Re: A Simple Four Phrase Types Theory

E fésto Philippe Caquant <herodote92@...>:
> 1/ enunciative sentences. By such sentences the
> speaker just wants some information to get to the
> addressee’s conscience, whatever the information may
> be (“objective” information, persuasion, blame, joke
> or whatever). He doesn’t expect anything particular in
> return, except maybe an acknowledgement like “OK, got
> it”.
>
> 2/ imperative sentences. The speaker expects that the
> addressee will produce in return some act or action,
> excluding sole speech acts.
>
> 3/ interrogative sentences. The speaker expects that
> the addressee will provide some information (speech
> act) in return to his request.
>
> 4/ performative sentences. The speech act is itself a
> (social) act (it modifies relations in the universe).
>
> A fifth type would be “unintentional” sentences, where
> there is no intention at all, as the names suggests
> it, and in some cases even no addressee. There are
> usually “instinctive” sentences.
"You don't say..."

> N.B. One could also add the “magic sentences”, which
> change the physical (not only social) reality – like
> “Abracadabra, thou are no more a toad, thou are a
> princess”, but that whould refere to a special
> universe.
Those are technically a type of performative sentence.  The only
difference between "I pronounce you man and wife" and "Abracadabra,
s/toad/princess" is the set of people for whom those utterances are
actually functional.  [The fact that you'd have trouble finding someone of
the latter set in this world is immaterial.]

I don't think it's entirely useful to differentiate between "social" and
"physical" changes (as if society didnt exist in the material world) as
performative sentences can have physical consequences without being
magical at all, e.g., "I sentence you to death."


        *Muke!
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