Speech Act of Command Found in Impractical Jokers

Asyrafi, Muhammad (2026) Speech Act of Command Found in Impractical Jokers. S1 thesis, Universitas Andalas.

	Text (Cover dan Abstrak) 01. Cover & Abstrak.pdf - Published Version Download (351kB)
	Text (BAB I) 02. BAB I.pdf - Published Version Download (337kB)
	Text (BAB IV) 03. BAB IV.pdf - Published Version Download (313kB)
	Text (Daftar Pustaka) 04. Daftar Pustaka.pdf - Published Version Download (313kB)
	Text (Skripsi Fulltext) 05. Skripsi Fulltext.pdf - Published Version Restricted to Repository staff only Download (2MB) | Request a copy

Abstract

This study investigates the realization of command speech acts in the grocery store challenges of the American reality television show Impractical Jokers. Using a theme-based sampling approach, the data were collected from all grocery store challenge segments appearing in Season 1 and 2. The research aims to identify the grammatical forms of command speech acts and examine their command types in spontaneous public interaction. A descriptive qualitative method was employed, with 47 command utterances analyzed using speech act theory proposed by Austin (1962), further developed by Searle (1969), and supported by Yule’s (1996) framework of directive speech acts. The findings reveal that all command utterances function as direct commands, with no indirect commands identified in the dataset. In terms of grammatical realization, 43 utterances (91.5%) are expressed in imperative form, 3 utterances (6.4%) in interrogative form, and 1 utterance (2.1%) in declarative form. The predominance of imperative constructions reflects the need for clarity and communicative efficiency in the task-oriented interactions of the grocery store challenges, while the limited use of interrogative and declarative forms demonstrates speakers' sensitivity to social context when interacting with civilians. These findings suggest that the realization of command speech acts is shaped not only by grammatical structure but also by communicative intention, situational demands, and interpersonal relationships. The study contributes to pragmatic research by providing evidence that different grammatical forms may perform the same directive function when supported by appropriate contextual and interactional cues.

Actions (login required)

View Item