Function of Speech Acts

Functions of the Utterances in a DialogueMaria and Ali are two foreign students sitting at the counter in a restaurant. None of them knows the other one, but after a while, to spend the time untill the waiter arrives to take the order, Maria utters to the person sitting next to her (to Ali), makes a statement, a complaint about the service in the restaurant(u1).

Than gives an explanation for the statement just said, why she thinks the service is slow (u2).These two utterances have a prelocutionary effect, to make the hearer talk to her. It has as function the starting of a conversation. The speaker (Maria) succeds and the hearer engages into a conversation with her. As a response, he makes an expressive utterance (u3) which shows that he hopes that the waiter comes soon.

After the utterance he gives an explication why he is in hurry (’I hope he waits on us soon.’), with a statement of fact (u4).Here begins the real conversation, and now Maria can change the subject because he has the other student’s attention, and she also found a new topic to talk about (the class at two o’clock, and later the school). So, she found out that they both have the same class that day, than turnes her attention over the English book and makes a statement of fact about it(u6). Knowing the origin and belonging of that book she makes a assertion, presupposing that the person is a student at the English Language Center. Ali confirms it and gives more details (he is attendig the fourth course), declares that he is indeed a student and where exactly.

With the help of an interogative sentence, he formulates a question, seeking for information about the girl, if she is also a student in that Learning Center (u8). Maria confirms it and gives further information, just like Ali did, about the courses she attends to. Another piece of information is revealed by Maria in relation with the fourth course, the prevous utterance (u7).DialogueMaria: (u1)The service is really slow here. (u2)I’ve been trying to get the waiter’s attention for the last ten minutes. Ali: (u3)I hope he waits on us soon.

(u4)I have a class at two o’clock. Maria: (u5)Me, too. (u6)I recognise that English book. (u6)You must be a student at the English Language Center.

Ali: (u7)Yeah. I’m in the fourth course. (u8)Are you studying there? Maria: (u9)Yes, I’m in the fifth course. (u10)I took the fourth course last month. Ali: (u11)I just came here two weeks ago.

(u12)Do you like the institute? Maria: (u13)It’s pretty good. (u14)I think I’ve learned a lot of English so far. Ali: (u15)Yeah. (u16)I only wish the classes were a little smaller, though, because we don’t get enough chance to talk. (u17)But I like my teachers a lot.

Maria: (u18)How long are you going to be here?Ali: (u19)I guess a year, but sometimes I feel like going home tomorrow. Maria: (u20)You’ll get used to it. (u21)Where are you from? Ali: (u21)Saudi Arabia. (u22)How about you? Maria: (u23)Venezuela. (u24) I’m only staying here three months.

Then I go to Columbia University in New York. Ali: (u25)By the way, my name is Ali. Maria: (u26)Hi. I’m Maria. Ali: (u27)Hi. (u28)Oh, here comes the waiter.

(u29)It looks like we’re going to get served after all. Maria: (u30)Good. (u31)I’m starving. (source: http://www.rpi.

edu/dept/advising/esl/american_culture/social_skills/sm_talk.htm)To continue on with the small chat, Ali makes a statement about his arrival (u11), and then makes an information seeking interogative sentence (it is a yes-no question, so it can be also a confirmation seeking question) about wether the girl likes the institute. Maria confirms it by making a statement (u13), than gives her oppinion about the recently made statement, telling Ali about her great achievement in the domain of English learning (u14). Ali with the simple statement comfirms that he had the same benefits in English learning. Carrying on the discussion, Ali makes a complaint about the classes, expresses how he feel about them, (by using an expressive) which he considers small (u16), but then he expresses his satisfaction about the teachers (u17).

The subject changes again. Maria makes another question about the time the other student will spend in that learning center (u18). Ali states that he will stay for like a year (u19), but than with the help of a expressive he sais that it already feels like the time has come for him to go (meaning he thinks that the time is too short) . Maria, as a response, makes an utterance to show understanding (her stay will be also short, as you will see later) and to ease the hearers worries (u20).

Next she asks from Ali from where he comes from formulated in a question (u21). Without any suplimental information he answers the information seeking queston and makes one himself, with a different utterance, he asks the same question (u22). She also gives a straight answer (u23), then makes an assertion about her staying in the Institute (u24), she intends to stay for like three months than she will go to the Columbia University in New York to study engineering.The introduction phase, which takes place usually at the beginning of the conversation, is inserted here (u25 and u26). The introduction was initiated by Ali by a statement (’my name is Ali’).

This statement is also an invitation for the other party to introduce herself too, which she does take and itroduces herself in a polite way (u26). First the greeting than the introduction. Ali returns the greeting also (u27), then with an expressives he informes Maria that finally the waiter is comming to take the order (u28). He explains why he is happy about the waiter commin, they will finally eat (u29). Maria also uses an expressive to show her relief (u30), than she explains why she is relieved in the next utterance (u31): she is starving.ConclusionIn this dialogue the function the Speech Acts moostly had varied between statements, mostly with a function of explication and of fact, assertions; complainst; questions seeking information and expressives.

The most dominant ones were the statements of facts and the information seeking questions, because here we are talking about two persons who did not know each other before and these kind of Acts help to establish contact and get to know the conversation partner better.