Performative utterance - Psychology Wiki - Fandom

(1) Performative utterances are not true or false, that is, not truth-evaluable; instead when something is wrong with them then they are "happy" or "unhappy". ( ... 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SignIn Advertisement in: Articleswithunsourcedstatements,Pragmatics,Philosophyoflanguage,PagesusingISBNmagiclinks Performativeutterance Viewsource History Talk(0) watch 01:25 JurassicWorld:DominionDominatesFandomWikis-TheLoop Doyoulikethisvideo? PlaySound Assessment| Biopsychology| Comparative| Cognitive| Developmental| Language| Individualdifferences| Personality| Philosophy| Social| Methods| Statistics| Clinical| Educational| Industrial| Professionalitems| Worldpsychology| Language: Linguistics· Semiotics· Speech ThenotionofperformativeutteranceswasintroducedbyJ.L.Austin.Althoughhehadalreadyusedtheterminhis1946paper"Otherminds",today'susagegoesbacktohislater,remarkedlydifferentexpositionofthenotioninthe1955WilliamJameslectureseries,subsequentlypublishedasHowtoDoThingswithWords.ThestartingpointofthelecturesisAustin'sdoubtagainstawidespreadphilosophicalprejudice,namely,theimplicitpresumptionthatutterancesalways"describe"or"constate"somethingandarethusalwaystrueorfalse.Aftermentioningseveralexamplesofsentenceswhicharenotsoused,andnottruth-evaluable(amongthemnon-sensicalsentences,interrogatives,directivesand"ethical"propositions),heintroduces"performative"sentencesasanotherinstance. Inordertodefineperformatives,Austinreferstothosesentenceswhichconformtotheoldprejudiceinthattheyareusedtodescribeorconstatesomething,andwhichthusaretrueorfalse;andhecallssuchsentences"constatives".Incontrasttothem,Austindefines"performatives"asfollows: (1)Performativeutterancesarenottrueorfalse,thatis,nottruth-evaluable;insteadwhensomethingiswrongwiththemthentheyare"happy"or"unhappy". (2)Theutteringofaperformativeis,orispartof,thedoingofacertainkindofaction(Austinlaterdealswiththemunderthenameillocutionaryacts),theperformanceofwhich,again,wouldnotnormallybedescribedasjust"saying"or"describing"something(cf.Austin1962,5). Forexample,whenPetersays"Ipromisetodothedishes"inanappropriatecontextthenhetherebydoesnotjustsaysomething,andinparticularhedoesnotjustdescribewhatheisdoing;rather,inmakingtheutteranceheperformsthepromise;sincepromisingisanillocutionaryact,theutteranceisthusaperformativeutterance.IfPeteruttersthesentencewithouttheintentiontokeepthepromise,orifeventuallyhedoesnotkeepit,thenalthoughsomethingisnotinorderwiththeutterance,theproblemisnotthatthesentenceisfalse:itisrather"unhappy",or"infelicitous",asAustinalsosays.Intheabsenceofanysuchflaw,ontheotherhand,theutteranceistobeassessedas"happy"or"felicitous",ratherthanas"true". TheinitialexamplesofperformativesentencesAustingivesarethese: 'Ido(sc.takethiswomantobemylawfulweddedwife)'--asutteredinthecourseofthemarriageceremony. 'Inamethisshipthe"QueenElizabeth"' 'Igiveandbequeathmywatchtomybrother'--asoccurringinawill 'Ibetyousixpenceitwillraintomorrow'(Austin1962,5) AsAustinlaternoticeshimself,theseexamplesbelong(moreorlessstrikingly)towhatAustincalls,explicitperformatives;toutteran"explicit"performativesentenceistomakeexplicitwhatactoneisperforming.However,therearealso"implicit","primitive",or"inexplicit"performatives.When,forinstance,Isay"Go!"inordertocommandyoutoleavetheroomthenmyutteranceispartoftheperformanceofacommand;andthesentence,accordingtoAustin,isneithertruenorfalse;hencethesentenceisaperformative;--still,itisnotanexplicitperformative,foritdoesnotmakeexplicitthattheactthespeakerisperformingisacommand. Austinfoundgreatdifficultyindrawingacompletelycleardistinctionbetween"performatives"and"constatives";amongotherthingshecametotheconclusionthattostatesomethingistoperformanillocutionaryact,whichrendersallconstativesasperformatives;forreasonslikethese,heeventuallysuggestedabandoningthedichotomy,replacingitbyatrichotomyofspeechacts,namely,theso-called"locutionary","illocutionary"and"perlocutionaryacts". Thereisamostthoroughandaccuratestudyofhow"performatives"mightbedefinedfollowingAustinbyJanS.Andersson,"Howtodefine'Performative'".