A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS OF ILLOCUTIONARY ACT PERFORMED BY THE MAIN CHARACTERS IN ALAN POUL’S THE BACK-UP PLAN MOVIE

Abstract

This research aims to analyze the types and functions of illocutionary act performed by the main characters in a movie entitled The Back-up Plan. In this research, descriptive qualitative method was applied with the researcher as the main instrument and the data sheets as the secondary instrument. The data of this research were utterances in the form of words, phrases, and sentences spoken by the main characters in the movie. After being collected, the data were organized and analyzed based on Searle and Leech’s theory of illocutionary act. This study found that there are four types of illocutionary act performed by the main characters in the movie. They are representative act, directive act, expressive act, and commissive act. Representative act is found as the most dominant type performed by the main characters. The main characters employ representative act to convey their ideas to each other. On the other hand, declarative act is not performed by the main characters in the movie since to perform a felicitous declaration, particular authorities and circumstances are needed. Moreover, there are three functions of illocutionary act performed by the main characters in this movie. They are collaborative function, competitive function, and convivial function. The most dominant function performed by the main characters is collaborative function since it is intended to tell the truth of the main characters’ feelings to each other. Meanwhile, conflictive function is not performed by the main characters since it is intended to offend the hearer.

Key words: pragmatic, illocutionary act, The Back-up Plan