BEYOND WORDS: HOW PRAGMATIC FUNCTIONS AND DISCURSIVE TACTICS SHAPE COMMUNICATIVE STRATEGY

This article explores the intricate relationship between the pragmatic functions of speech acts and the discursive tactics employed in the formation of communicative strategies. Moving beyond traditional views of language as a mere conduit for information, it draws on speech act theory and discursive pragmatics to argue that utterances function as social actions. By examining how illocutionary forces operate within interactional sequences, the article demonstrates that communicative strategies are not random but are deliberately constructed through tactics such as mitigation, sequential organization, and the exploitation of indeterminacy. Furthermore, it considers the multimodal turn in pragmatics, highlighting how nonverbal cues contribute to strategic meaning-making. Ultimately, this analysis provides a framework for understanding the deliberate and often subtle ways individuals navigate social relationships, manage face, and achieve goals through language.