(However,unfortunatelyithasbeenalmostcompletelyignoredbythescholarshipoftheAnglo-Americantradition--perhapsbecauseitisbothverydenselywrittenandaccuratelyworkedout,andthusnoteasytoread.)Furthermore,duringthe1970stherewasmuchdisputeaboutquestionssuchaswhetherperformativesaretruth-evaluableornot,whethertherearenon-explicitperformativesatall,whetherperformativescanbereducedtotruth-evaluablesentences(andviceversa),andseveralothers;however,nowadaysmanyoftheseissuesappeartohavelostsomeoftheirattraction. Incidentally,somecomponentsofAustin'sremarksaboutpromisingwereanticipatedbyDavidHumeinhisdiscussionofpromisinginATreatiseofHumanNature,andevenearlierbyThomasHobbesinLeviathan. Contents 1Areperformativestruth-evaluable? 2Sedgwick'saccountofperformatives 3Naming 4Descriptivesandpromises 5Examples 6Performativewriting 7Sources 8Seealso Areperformativestruth-evaluable? AccordingtoAustin'soriginalaccount,itisanessentialcharacteristicofperformativesentencesthattheyareneithertrue,norfalse,thatis,nottruth-evaluable.However,inhis1989articleHowPerformativesWorkJohnR.Searlearguesthatperformativesaretrue/falsejustlikeconstatives.Searlefurtherclaimsthatperformativesarewhathecallsdeclarations;thisisatechnicalnotionofSearle'saccount:accordintohisconception,anutteranceisadeclarationif"thesuccessfulperformanceofthespeechactissufficienttobringaboutthefitbetweenwordsandworld,tomakethepropostionalcontenttrue."Searlebelievesthatthisdoubledirectionoffitcontraststhesimpleword-to-worldfitofassertives. BachandHarnish(1991)agreewithSearlethatperformativesaretrue/false,butfordifferentreasons.Theyholdthatperformativesaretruth-evaluablebecausetheyaredirectlystatements,butonlyindirectlypromises,apologiesetc.WhileSearleseesperformativesasdeclarations,BachandHarnish[Howtoreferenceandlinktosummaryortext]claimthatonlysomeperformativeutterancesaredeclarations,suchas,"Ipronounceyoumanandwife."--This,however,isperhapsnotreallyanobjectiontoSearle;itmightratherbetheresultoftheirdifferentconceptionofwhata"declaration"issupposedtobe.Forintheirconception,"declarations"areinstitutionalincharacter;and,accordingly´,thepointoftheirargumentisthatmostperformativesarenotboundtoparticularinstitutionalsituations;this,however,issomethingSearledoesnotintendtodenyinthepaperunderconsideration. ButBachandHarnishattackSearle'saccountinamorefundamentalway.TheydisputeSearle’sexplanationofwhatthequestionconcerningperformativesisabout.AccordingtoSearlethequestionconcerningperformativesisthattheyaresentencesthatperformanexplicitactionspecifiedbytheverb,justbysayingthattheactionisbeingperformed.BachandHarnishfeelthatthisisthewrongapproachtoinquiriesintothenatureofperformatives.TheyfeelthatanapproachsuchastheoneSearleposits,assumesincorrectlythatperformativesareconceptuallydistinctfromotherutterances.ThistypeofassumptionisunfavorableaccordingtoBachandHarnishbecauseitrulesoutthenullhypothesiswithoutfoundation.Theyfeelthenullhypothesisinthiscaseisthattheremaynotbeinfact,anyneedforaspecialjustificationforanutterance’sperformativeeffect. AccordingtoBachandHarnish,ordinaryperformativesdonotneeddistinctiverationalization,becausetheyareordinaryactsofcommunicationthataresuccessfulonlyifanaudiencecaninferyourcommunicativeintentiontobeexpressingadistinctposition.TheyfeelthatthisdescriptionofperformativescontrastsSearle’sviewofperformativesasdeclarations,becausedeclarationsareonly‘incidentallycommunicative’andaresuccessfulonlyiftheyfulfilltheapplicableconventions. BachandHarnishalsorejectSearle’sviewthattheperformativeforceofperformativesiscontainedinitsliteralmeaning.TheyfeelthatSearleincorrectlyconfoundsperformativeforcewithitscommunicativeaccomplishment.BachandHarnisharguethatalthoughthecommunicativesuccessofperformativesreliesonthefactthattheyarestatements,theperformativeforceofperformativesdonot. Sedgwick'saccountofperformatives Whenperformativeutterancesareexplicit,thentheyareusuallyinthefirstpersonpresenttense.Thosefeaturesareindexical,reflectingfeaturesoftheimmediatecontext.Theparticularverbsusedinperformativeutterancestendtobeverbadicendi—verbsofspeaking—or"metapragmaticverbs,"verbsthatdrawattentiontoaparticularrelationbetweentheutteranceorspeechformandcontext.Whilesomelinguistsandtheoristsmightdescribeexplicitperformativeutterancesasrareoccurrences,EveSedgwickarguesthatthereareperformativeaspectstonearlyallwords,sentences,andphrases.