How to Do Things with WordsThis work sets out Austin's conclusions in the field to which he directed his main efforts for at least the last ten years of his life. Starting from an exhaustive examination of his already well-known distinction between performative utterances and statements, Austin here finally abandons that distinction, replacing it with a more general theory of 'illocutionary forces' of utterances which has important bearings on a wide variety of philosophicalproblems. |
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LibraryThing Review
User Review - elenchus - LibraryThingIt's worth noting the title is a pun. Austin examines when a speech act is performative and not merely constative: when the 'saying' evokes or conjures rather than (merely) states or describes, and is ... Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - keylawk - LibraryThingAustin was apparently bothered by the lack of attention given by philosophers (or philologists) to whether a "statement" describes truly or falsely, while grammarians point out that there are also ... Read full review
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Common terms and phrases
achieved apologize argue arise Austin Austin’s notes battle of Alma behabitives betting circumstances classification commit connexions consequences consider constative utterance contrast conventional course criterion define definition describe descriptive distinction distinguish effect entails example exercitives explicit performative verbs expositives expression fact feelings final find finding finger first person singular give grammatical happy illocution illocutionary act illocutionary force imperative mood implies infelicity influence insincere intend kind language least lecture liable locution Lord Raglan matter means merely opposed performa performative formula performative utterance perhaps perlocu perlocutionary act person singular present phatic act pheme present indicative active procedure pure explicit performative question rheme rhetic act say I promise seems sense and reference sentence sequel singular present indicative someone speech speech act statement take this woman things tion tive true or false unhappy uttering the noises verbal verdict vocables void warning words
Bibliographic information
| Title | How to Do Things with Words William James lectures Volume 88 of William James lectures, 1955 Harvard paperback |
| Author | John Langshaw Austin |
| Edition | reprint |
| Publisher | Clarendon Press, 1975 |
| ISBN | 019824553X, 9780198245537 |
| Length | 168 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |