Emoticons and Illocutionary Force

Eli Dresner*, Susan C. Herring

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

19 Scopus citations

Abstract

The term “emoticons” short for “emotion icons” refers to graphic signs, such as the smiley face, that often accompany computer-mediated textual communication. They are most often characterized as iconic indicators of emotion, conveyed through a communication channel that is parallel to the linguistic one. In this chapter, it is argued that this conception of emoticons fails to account for some of their important uses. We present a brief outline of speech act theory and use it to provide a complementary account of emoticons, according to which they also function as indicators of illocutionary force. We conclude by considering how our analysis bears upon broader questions concerning language, bodily behavior, and text.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationLogic, Argumentation and Reasoning
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media B.V.
Pages81-90
Number of pages10
DOIs
StatePublished - 2014

Publication series

NameLogic, Argumentation and Reasoning
Volume2
ISSN (Print)2214-9120
ISSN (Electronic)2214-9139

Keywords

  • Computer-mediated communication
  • Emoticons
  • Illocutionary force
  • Pragmatics
  • Speech acts

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Emoticons and Illocutionary Force'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this