ILLOCUTIONARY ACTS OF MILES MORALES IN AuSPIDER-MAN:
INTO THE SPIDER-VERSEAy: IDENTITY REPRESENTATION
THROUGH SPEECH ACTS
Mayang Pipit Universitas Indraprasta PGRI.
Jakarta.
Indonesia e-mail: mayang912@gmail.
Sarah Hafifah Universitas Indraprasta PGRI.
Jakarta.
Indonesia e-mail: sarahhafifah9@gmail.
ABSTRACT
This study aims to identify and analyze the illocutionary speech acts performed by the main character.
Miles Morales, in the animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and to interpret how these acts contribute to the construction of his identity.
The data source consists of Miles MoralesAo utterances throughout the film.
The study applies SearleAos classification of speech acts as its theoretical framework, which includes five categories: assertive, directive, expressive, commissive, and declarative.
Using a qualitative descriptive method within a pragmatic approach, data were collected through careful observation and transcription of relevant dialogue.
The collected utterances were then classified and analyzed based on the five types of illocutionary acts.
The findings are presented in the form of percentages to show the distribution of each speech act The results indicate that assertive .
%) and expressive .
%) acts are the most frequently used, followed by directive .
%) and commissive .
%), with no declarative acts identified.
These findings suggest that Miles Morales constructs his identity largely through statements of belief and emotional expression, reflecting a character in emotional transition and self-discovery.
Therefore, illocutionary acts in this film not only serve pragmatic functions but also play a crucial role in representing character identity within popular media narratives.
Keywords: Illocutionary acts.
SearleAos Speech Act, identity representation, animated film.
Miles Morales INTRODUCTION Language is not merely a tool for transmitting information.
it is a powerful medium through which individuals express identity, negotiate social roles.
Within the field of pragmatics, speech act theory provides a foundational lens for analyzing how utterances are used to perform actions.
Developed initially by J.
Austin and further formalized by John Searle, this theory categorizes speech into various acts, highlighting the performative nature of language.
According to Searle .
, illocutionary actsAisuch as asserting, questioning, commanding, expressingAiare understanding the intentions behind utterances and their impact on the Page | 68 Searle .
classified speech acts into five categories: assertive, directive, commissive, expressive, and These classifications are not merely linguistic distinctions but reflect deeper psychological and social For example, assertives commit the speaker to the truth of a proposition, while expressives convey the speakerAos psychological state.
Each type of illocutionary act reveals how language users position themselves in interaction, offering critical insight into character, identity, and power dynamics (Yule, 1.
research, identity has emerged as a central concern in discourse studies.
Language choices are not neutral.
are deeply entwined with identity construction and social positioning (Bucholtz.
, & Hall, 2.
Identity is enacted through discourse, and speech acts play a significant role in this process.
As Fairclough .
suggests, discourse both reflects and constitutes social identities and relations.
When viewed through this lens, fictional dialogueAi particularly in filmsAibecomes a valuable source for examining how characters project and negotiate identities through speech.
Animated films, once regarded primarily as entertainment for children, have evolved into complex narrative forms capable of exploring deep psychological and social themes.
The animated feature Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse .
is notable for its groundbreaking visual style and its reimagining of the Spider-Man mythos through the lens of Miles Morales, an Afro-Latino teenager navigating the challenges of heroism, adolescence, and cultural belonging.
As a protagonist.
Miles represents a new type of heroAi one shaped not only by superpowers but also by his linguistic choices, emotional expressions, and identity struggles.
This study aims to investigate how illocutionary speech acts contribute to the representation of identity in the case of Miles Morales.
Specifically, it examines the prevalence and function of speech acts which dominate his dialogues throughout the film.
Through SearleAos speech act categories, the researcher explores how they reflect MilesAos evolving self-concept, his relationships with others.
To achieve those objectives, the study explores several key questions: it investigates what types of illocutionary speech acts are performed by Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Into the SpiderVerse, examines the hierarchy or frequency of these speech acts in the characterAos dialogue, and analyzes how the dominant illocutionary acts contribute to the representation of Miles MoralesAos identity as a character.
