Sociopragmatic Underpinnings of Language Use in the Advertisement of Okrika in Nigerian Markets

Within the purview of sociolinguistics and pragmatics, language use is investigated to reveal its dimensions and motivations. The use of language in any kind of advertisement is fascinating, as it is immersed in the advertiser’s illocutionary goal(s). Different products are advertised in Nigerian markets, including okirika which is the focus of this study. In human communication, language use is informed by speaker-meanings with regard to “hearer-ends”. An analysis of “why” and “how” language is deployed in the advertisement of okirika essentially elucidates the performance of discrete speech acts from the advertiser’s end. This study hinges on two theoretical frameworks because of the unique function of each of the frameworks in the data analysis: Bach and Harnish (1979) Speech Act Theory as well as the Stance and Engagement Theory by Hyland Finnegan (1989) and Finnegan (2005). The study concludes that in the advertisement of okirika, the advertiser essentially persuades the market audience to buy the okirika by using discrete communicative strategies which include: using skillfully selected speech acts, exploring speaker-hearer shared knowledge, use of attributive adjectives, inducing panic-buying, accusation and fixing false price.