Illocutionary Point

Overview

The illocutionary point, a key concept in J.L. Austin’s speech act theory, refers to the speaker’s intention or purpose in uttering a sentence. It distinguishes one speech act from another, defining what the speaker is trying to accomplish.

Key Concepts

Searle categorized illocutionary points into five main types:

• Assertives: Committing the speaker to the truth of a proposition (e.g., stating, asserting).
• Directives: Attempting to get the hearer to do something (e.g., ordering, requesting).
• Commissives: Committing the speaker to a future course of action (e.g., promising, vowing).
• Expressives: Expressing a psychological state (e.g., thanking, apologizing).
• Declarations: Bringing about a change in the state of affairs by the utterance itself (e.g., declaring war, baptizing).

Deep Dive

The illocutionary point is what makes an utterance a specific kind of act. For example, saying ‘It’s cold in here’ could have different points: a statement about the temperature (assertive), a request to close the window (directive), or a complaint (expressive).

Applications

Understanding illocutionary points is crucial in linguistics, philosophy of language, and communication studies. It helps in analyzing meaning beyond literal words, aiding in fields like pragmatics and discourse analysis.

Challenges & Misconceptions

A common misconception is confusing the illocutionary point with the illocutionary force, which is the specific way the point is conveyed. The point is the ‘what,’ while the force is the ‘how.’

FAQs

What is the difference between illocutionary point and illocutionary force?

The point is the speaker’s ultimate goal (e.g., to inform, to request). The force is the specific convention that signals this point (e.g., an imperative mood for a command).

Can an utterance have multiple illocutionary points?

While typically one primary point, an utterance can sometimes carry secondary points or be ambiguous in its intended point.