On Pornography

This chapter uses the framework of covert exercitives to explore potential harms of actions involving certain types of pornography. The sorts of pornography of interest are clarified and the pornographic is shown to be context sensitive. This chapter focuses on the harms of subordination and silencing. Langton’s account of the subordinating force of pornography is critically assessed. An alternative model, relying on the covert exercitive, is presented and its advantages are illustrated using real world examples from the law. Various kinds of silencing are identified, the speech act of refusal is clarified, and both causal and constitutive connections between actions involving pornography, on the one hand, and the harms of subordination and silencing, on the other, are here discussed.

Speech and Oppression

This chapter applies our understanding of covert exercitives to an example of sexist speech. The nature of oppression is clarified. Two models of oppressive speech are identified. The first model is authoritative and involves a standard exercitive speech act. Instances of this sort of oppressive speech must satisfy the felicity conditions of standard exercitives. The second model of oppressive speech involves a covert exercitive. With the second model, it is shown that an offhand sexist remark can be oppressive even though the speaker does not intend to oppress, the speaker does not have any particular authority, and the remark is not aimed at the persons oppressed by it. The chapter concludes with an exploration of various objections to the model of covertly oppressive speech developed here.

Conversational Exercitives

This chapter argues that conversational contributions routinely enact norms for the conversation to which they contribute. When an utterance adds to a conversation, it enacts changes to the conversational score. This is because the score tracks everything relevant to the proper assessment and development of the conversation. Moreover, since what is appropriate or permissible in the conversation depends on the score, changing the score thereby changes what is permissible in that conversation and this involves the enacting of norms. Such conversational exercitives involve an important but overlooked mechanism of verbal norm enactment.

The General Phenomenon

This chapter argues that the phenomenon of conversational exercitives generalizes. It is not just verbal contributions to conversations that enact norms; verbal contributions to other norm-governed activities also do so. Such covert exercitives are developed and the complex role of intention is clarified and explored. It is also argued that the covert enacting of a permissibility fact (by a covert or conversational exercitive) does not depend on the communication of the intention to enact that permissibility fact. As a result, such exercitives are not a communicative (illocutionary) phenomenon. Rather, they constitute what is here called a parallel act.

Conclusion

The phenomenon of covert exercitives sheds light on various kinds of harmful speech. Sexist comments can oppress (Chapter 5). What may seem to be an offhand remark, and thus merely a minor irritant, may nevertheless enact local norms that oppress. Actions involving certain kinds of pornography can constitute harm even in cases where the agent has no intention to do so, even in cases where the agent does not have authority, and even in cases where the pornography-involving actions are not communicative acts (...

Introduction

An employee brags about his sexual conquest to a co-worker while they are on break in the employee lounge. This offhand remark oppresses. Moreover, it does so even when the speaker does not intend to do so and even when the speaker is utterly unaware of doing so. What words do is not a simple function of either speaker intention or speaker awareness. This remark can oppress even in cases where the speaker has no special authority. Ordinary people under ordinary circumstances can unwittingly oppress others with their everyday comments. The power to verbally oppress comes from the social context; it need not reside in the speaker....

Preliminaries

This chapter presents the material in the philosophy of language that is required to follow the arguments in the book. A general introduction to an intentionalist neo-Gricean framework for understanding language use is presented. General information about speech act theory and the felicity conditions for successful speech acts is covered. Since the book focuses on exercitive speech, that is, speech that enacts permissibility facts, additional information is given about exercitives and their felicity conditions. This chapter also clarifies some of the key concepts used throughout the book. The nature of enactment, different kinds of enactment, the important distinction between constituting and merely causing harm, and the nature of social norms are all presented.

Race, Speech, and Free Speech Law

This chapter applies the phenomenon of covert exercitives to free speech issues. The main goal is to show that because racist speech in public places enacts discriminatory norms, there is a harm prevention justification for its legal actionability. In the process, the philosophical foundations of a free speech principle are presented. Various justifications for extending special protections to speech are discussed; issues about the scope of a free speech principle are identified, and the conditions for legitimate regulation are presented. Several argumentative strategies for speech regulation are discussed and one is shown to be preferable. The actionability of some racist speech in some public spaces is supported using that strategy.

On Differences Between Standard and Conversational Exercitives

This chapter explores differences between conversational exercitives and standard exercitives. Although both enact norms, standard exercitives do so via an exercise of speaker authority. Moreover, with standard exercitives, the speaker intends to enact a norm and intends for the hearer to recognize that intention. Standard exercitives are communicative. Conversational exercitives work differently. The speaker does not need to have or exercise authority; the speaker need not consciously intend to enact a norm and participants need not consciously recognize that a norm is enacted. With conversational exercitives, norms are enacted simply in virtue of contributing to the norm-governed activity of conversation.