Portfolio 3 - Speech acts

Some signs can either describe a situation (“park closes at 6 pm”) or command an action (“no running”)

Constatives are sentences that describe something as true or false (IS)

Performatives are sentences that are meant to inspire action (DOES) – words in themselves are actions: SPEECH ACTS

-Actions include but are not limited to: ordering, promising, apologising, warning, sentencing, christening, marrying…

-Speech acts depend on reception, there are felicity conditions through which the performative can be enacted (performatives should have proper authority, be understood, clear and able to be executed)

-There is no certainty that the orders imparted through speech acts will be followed