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people cannot be explicated simply by statements of context-independent content, rather have to refer to pragmatics concept like context, implicature or speech acts
context-dependent content. Moreover, pragmatics provides part of the necessary input to a semantic theory. A sentence can only be assigned the right truth
conditions if the context of a sentence is taken into an account. To sum up the explanation, it can be concluded that pragmatics is the
study about language; that is always related to the context of the speaker and the hearer. Pragmatics is the perfect field which studies how a context might influence
the interpretation of an utterance. It is because an utterance should be comprehended in relation to the context in which language is used.
B. Speech acts
1. The Definition of Speech acts
As Levinson 1983 p.27 suggests, one of the central topics of pragmatics is speech acts. Therefore, this section provides the definition and the classification
of speech acts. For the discussion of the definition of speech acts, below is quotation from John R. Searle and George Yule about speech acts.
Searle 1969 p. 16 states that the unit of linguistic communication is not the symbol, word or sentence, but rather the production or issuance of the symbol
or word or sentence in the performance of the speech acts. Speech acts are the basic minimal units of linguistic communication.
Meanwhile, Yule 1996 p.47 defines that speech acts is action performed via utterance. In English, speech acts are commonly given more specific labels,
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such as apology, complaint, compliment, invitation, promise, request or any other acts.
Based on the definitions above, it can be concluded that speech acts is the action people actually do through a language. It covers social acts, to promise, to
request, to criticize, to offer and so on. The speaker normally expects that the hearer will recognize his or her communicative intention. Concerning this, both
speaker and hearer are usually helped in this process by the context or circumstances, which surround the utterance.
Yule 1996 p.48 states that speech acts relate to three acts: a.
Locutionary act It is the basic of utterance or the literal meaning of the utterance. In other word,
locutionary act is the utterance of a sentence which determines sense and reference.
b. Illocutionary act
The act is performed via the communicative force of an utterance. However, the illocutionary act can be uttered both directly and indirectly. There are two kinds of
speech acts namely direct and indirect speech acts. 1
Direct speech A direct speech acts is performed when there is a direct relationship
between the linguistic form of an utterance and its pragmatics function.
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2 Indirect speech
An indirect speech acts cannot be identified easily as the direct speech acts because the speaker does not deliver his intention explicitly. Indirect
speech happens whenever there is an indirect relationship between a structure and its pragmatic function.
c. Perlocutionary act
It is the result or the effect produced by the utterance. A speaker may utter sentence on the assumption that the hearer will recognize the effect intended.
In short, a locutionary act is the act of saying something. The illocutionary act is the act of doing something, while perlocutionary act is the act
of affecting someone.
2. The Classification of Speech acts