By analyzing speech acts within a culturally significant and linguistically rich media text, this study contributes to the broader understanding of how language functions not only to communicate but also to construct complex identities in contemporary Moreover, it bridges pragmatics and discourse analysis with media studies, demonstrating the value of speech act theory in examining representation in narratives.
While prior research has explored speech acts in political speeches (Ilie, 2.
, courtroom interactions (Cotterill, 2.
, and literary dialogue (Black, 2.
, more recent Page | 69 studies have extended this analysis to educational and cinematic contexts.
Halid.
Elan.
& Juniati .
examined illocutionary speech acts in the learning process between teachers and students, emphasizing how such acts facilitate classroom interaction and pedagogical Meanwhile.
Zega, at al.
focused specifically on identifying assertive acts in Spider-Man: No Way Home, highlighting how characters express beliefs and assert personal truths through dialogue.
However.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse offers a unique case for analysis due to its hybrid genre, multicultural protagonist, and strong emphasis on personal growth, emotional expression, and identity negotiation.
This study thus seeks to fill a gap by exploring how the frequency and function of speech acts serve as tools for constructing Miles MoralesAos identity in the film.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The study of speech acts is a central concern in pragmatics, providing insight into how language functions not merely to describe reality, but to perform actions.
Austin .
laid the foundation for this area of inquiry by illocutionary, and perlocutionary acts.
Building on this.
Searle .
9, 1.
proposed a systematic classification of illocutionary acts into five main Each category comprises several subcategories that reflect the nuanced ways speakers perform speech acts in interaction.
Assertives are used to express the speakerAos beliefs and convey including stating, claiming, reporting, and suggesting.
Directives are aimed at getting the hearer to do something, encompassing forms such as commands, requests, advice, and instructions.
Commissives commit the speaker to a future course of action, including acts like promising, offering, vowing, and Expressives reveal the speakerAos psychological state or emotional response, with examples such as thanking, apologizing, congratulating, and complaining.
Finally, declaratives bring about change in the external world through the utterance itself, such as declaring, resigning, naming, or sentencingAitypically requiring some form of institutional authority.
This classification serves as a comprehensive framework for analyzing how language functions as action and how speakers position themselves socially and discourse, particularly in animated films, speech acts are not only used to simulate natural conversation but also to relationships, and propel narrative structure (Coulthard.
, & Johnson.
Animated dialogue often compensates for the lack of realistic physical expression by intensifying linguistic elements, making speech acts a powerful tool for conveying identity (Tolins.
, & Heffner, 2.
Yule .
and Leech .
emphasize that understanding the illocutionary force behind an utterance is key to grasping the speakerAos intent and social Speech acts are closely tied to identity representation, especially in From Page | 70 sociolinguistic perspective, identity is seen not as a static trait but as a dynamic and relational construct that emerges through discourse (Bucholtz.
, & Hall.
Gee .
also argues that language reflects and enacts social identities, values, affiliations, and roles.
In this context, illocutionary acts become vehicles for expressing aspects of the selfAibeliefs, emotions, intentions, authority, and social roles.
Assertives, represent the speaker as knowledgeable or credible, playing a key role in projecting intellectual or moral identity (Holmes & Stubbe, 2.
Expressives function to reveal emotional states and to build rapport, making them crucial for emotionally responsive persona.
Both are often dominant in the language of transitions, as seen in the case of Miles Morales.
Directives and commissives also play important roles in projecting relational and moral identity.
Directives reflect power relations and social roles, responsibility, future orientation, and Declaratives, although less common in informal contexts, show institutional authority and legitimacy when present.
Each type contributes to the multifaceted portrayal of a character's identity within the narrative Scholars like Mey .
and Verschueren .
have emphasized that pragmatic competenceAithe ability to use appropriate speech acts in contextAiis construction, especially for characters like Miles Morales who navigate multiple cultural and social worlds.
Trosborg .
adds that speech acts are culturally embedded, making them particularly relevant in analyzing media discourse that often dramatizes cultural and interpersonal tensions.
In the realm of animated films, research supports the view that dialogue and speech acts are central to character McIntyre .
argues that linguistic elementsAisuch as speech acts and politeness strategiesAiplay as significant a role as visual design in shaping character identity.
