Austin's Performative Utterances

Austin's Performative Utterances are statements that do not just describe or declare something but actually perform an action through the act of speaking itself. For example, when a doctor says "I now pronounce you husband and wife," they are not just describing a state but creating the legal and social change of marriage. For these utterances to work correctly, certain conditions must be met: the speaker must have the authority, it must be said in the right context, and the words must be appropriate. These statements fundamentally change situations simply through being spoken.