Volume VI Special Issue III March 2026

Name of Author : Westerley R Marak

Title of the paper : The Utterance of the Body: Translating Austins Speech Act Theory into Butlerian Performativity

Abstract: This paper aims to explore the theoretical transition from J.L. Austins linguistic speech act to Judith Butlers sociological gender performativity. While Austin’s How to Do Things with Words primarily addresses the capacity of language to perform actions through illocutionary force, and borrowing this idea Butler deconstructs the linguistic boundaries to argue that gender is not an internal essence but a stylized repetition of acts. For Butler gender is not something we are born with, but something we do through our daily actions, gestures and behaviours. Borrowing Austins idea Butler shifted the perspective of understanding gender. By translating Austins focus on spoken words into a focus on the bodys movements from mouth to body, Butler shows that gender is a performance that stays alive through constant repetition. Hence, this paper aims to examine how Butler borrowed Austins speech act theory in laying the foundation for her idea on gender performativity.

Keywords : gender, repetition, misfire, performativity, illocutionary force.

DOI :

Page Number : 276-279