Dynel .
further highlights the dual nature of film dialogue as both naturalistic and spontaneous while strategically guiding character development and audience In summary, the categorization and use of illocutionary acts not only purposes but also act as a means of identity representation in fictional The analysis of speech acts in animated media like Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse offers valuable insights into how characters like Miles Morales linguistically construct and negotiate their evolving identities.
RESEARCH METHOD
This study adopts a qualitative descriptive design to analyze the illocutionary speech acts of Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Into the SpiderVerse.
A qualitative approach is wellsuited for examining language use in context, particularly when interpreting meaning, communicative function, and social implications (Creswell, 2.
The focus is on identifying and interpreting speech acts using Searle's .
theory and connecting them to the characterAos The data, consisting of MilesAos Page | 71 utterances, were manually transcribed from the filmAos original English audio, with accuracy ensured through repeated viewings and subtitle cross-checking.
Data were collected through nonparticipant documentation (Sudaryanto, 2.
, involving film viewing, transcription, selection of utterances with illocutionary force, and categorization into SearleAos five types: assertives, directives.
Frequencies were recorded to identify usage patterns.
Data analysis was guided by Searle's .
Speech Act Theory and supported by insights from Yule .
Leech .
, and Cutting .
Utterances were analyzed based on semantic and contextual cues to determine their illocutionary force, followed by frequency and functional analysis to explore their contribution to MilesAos character development.
hierarchy analysis was also conducted to trace shifts in speech act usage across the narrative.
To ensure validity and reliability, triangulation was employed through repeated observations and theoretical cross-checking (Denzin, 1.
, alongside peer debriefing and expert consultation.
Results are generated using Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word, displaying the frequency, percentage, and explanation of each speech act type.
Due to the manageable dataset and the focus on qualitative interpretation, advanced software was not required.
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
1 Result This section presents the findings of the illocutionary speech acts performed by Miles Morales in SpiderMan: Into the Spider-Verse.
Using Searle's .
illocutionary actsAiassertives, directives, declarativesAithe analysis uncovers how MilesAos speech reflects his character development and identity formation.
To provide a clearer picture of the distribution of speech act types, the following table presents the quantitative findings of Miles MoralesAos utterances in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
The 1 shows the distribution of illocutionary speech acts performed by Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
Assertive acts are the most frequent .
%), followed by expressive acts .
%) and directives .
%).
Commissives are rare .
%), while declaratives are entirely absent.
Table 1.
Distribution of Illocutionary Speech Acts Speech Act Type Frequency Percentage Assertive Expressive Directive Commissive Declarative Total The analysis revealed that Miles Morales predominantly uses assertive speech acts, which account for 36% of his total utterances.
These include statements of belief, observations, and evaluations, indicating that Miles often verbalizes his thoughts and attempts to make sense of the world around him.
According to Searle .
, assertives are used to convey the speakerAos belief or to commit the speaker to the truth of a proposition.
As shown in Table 4.
Miles frequently uses assertives to Page | 72 express his personal experiences, preferences, evaluations, and factual For instance, in the early scene when a friend mentions an earthquake (Timestamp 00:03:50Ae 00:03:.
Miles responds with AuI slept
like a baby last night,Ay asserting his
experience and subtly dismissing the This type of utterance illustrates how Miles affirms his own perspective, especially in contrast to others around
00:42:3
No.
00:03:5
00:03:5
00:04:1
00:04:2
00:06:2
00:06:2
00:06:2
00:06:2
00:07:2
00:07:3
00:42:1
8Ae Line of Dialogue AuWhat are you talking about? I slept like a baby last Ay AuSeriously.
Dad, would have been fine.
Ay AuYou wanna hear me say it?Ay AuYouAore me off at a schoolAiAy AuEinstein said time Maybe IAom not late.
Ay AuI donAot Description Miles asserts his personal denying the He expresses asserting his for walking.
He confirms and clarifies his fatherAos ng the Stating a factual event about it.
Quoting a theory and on of being Making claims about his urgent
situation and the villainAos 00:43:0 1Ae
00:43:0
AuI need it to destroy the Ay
00:43:2
00:43:4
AuYou good with that.
SpiderMan?Ay 00:45:0 3Ae
00:45:0
AuA private al campus in Hudson Valley.
