Open AccessThe Performativity of Literature
Author(s) -
Christina Chitanu
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
the anachronist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2063-126X
pISSN - 1219-2589
DOI - 10.53720/pnkf5872
Subject(s) - performativity , drama , hamlet (protein complex) , linguistics , sociology , philosophy of language , art , philosophy , literature , epistemology , metaphysics
Performativity in the philosophy of language means that certain deeds may be done using language, strictly speaking in speech, and the theory has become known as “speech-act theory,” its first theoreticians being J. L. Austin and John Searle. This article investigates the performativity of the text per se, how literature can “perform” for the reader, while also interpreting some related concepts: performance, drama, script, and intermediality through the analysis of three highly popular plays: Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and G. B. Shaw’s Pygmalion.