A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language
This research employs speech act theory to analyze Tillie Olsen's I Stand Here Ironing (1961), with a focus on how the narrator's speech acts convey the emotional and psychological dynamics of motherhood. It investigates assertive, directive, and expressive acts to unveil the narrator’s struggles with guilt, self-blame and endless maternal love, as well as how socio-economic factors constrain and limit them. By examining illocutionary and perlocutionary forces, the research reveals how language constructs the narrator's identity and mother-daughter relationship using performatives. Indirect speech acts hold primary position by expressing unspoken, hidden emotions and societal pressures influencing the mother's self-identity. The study provides a sophisticated understanding of linguistic expressions of emotions through this analysis. The research concludes by focusing on Olsen's narrative and how it uses speech to create meaning, with a focus on motherhood, sacrifice, and responsibility.
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Speech Act, Performatives, Illocutionary Acts, , Identity, Motherhood
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(1) Suman Naeem
Masters Student, College of International Studies, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
(2) Aiman Naeem
Masters Student, College of International Studies, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
(3) Amna Aziz
Doctral Student, College of International Studies, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
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Cite this article
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APA : Naeem, S., Naeem, A., & Aziz, A. (2026). A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language. Global Sociological Review, XI(II), 23-32. https://doi.org/10.31703/gsr.2026(XI-II).03
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CHICAGO : Naeem, Suman, Aiman Naeem, and Amna Aziz. 2026. "A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language." Global Sociological Review, XI (II): 23-32 doi: 10.31703/gsr.2026(XI-II).03
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HARVARD : NAEEM, S., NAEEM, A. & AZIZ, A. 2026. A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language. Global Sociological Review, XI, 23-32.
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MHRA : Naeem, Suman, Aiman Naeem, and Amna Aziz. 2026. "A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language." Global Sociological Review, XI: 23-32
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MLA : Naeem, Suman, Aiman Naeem, and Amna Aziz. "A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language." Global Sociological Review, XI.II (2026): 23-32 Print.
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OXFORD : Naeem, Suman, Naeem, Aiman, and Aziz, Amna (2026), "A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language", Global Sociological Review, XI (II), 23-32
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TURABIAN : Naeem, Suman, Aiman Naeem, and Amna Aziz. "A Speech Act Analysis of Tillie Olsen’s I Stand Here Ironing: Exploring the Dynamics of Emotions and Identity through Language." Global Sociological Review XI, no. II (2026): 23-32. https://doi.org/10.31703/gsr.2026(XI-II).03