CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
Language is an inseparable part of human life. Sapir defined that language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols (1921: 8). Language is the best mean of self-expression. It is not only expressed orally but also can be expressed in written. According to Robins (in RadheyVarshney 2003: 2) a language is a symbol system based on pure or arbitrary convention, infinitely extenable and modifiable according to the changing needs and conditions of the speakers. Any natural human language is a complex symbol system, designed to ensure infinite expressive capacity (Cruse, 2000: 6). From the definitions of language above, it included that symbol system consists of linguistic and non-linguistic symbol. Linguistic symbols consist of words. Words that go together to form sentences which in turn are capable of conveying meanings. On the other hand non-linguistic symbols such as expressive gestures, signals of various kinds, road-signs, graffiti and many more such things are means of communications.
Every sentence or phrase has meaning semantically and pragmatically. Semantics and pragmatics are two mains area of linguistic study that aim at the knowledge used both to extract meaning when heard or read, and to convey meaning when it is spoken or written. Based on Kreidler (1998: 3) Semantics is the systematic study of meaning, and linguistic semantics is the study of how languages organize and express meanings. Pragmatics is the study of language usage (Levinson, 1983: 5). Pragmatics deals with the utterances which has some divisions based on the aspect of language such as Deixis, Presuppositions, Conversational Implicature and Speech acts.
Speech acts are actions performed via utterances (Yule,1996: 47). Speech acts is a theory that concern to the meaning and the intention of a sentence, phrase and even word. Level of speech acts make the readers become easy to catch what the phrase meant. The level of speech acts consist of locutionary acts, illocutionary acts, and perlocutionary acts.
Yule stated (1996: 48) that:
There is first a locutionary act is the basic of utterance, or producing a meaningful linguistic expression… mostly we don’t just produced well-formed utterance with no purpose. We form an utterance with some kind of function in mind. This is the second dimension, or the illocutionary act. Illocutionary act is an act performed via communicative force of an utterance… we don’t, of course, simply create an utterance with a function wthout intending it to have an effect. This is the third dimmension, the perlocutionary act. Depending on the circumstances, you will utter on the assumption that the hearer will recognize the effect you intended.
In speech acts, there are five classification of speech acts. They are declarations, representatives, expressives, directives, commissives.
As a tool of communication language can be expressed orally or written. In his book “Graffiti Lexicon” Thiel (1997) says that graffiti relates to communication. Graffiti means collectives phrases of (partially anonymous) inscriptions (words), tags, personal messages, initials, phrases and all forms of communication, popular, of generally known matters, information and knowledge of “insiders” (languages) here in mixed cultural societies and political context.
It can be conclude that graffiti are the expressive drawings and writings which have hidden meanings that can be found in communication between the writer and the reader. Generally people do not care about graffiti and abuse them but some people care about graffiti and appraise them as art works.
When defined from its Greek root, graphein implies drawings or scribblings on flat surfaces (Whitehead, 2004). In this light, graffiti can be taken as a pictorial or written inscription on a publicly available surface. These definitions however do not capture transgressive elements associated with the practice. Graffiti writing is a practice that is referred to as a norm violation. This is because the scratching and writings are predominantly inscribed on both public and private property without permission. Resultantly, graffiti writing is mostly associated with notions of illegality and rule-breaking. In the Nigeria context, graffiti is mostly written on a wide array of surfaces which include precast and brick walls (henceforth referred to as durawalls), roadside signs, as well as inside the toilet surfaces such as on walls and toilet doors. There are, however, instances whereby some can be written on classroom walls (both interior and exterior) and corridor walls.
It is important to appreciate that textual graffiti is rarely an individual and isolated practice. In most cases walls are literally covered by contributions made by a variety of participants. Usually this may entail a situation whereby one or more participants may respond to a contribution made by other participants. This gives rise to a situation whereby individuals participate in discourse communities necessarily involving the construction and negotiation of meaning (Litosseliti, 2006). The construction of discourse brings to the fore the importance of the context in which it (discourse) is used. Context in this case is taken to include the totality of the socio- economic as well as political environment, at all the three levels. The social aspect of context can be taken to also include cultural aspects that inform the social construction of discourse as well as the structuring of power relations in and through discourse. A better appreciation of any discourse necessarily entails a consideration of contexts at local, national and international levels. The relationship and interaction of these various contexts entail that graffiti writers engage in discourse constrained by what they bring into the process of negotiation of meaning.
