ABSTRACT
The family of linguistic acts grouped under the term expressing interest, conviction, sympathy, approval, intention, delight, enthusiasm, indignation, annoyance, disgust, appreciation, determination, belief, and has figured heavily in recent philosophical discussion. Moral philosophers who are themselves emotivists, or who are discussing that position, will often make a sharp distinction between expressing a certain feeling or attitude, and asserting that one has a certain feeling or attitude. The verbal utterance issues directly from the feeling and takes on a coloration therefrom The latter difference is the easier to understand. It is obvious that these natural expressions are direct behaviouristic symptoms of the emotions or feelings to which they testify. One might claim that what is common to all cases of expression is that the agent is doing something which will provide an indication that he is in a certain psychological state.
