Language Pragmatics

From Geography

The core concept of language pragmatic action theory is speech act. This approach involves not only human interactions but also nonhuman. This perspective is similar to the actor-network theory. A nonessentialist view is adopted. Language is considered a means of representation and an instrument to coordinate actions and everything that people do (Zierhofer 2002 p.1362). Language gives the precondition of how we can speak, express ourselves, give meaning.

Language pragmatic action theory differs from other versions of action theory like Giddens’ structuration theory and Werlen’s theory of everyday regionalizations. Language pragmatic focuses on speech acts and language philosophy. In other approaches language is regarded as a means to transport meaning, whereas language pragmatics considers language to generate meaning (Zierhofer 2002, p. 1362).

Spaces, in consequence, are seen as phenomena which are constituted and applied by agents pursuing particular projects by using their specific semantic competences (Zierhofer 2002, p.1371).

Space is thus an element of speech acts. Language and speech acts influence geography by constructing geographical realities. E.g. I live in Nijmegen (Huib Ernste, personal communication 05-10-10).

References:

Zierhofer, W. (2002). Speech acts and space(s): language pragmatics and the discursive constitution of the social. In Environment and Planning A, vol.34, pp 1355-1372.

Published by Sabrina Willems & Anouk Soomers