New
YorkAAy Providing 00:45:5 1Ae
00:45:5
AuThat lady with the bike is the Ay
Making a 00:46:1 7Ae
00:46:2
AuWhy did I get stuck with the janky-old.
SpiderMan?Ay Asserting evaluative in 00:48:2 0Ae
00:48:2
AuI canAot
move!Ay Stating a 00:49:0 5Ae
00:49:1
AuCan Spider-Man invisible?Ay Table 2.
Assertive Speech Acts
Timestamp
KingpinAos HeAos trying to kill
00:52:2
00:52:2
00:52:5
00:52:5
01:18:0
8Ae AuWhen did you teach me that?Ay AuI run better than I swing!Ay AuWe can Asserting a specific goal Requesting but implying his own view as valid.
Framed as a question, but MilesAos belief or doubt.
Questioning past actions.
Evaluating and asserting Making a Page | 73
01:18:1
goodbye at Ay AuWell.
Einstein
said time
right?Ay 01:34:2 4Ae
01:34:3
01:35:0
01:35:1
AuPeter, that wasnAot the deal!Ay 01:35:2 1Ae
01:35:3
AuYeah, it is Ay embedded in a factual Reasserting a claim with a Stating a violation of Affirming or evaluating an Several other assertives reflect MilesAos efforts to make sense of his For example, he says AuSeriously.
Dad, walking would have fineAy .
:04:15Ae00:04:.
, asserting his opinion in a mild disagreement with his father.
Other statements, such as AuI need it to destroy the colliderAy .
:43:01Ae00:43:.
and AuThat lady with the bike is the head scientistAy .
:45:51Ae00:45:.
, show his growing awareness and his role in understanding the events around him.
Additionally, rhetorical assertives such as AuEinstein said time was relative, right? Maybe IAom not late.
Maybe you guys are early.
Ay .
:07:28Ae00:07:.
creativity and youthful voice.
Even when faced with physical or emotional challengesAias in AuI canAot move!Ay .
:48:20Ae00:48:.
or AuThat wasnAot the deal!Ay .
:35:08Ae01:35:.
AiMiles uses assertive acts to articulate his current state or perceived violations of Following closely are expressive speech acts at 32%, which include expressions of emotion such as surprise, fear, frustration, admiration, or joy.
The prevalence of expressives reflects MilesAos emotional transparency and internal conflict.
As shown in table 4.
these acts function as important markers of his vulnerability, self-doubt, and gradual self-acceptance.
Table 3.
Expressive Speech Acts No.
Timestamp
00:05:4
00:05:4
00:06:2
00:06:3
00:06:4
00:06:4
Line of Dialogue AuHeAos a good guyAi AuDad.
I love
AuHey good
How you Oh my gosh this is wore the jacketAi" 00:11:3 4Ae
00:11:3
AuThis is so Ay
00:15:2
00:15:3
AuOh.
See
00:16:0
00:16:0
AuNice to meet you.
Ay Description Expresses a Expresses affection and toward his Expresses Expresses or approval Expresses farewell in a light tone.
Expresses and positive Page | 74
00:34:4
00:35:1
AuIAom sorry.
Mr.
ParkerA That thing you gave me, that keyA I messed it I want to do what you asked.
I really do, butA IAom
IAom
not sure
IAom the I canAot
do this Ay
00:41:2
00:41:3
AuThis is Ay
00:45:3
00:45:3
AuI think itAos Ay
00:53:5
00:53:5
AuI gotta
say, youAore man!Ay 00:56:2 2Ae
00:56:2
00:49:0
00:49:1
00:59:3
00:59:4
01:14:2
01:14:3
AuI like your Ay AuIAom sorry about your Ay AuI am so Ay AuUncle Aaron.
This is my Ay Expresses guilt, regret.
Expresses t and Expresses or approval Expresses and respect
Expresses a and positive Expresses Strong
expression of remorse or Expresses guilt and for a tragic
01:32:3
01:32:4
01:42:0
01:42:1
01:43:1
01:43:2
AuThat was Ay AuI know Dad.
IAom so Ay AuThank you for your love you.
Ay Expresses reaction of shock or Expresses apology and Expresses affirming an According to Searle .
