworldinsomeway;suchutterancesperformacts.他们的特点在于不止是言有所述，而且是言有所为。InamethisshipQueenElizabeth.(Incertaincircumstancesistonameaship.)Ido.(Inothercircumstancesistofindoneselfahusbandorawife.)Performativeverbs:promise,order,ask,propose,suggest,tell,warn,report,name,etc.Performativevs.ConstativeIpromisetoloveyou!Ifireyou!Performativevs.ConstativeConstatives:utteranceswhichroughlyservestostateafact,reportthatsomethingisthecase,ordescribewhatsomethingis,e.g.:“Ipoursomeliquidintothetube.”Anutterancewhichassertssomethingthat’seithertrueorfalse.E.g.:IgototheparkeverySunday.IteachEnglish.It’sraining.Thecatisintheroom.•Performativevs.Constative•Theperformativeutteranceisusedtoperformanaction,soithasnotruthvalue.•Theconstativeutteranceisverifiableanditiseithertrueorfalse.Felicityconditions合适条件Thereareconditionsforperformativestomeettobeappropriateorfelicitous.Austinsuggestedthefollowingconditions:A.aconventionalproceduremustexistfordoingwhateveristobedone,andthatproceduremustspecifywhomustsayanddowhatandinwhatcircumstances.B.Theproceduremustbeexecutedcorrectlyandcompletelybyallparticipants.C.Thenecessarythoughts,feelings,andintentionsmustbepresentinallparties.Ingeneral,thespokenpartofthetotalact,theactualspeechact,willtakethegrammaticalformofhavingafirst-personsubjectandaverbinthepresenttense;itmayormaynotalsoincludethewordhereby.Examplesare‘I(hereby)name,’‘Wedecree,’and‘Iswear.’Thiskindofutteranceisexplicitlyperformativewhenitisemployedinaconventionalframework,suchasnamingships,makingroyalproclamations,andtakinganoathincourt.Austinalsoacknowledgesthattherearelessexplicitperformatives.Declarationslike‘Ipromise,’‘Iapologize,’or‘Iwarny