Speech act is a technical term in linguistics and the philosophy of language. The contemporary use of the term goes back to J. L. Austin's discovery of performative utterances and his theory of locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary acts. Speech acts are commonly taken to include such acts as promising, ordering, greeting, warning, inviting and congratulating.
Read more about Speech Act: Locutionary, Illocutionary and Perlocutionary Acts, Illocutionary Acts, Indirect Speech Acts, History, In Language Development, In Computer Science
Famous quotes containing the words speech and/or act:
“If the oarsmen of a fast-moving ship suddenly cease to row, the suspension of the driving force of the oars doesn’t prevent the vessel from continuing to move on its course. And with a speech it is much the same. After he has finished reciting the document, the speaker will still be able to maintain the same tone without a break, borrowing its momentum and impulse from the passage he has just read out.”
—Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 B.C)
“Every act of rebellion expresses a nostalgia for innocence and an appeal to the essence of being.”
—Albert Camus (1913–1960)