, expressives are utterances in which the speaker articulates their psychological state or emotional response to a situation, such as joy, regret, admiration, or sorrow.
As shown in Table 4.
Miles expresses a wide range of emotions through languageAifrom affection and admiration, and gratitude.
Early in the film, he shows affection in a straightforward and sincere manner with AuDad.
I love youAy .
:06:25Ae 00:06:.
, demonstrating emotional openness within a familial context.
Similarly, utterances like AuNice to meet youAy .
:16:05Ae00:16:.
and AuI like your haircutAy .
:56:22Ae00:56:.
are expressive of politeness and social A more intense level of emotional expression is observed in moments of self-doubt and remorse.
For instance, in AuI think I really messed it upA IAom sorry.
IAom not sure IAom the guy.
I canAot do this without you.
Ay .
:34:46Ae 00:35:.
Miles reveals feelings of guilt and inadequacy.
These expressive acts allow the audience to witness his internal conflict and fear of failure.
Page | 75 which are central to his narrative arc as a reluctant hero.
The emotional climax of this expressive trajectory occurs when he accepts responsibility for a tragic event, stating.
AuUncle Aaron.
This is my faultAy .
:14:28Ae01:14:.
Such moments of vulnerability humanize the character and deepen audience In other scenes.
Miles expresses admiration (AuYouAore amazing, man!Ay at 00:53:56Ae00:53:.
(AuThank you for your bravery tonight.
love you.
Ay at 01:43:19Ae01:43:.
, reflecting his developing interpersonal maturity and his capacity to emotionally connect with others.
Directive speech acts account for 28% of the data .
These involve commands, requests, or prominent as Miles begins to take initiative and interact more assertively with others.
His growing use of directives signals an increase in personal agency, albeit still within the bounds of youth and uncertainty.
Table 4.
Directive Speech Acts No.
Timestamp
00:05:0
00:05:0
Line of Dialogue Au--A, speed up.
A--Ay 00:06:2 4Ae
00:06:2
AuLook at placeAiAy 00:12:4 9Ae
00:12:5
AuStop Description An imperative .
ikely his da.
to drive
fasterAidirect
Directive to attention to somethingAi Direct
aimed at 00:15:4 5Ae
00:15:5
00:29:5
00:30:0
00:34:1
00:34:1
00:43:0
00:43:1
00:43:1
00:43:2
00:44:2
00:44:3
00:45:2
00:45:2
00:47:1
00:47:1
00:58:0
00:58:0
AuCome on.
Dad, you can just drop me off Ay AuCan I sleep here tonight?Ay AuTeach me how to swing like you.
Ay Au.
, donAot play with me!Ay AuCanAot we one?Ay AuCan we focus?Ay AuWait! DonAot go yet!Ay AuJust over!Ay AuSo, just keep it Request suggesting an Indirect request for permissionAi directive in Requesting instructionAi aimed at Peter.
Imperative to stop from jokingAi Indirect suggestion/re quest for Directive disguised as a aims to regain attention or Command someone to stayAistrong.
Imperative for movementAi Suggestive Page | 76
us, ok?Ay 01:10:3 0Ae
01:10:3
AuLet me with you.
I can Ay
01:25:5
01:25:5
01:30:0
01:30:0
AuTell me need to Ay AuTrust I got Ay politely as a agreementAi request for Suggestive desire to join in action.
Directive instructionAi motivated by willingness to Directive appealing for and control over the situationAi According to Searle .
, directives are utterances intended to cause the hearer to take some future requests, suggestions, or advice.
shown in Table 4.
MilesAos directives vary in form, ranging from direct imperatives .
AuStop lying,Ay AuJust move over!A.
to polite or indirect requests embedded in interrogative structures .
AuCan I sleep here tonight?Ay.
AuCan we focus?A.
In the early parts of the film, his directives are often socially tentative and emotionally charged, such as AuCome on.
Dad, you can just drop me off out frontAy .
:15:45Ae00:15:.
, blends politeness with a desire for As the narrative progresses.
Miles gradually shifts toward more confident and assertive directives, especially in moments of urgency or For instance.
AuTell me what I need to doAy .
:25:50Ae01:25:.
and AuTrust me.
