JOHN L. AUSTIN PERFORMATIVE ACT THEORY

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JOHN L. AUSTIN PERFORMATIVE ACT THEORY
The word “performative” is derived from the word ‘perform’ which signifies an action. This implies that when an utterance is isuued is a way of perfoming an act. Though the performative act theory has been critiqued, it is accused of employing the speaker-centered model when the meaning of acts is conceptualized.[1] John Austin and identified Performatives as sentences but noted that they are not just mere sentences rather they are those sentences that denote an action. He stated that performative act occurs in two ways. First, that which contains a performative verb which is apparent to the other party known as explicit. Second, that which its intention behind that utterance that one understands it known as implicit.
John Austin posited various conditions and guidelines an utterance could be governed as performative. The first condition is that; performatives should be based upon convention. Second, the speaker should have the authority to perform that action. Third, the intention should be understood by the hearer. Fourth, the procedure must be executed (i) correctly and (ii) completely. Lastly, the utterance should reveal clearly its consequences.
John Austin warned that the failure to apply the above given conditions is quite dangerous as the result will be the ‘infelicitous’ of the performative.
He furthered indicated the constatives theory and noted that felicity conditions could not be applied to constatives. constative utterance is classified by John Austin as implicit performative.

[1] Cf. John L. Austin, How to Do Things with Words, the William James Lectures Delivered at Harvard University in1955 (London: Oxford University Press, 1962), p. 6

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