The Application Of Speech Act Theory To In-Class Language

In-class language has become more and more relevant to people recently. In foreign countries, it has been studied since the 1970s. In China, the language began to be studied by many educators and experts in the 1980s. Now it has become the hot topic in the fields of linguistics and teaching methodology.In-class language has its own characteristics and pragmatic principles of expression and comprehension. The two principles are the basic rules of in-class language that should be followed by teachers and students. Teaching and learning are a two-way communication to complete the teaching and learning tasks. So in-class language should pursue the ideal effect of expression; meanwhile, it should also pursue the ideal effect of comprehension in order to realize the goal of teaching and learning.How to make in-class language reach the ideal effects of expression and comprehension is the subject of this dissertation. Based on Austin and Searl's speech act theory, the dissertation analyses and describes the forms and pragmatic functions of in-class language in the classroom setting. It points out that in-class language has the functions of directing, request, expounding and inputting, raising questions, showing attitudes, etc. Meanwhile, it also points out the weakness and the problems existing in the usage of in-class language. Then it further investigates and analyses teachers' and students' speech acts, illocutionary acts and the perlocutionary acts of in-class language respectively. Results show that in type and frequency, teachers' language is different from students'; the intentions and perlocutions of teachers and students are not the same, and hence the illocutionary and perlocutionary results are different.The value of the research is self-evident especially in the background of nationwide reforms and improvement of the quality of teaching and learning.