184 J. Lachlan Mackenzie
the succession of cognitive events: shock; perception; identification. Using,
but adapting, Hengeveld’s proposals, we may represent the outline of this
move as (2):
(2) (M 1 : [(A 1 ), (A 2 ), (A 3 )])
where the numbering of the acts corresponds to their sequence in cognition.
Acts come in two basic types. Simplex acts (like A 1 ) consist only of
their Focus. (Hengeveld this volume: 11 provides the example of the ex-
clamation Damn!.) Simplex acts do not involve the grammar in any way,
but are passed directly from the interaction component to the expression
component. Hengeveld assumes that such acts involve a consultation of the
lexicon. In contrast, I should wish to claim that the words uttered in a sim-
plex act do not come from the lexicon, but are furnished directly by the
expression component. The lexicon contains predicates, and is therefore an
essential support for the representational component. But where the latter is
not involved, the lexicon is also not in play. Simplex acts, which possibly
represent a perpetuation of more primitive forms of communication, i.e.
animal ‘calls’, instruct the expression rules to activate formulae appropriate
to the communicative function of the act. Speakers may of course differ
within a speech community in which formulae they prefer. Consider how
various acts of exclamation offer a range of ready-made expressions, each
with its own social implications:
(3) agreement Yes, Absolutely, You said it, Too right, ...
disagreement No, No way, Absolutely not, ...
regret Sorry, Pardon me, Excuse me, ...
We also find acts of solidarity, covering various greetings and valedictions,
but also echoes and vocatives. Echoes (where the speaker, for one of a va-
riety of reasons, repeats some fragment of the interlocutor’s previous
speech) involve the intention to (re-)express an element of the communica-
tive context; the lexicon need not be consulted. And vocatives similarly
draw upon a very specific part of that context, the identity of the interlocu-
tor, with the expression rules applying, where that is relevant for the
language being spoken, the appropriate vocative marking. Another promi-
nent type of simplex act is the act of organization, which is oriented to
keeping the conversation going: the forms used for this purpose are gener-
ally highly formulaic, ranging from interjections like ah and oh to more