| Description |
In this thesis I argue for Speech Act Theory's continued relevance today. Particularly in the context of the Web 2.0 movement and Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC), J. L. Austin's basic notions of performatives, illocutionary and perloctionary acts, and infelicity seem to offer vast insight into what is going on with social interaction on the Internet. In the era of Wikipedia, YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter we see the use of language developing and changing to fit the need of users online. In an increasingly social online world, it is no surprise then that the majority of interaction is facilitated via speech acts. Commenting and posting online, for instance, clearly lie in the realm of speech acts, with the act of posting being the locutionary act, and the effect on the world the perlocution, etc. I look at a number of phenomena including: speech in online computer games, 'gestures' in chat groups, emoticons, and Internet abbreviations. How we are using language online offers great insights in how language conveys meaning. |