I got thisAy .
:30:00Ae 01:30:.
signal his readiness to take initiative and assume responsibility.
As shown in table 4.
5 commissive speech acts are found in only 4% of his utterances, suggesting a reluctance or inability to commit fully to decisions or promisesAian expected feature of a young character still coming to terms with his responsibilities.
Table 5.
Commissive Speech Acts No.
Timestamp
00:26:33
00:26:49
00:58:20
00:58:38
Line of Dialogue AuI Ay AuYeah.
you ever decide to do friends again.
I open up a Ay Description A direct actAiMiles clear verbal to act in the An indirect Aioffering and implying in a casual These two commissive acts show MilesAos willingness to engage in meaningful relationships and take responsibility, albeit selectively.
The first the second is more playful and socially tentative, revealing his emotional openness without full Notably, no declarative speech acts were identified .
%), indicating that Miles does not hold institutional or authoritative power to enact change through words alone.
This aligns with his social position as a teenager who.
Page | 77 despite his heroic potential, lacks formal 2 Discussion A clear hierarchy emerges in the frequency and function of Miles MoralesAos illocutionary speech acts in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
the top of this hierarchy are assertive and expressive acts, which together comprise 68% of his utterances.
This dominance illustrates a character whose identity is shaped more through introspection and emotional articulation than through commands, commitments, or institutional declarations.
Assertives .
%) reveal how Miles constructs his sense of self through beliefs, judgments, and evaluations, while expressives .
%) expose the psychological and emotional realities that shape his journey.
Directives .
%) occupy a secondary position, indicating moments when he seeks to influence others, although these attempts are often tentative and context-dependent.
Commissive acts appear rarely .
%), and declaratives are entirely absent.
This distribution paints a portrait of a character in fluxAione who is actively engaged in identity formation but not yet positioned within structures of formal authority.
This speech act distribution reflects both MilesAos developmental stage and the thematic concerns of the film, which centers on identity as a fluid, emergent construct.
According to Searle .
, assertive speech acts commit the speaker to the truth of a proposition and function to express beliefs or convey In MilesAos case, these acts represent attempts to interpret his experience and affirm a stable perspective amid instability.
Viewed through Erikson's .
psychosocial theory, adolescence is a stage marked by identity exploration and the negotiation of self-concept.
MilesAos frequent use of developmental task, serving as verbal performances of epistemic authorityAi that is, the capacity to define oneAos reality and speak credibly from within it.
As such, assertives are not merely descriptive tools in the dialogue.
are vehicles for personal agency, allowing Miles to claim narrative space as a legitimate knower.
Similarly, expressive acts provide vital insight into MilesAos inner life.
Defined by Searle .
as utterances that reveal the speakerAos psychological state, expressives encompass emotions such as fear, excitement, frustration, and gratitude.
For a character navigating the dual pressures of adolescence and superhero responsibility, these acts mark key moments of vulnerability and emotional authenticity.
Expressive language plays a fundamental role in establishing rapport and projecting identity, as noted by Holmes.
, &
Stubbe .
MilesAos emotional opennessAihis willingness to articulate doubt, awe, and confusionAiendears him to the audience and positions him as a psychologically relatable character.
These acts allow him to communicate affective experience, not just logical reasoning, and thereby contribute audienceAos understanding of his identity as both human and heroic.
The commissive acts reflects another important dimension of MilesAos evolving Commissives, which entail a speakerAos commitment to future action .
, promises, vows, or refusal.
, are rare in his dialogue, accounting for only 4% of speech acts.
As Trosborg .
Page | 78 explains, such acts are typically associated with a strong sense of agency and foresight.
Their infrequent use by Miles suggests that he is not yet fully confident in making future-oriented commitmentsAia realistic portrayal of a young character grappling with uncertainty and shifting responsibilities.
When commissives do appear, they signal critical turning points in his transformation, indicating moments where he begins to assume the mantle of responsibility.
These rare but impactful instances foreshadow his eventual acceptance of the Spider-Man role, functioning as narrative milestones in his character arc.
Even more telling is the complete absence of declarative acts in MilesAos Declaratives, in SearleAos terms, are speech acts that enact change simply by being uttered, but they require institutional authority .