(Notice,however,SedgwickdoesnotuseAustin'snotioninareallyaccuratemannerandthusis--despiteofheruseofAustin'sterm--mostprobablyspeakingaboutasubjectmatterdifferentfromAustin's.)AccordingtoSedgwick,performativeutterancescanbe'transformative'performatives,whichcreateaninstantchangeofpersonalorenvironmentalstatus,or'promisory'performatives,whichdescribetheworldasitmightbeinthefuture.Thesecategoriesarenotexclusive,soanutterancemaywellhavebothqualities.Someperformativespeechmaybesociallycontested.Forinstance,twogaymensaying"Ido"inaweddingceremonymaybeacceptedasaperformativeactbysome,butnotbyothers.AsSedgwickobserves,performativeutterancescanberevoked,eitherbythepersonwhoutteredthem("Itakebackmypromise"),orbysomeotherpartynotimmediatelyinvolved,likethestate(forexample,gaymarriagevows). Wordsonalistcanbeeitherdescriptiveorperformative.'Butter'onashoppinglistimpliesthat"Iwillbuybutter"(apromisetoyourself).But'Butter'printedonyourtillreceiptmeans"youhavepurchasedbutter"(simplyadescription). Naming Namingcanalsobebothperformativeanddescriptive,incertainsuperstitiouscircles.MacbethisasimplenamethatdescribestheShakespearecharacterandisthetitleoftheplay.BututteringthenameMacbethamongactorswhoareperformingtheplayisthoughttotriggerinstantillfortuneintheproduction.Thewellknownphrase"Speakofthedevilandhewillappear"followssimilarsuperstitiouslogic.Itisarelicofmagicalthinking,alongwith,andmuchlike,theideathatmakingutterancesoverarepresentativefragment(alockofaperson'shair)willcausesomethingtohappeninthewiderworld(thepersonwillfallinlove). Descriptivesandpromises Evendescriptiveutterancescanbeconstruedasbeing'promisory'performative.Forinstance,someonestandingonastreetcorneranddescribingtoyouaplaceyouaretryingtogetto.Theirdescriptionoftheplacetakestheformofa'promise'-thewordsaretheplaceforyou,forthemoment-butyouonlyknowifthe'promise'ofthewordshavebeenfulfilledwhenyoupersonallyreachtheplaceinquestion. Examples "Inowpronounceyoumanandwife."(conferredpersonalstatuschange) "Ichristenyou"(conferredpersonalstatuschange) "Iacceptyourapology"(conferredpersonalstatuschange) "Idivorceyou,Idivorceyou,Idivorceyou"(conferredpersonalstatuschange)(Islamic:see:Talaq-i-Bid'ahortripleTalaq) "Ido"–wedding(self-actuatedpersonalstatuschange) "Isweartodothat"(self-actuatedpersonalstatuschange-youarenowbound) "Ipromisetobethere"(self-actuatedpersonalstatuschange-youarenowbound) "Iapologize"(self-actuatedpersonalstatuschange) "Thismeetingisnowadjourned"(conferredenvironmentstatuschange) "Thecourtisnowinsession"(conferredenvironmentstatuschange) "Thischurchisherebyde-sanctified"(conferredenvironmentstatuschange) "Warisdeclared"(conferredenvironmentstatuschange) "Isentenceyoutodeath"(conferred,willprovetrueorfalseinthefuture) "Ipromisetobethere"(self-actuated,willprovetrueorfalseinthefuture) "Isweartodothat"(self-actuated,willprovetrueorfalseinthefuture) "Iapologize"(self-actuated,willchangeyourstatusiftheapologyisaccepted) Performativewriting Theaboveideashaveinfluencedperformativewriting;theyareusedasajustificationforanattempttocreateanewformofcriticalwritingaboutperformance(oftenaboutperformanceart).Suchawritingformisclaimedtobe,initself,aformofperformance.Itissaidtomoreaccuratelyreflectthefleetingandephemeralnatureofaperformance,andthevarioustricksofmemoryandreferentialitythathappeninthemindoftheviewerduringandaftertheperformance. Sources Austin,J.L.HowtoDoThingswithWordsOxford:ClarendonPress,1962.ISBN0-19-824553-X Andersson,JanS.Howtodefine'Performative'.Stockholm:Libertryck.1975 Seealso J.L.Austin EveSedgwick JohnSearle illocutionaryforce pragmatics ThispageusesCreativeCommonsLicensedcontentfromWikipedia(viewauthors). Categories: Articleswithunsourcedstatements Pragmatics Philosophyoflanguage PagesusingISBNmagiclinks CommunitycontentisavailableunderCC-BY-SAunlessotherwisenoted. Advertisement FanFeed 1 Raceandintelligence(Averagegapsamongraces) 2 Impregnationfetish UniversalConquestWiki Let'sGoLuna!Wiki Club57Wiki FollowonIG TikTok JoinFanLab