In Nigeria, graffiti is written in three major languages, namely, Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo. However, characterizing graffiti as an anonymous practice does not necessarily entail that people do not construct schemas about people who write it. The texting process might be an anonymous one, but inherent contestations of power and control over such linguistic resources as mainstream discourse involves the attribution of the practice to particular segments of society which are stereotyped to be most likely to engage in it. Therefore, this study is concerned with analysis of speech act of textual graffiti.
1.2 Statement of the problem.
Graffiti, in Nigeria is generally associated with delinquency and anti-social behaviour. As a result, previous studies on Nigeria graffiti have not paid much attention to the socioeconomic and political issues raised on the various graffiti platforms across the urban areas. The researcher uses Musa (1992) argue that in spite of its negative perception, graffiti still offers individuals and groups with discursive spaces on which to construct alternative discourses especially in a context dominated by unconditional master codes, characterised by general impunity. This, therefore, provides the impetus for the sociolinguistic exploration of graffiti writing in relation to how various social groups appropriate discursive spaces offered to them by various surfaces and how they empower them to (re)produce social relationships of power.
1.3 Aim of the study
Graffiti is a distinct form of communication through which participants are actively involved in the construction of discourse. This assumes that the construction of discourse through graffiti is constrained by social variables. The research is driven by the assumption that Nigeria graffiti writing exhibits sociolinguistic variations. The research is therefore aimed at exploring the nature of sociolinguistic variations and the social variables shaping discursive practices in Nigerian urban graffiti.
1.3.1 Objectives
The research is guided by the following objectives:
To find out the intended meaning of the illocutionary acts of the graffiti on public.
To find out the classification of speech acts that used in graffiti on public.
To establish people’s attitudes towards graffiti writing in Nigerian’s urban
areas.
To investigate the nature of speech act used in street graffiti in Nigerian’s urban areas.
To explore the nature of socio-economic and political graffiti in Nigerian’s
urban areas.
To explore speech act of the existence and nature of gendered differences in graffiti.
1.4 Research questions.
The research is informed by the following research question:
What are the intended meanings of the illocutionary acts of the graffiti on public?
What are the classification of speech acts that used in graffiti on public?
What are the people’ attitudes towards textual graffiti?
What is the nature of speech act of urban street graffiti in Nigerian’s?
What themes dominate speech act regarding socio-economic as well as political graffiti in Nigerian’s urban areas?
How are issues of sexuality and gender negotiated in toilet graffiti in educational institutions?
1.4 Significant/justification of the study
Graffiti is as a form of discourse and by extension a distinct type of social practice (Litosseliti, 2006). This ultimately means that it is a discourse constrained by the social context in which it is practiced. Approaching graffiti from this perspective serves to distinguish graffiti practices according to their spatial and contextual distribution. Whilst it is appreciated that past research has focused on graffiti, it needs to be pointed out that differences in social orders in which these practices are situated entail differences in discursive practices.
Communication or texting has been a part of every society since the beginning of man’s civilization. Communication in form of text or speech activities help in expressing our thoughts verbally or textually; hence, It is an important way of organizing and ordering so as to enhance these interactions, for the purpose of achieving the desired results of society. The speech act of textual graffiti had great impact on delivery of messaging to receivers through some certain ways such as drawing and promo advertisement.
However, not many people understand the underlying speech act import of these textual graffiti. The main significance of this study, therefore, is to throw more light on these textual graffiti using speech act analysis so as to enable a better understanding of the readers’ point of view.
Also, this research will contribute meaningfully to scholarship because the results from the analysis will be of immense help to marketers, politicians, political analysts, education administrators and even the common man (readers) who has some interest in textual graffiti.
Education analysts will benefit immensely from this work since it will further expose them to the divergent ways of generating implied meanings in lesson delivery to students in gradual process. It will give an insight to readers of the language of textual graffiti and the kinds of speeches.
Finally, it will also help researchers who intend to carry out an analysis of speeches as a good reference guide during the course of their research.
1.5 Scope of study
The research intend to Analysis speech act of textual graffiti. It analyses how language use is linked to the social milieu in which it is situated in Nigeria.
