Using Speech-act Theory as a Means of Analysing the Phenomenon and Essence of “Dirty Talks” in Sports

Abstract

In this article, Speech-act Theory will be used as a means of analysing the essence of the prevalent phenomenon- “dirty talks” in sports, especially in basketball and soccer games which the author is familiar with. Firstly, the author will give a literature review of Speech-act Theory which was first proposed by Austin and then was developed by Searle and other linguistic scholars. Then authentic examples of dirty talks in sports games will be given, and Speech-act Theory will be used as a way of analysing the locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary forces of these trash words. Finally, based on the analysis of the listed dirty talks in the article, the author will draw a conclusion which emphasises the essence of dirty talks in sports games and give his suggestions about how to decrease and mitigate the negative impact of dirty talks in sports games and purify the atmosphere of sports by educating and raising athletes’ awareness of civilization and right sense of value and judgment about dirty talks.