AuI declare the meeting openA.
Their absence underscores MilesAos lack of formal power within the filmAos social structure.
He is not a teacher, leader, or official figureAihe is a teenager thrust into extraordinary circumstances.
From a critical discourse perspective, this reinforces Fairclough's .
argument that language reflects and reproduces institutional hierarchies.
Miles does not speak with the voice of authority.
he builds authority through experiential knowledge and emotional expression.
His discourse mirrors a bottom-up identity formation process, grounded in personal experience rather than institutional roles.
From standpoint.
MilesAos use of language aligns with Bucholtz.
, & Hall .
sociocultural linguistic theory, which conceptualizes identity as emergent.
Through the pragmatic choices in his dialogueAiespecially the balance of assertives and expressivesAi Miles performs a version of self that is in constant negotiation with others and his His utterances not only reflect internal states but also signal relational positions: son, student, friend, and emerging hero.
The identity that emerges is thus hybrid and situated, shaped by intersectional influences including age, culture, and role In this light, the film becomes a site where language operates not just as a medium of communication but as a mechanism of identity Furthermore, the interplay between speech acts and character development supports (Dynel, 2.
view that fictional dialogue, particularly in cinematic contexts, functions as a simulation of authentic interaction and can reveal deep character psychology.
Into the Spider-Verse, speech acts are not randomly distributed but are carefully crafted to reflect MilesAos inner His language becomes the space in which identity is both affirmedAiwhere hesitations give way to commitments, and when emotional transitions into expressive clarity.
In sum, the dominance of assertive and expressive actsAicoupled with the limited use of commissives and the absence of declarativesAipaints a coherent picture of Miles Morales as a character whose identity is constructed through reflection, vulnerability, and gradual assumption of agency.
His dialogue charts a developmental trajectory from uncertainty to selfdefinition, and from emotional honesty Page | 79 to increasing interpersonal influence.
Through this lens, the speech acts do not merely accompany the plotAithey are central to the filmAos portrayal of identity as a dynamic, discursively performed Spider-Man: Into the SpiderVerse offers more than a coming-of-age it presents a coming-to-voice narrative in which speech is a primary instrument of transformation.
CONCLUSION
This study has examined the illocutionary speech acts performed by Miles Morales, the protagonist of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, through the lens of Searle's .
classification of speech acts.
The findings reveal that assertive .
%) and expressive .
%) speech acts dominate MilesAos language, followed by directives .
%) and commissives .
%), while declaratives were entirely absent .
%).
These patterns demonstrate that Miles, as a teenage character undergoing personal transformation, relies primarily on speech acts that convey beliefs, selfperceptions, and emotional states, rather than authoritative commands or institutional power.
The high frequency of assertives reflects MilesAos ongoing effort to surroundings, which aligns with Erikson's .
theory that adolescence is marked by the search for identity.
His expressive acts, meanwhile, convey emotional openness and vulnerabilityAi key traits that shape audience empathy and contribute to the narrative of growth and change.
Although directive speech acts are less dominant, their use increases over time and reflects MilesAos gradual development of agency and Commissive acts are sparse, indicating hesitancy to commit, which is consistent with the transitional nature of adolescent identity.
The absence of declarative acts further emphasizes MilesAos limited social authority within the story world.
This study illustrates that language in animated film functions not only as a communicative tool but also as a pragmatic device for constructing character identity.
Speech acts serve as narrative indicators of psychological, emotional, and social positioning, developmental stages.
This finding reinforces the idea that linguistic analysis in cinematic texts offers valuable insights into character construction, identity formation, and interpersonal dynamics.
These results open promising directions for further research.
Future studies could explore the comparative use of illocutionary acts across different animated protagonists, genres, or cultural contexts to investigate how language reflects varying identity Additionally, pragmatic analysis could be extended to supporting characters or antagonists to understand
contrasting identity roles and power
From an applied perspective, findings like these could inform
scriptwriting, character development, and media literacy educationAi particularly in youth-focused narratives that emphasize identity, growth, and This research contributes to the linguistics, media studies, and identity theory, highlighting how speech acts are not only performative but also profoundly representational of a Page | 80
characterAos REFERENCES