Studies the Yagua speakers' use of a second position morpheme for indicating that information should be integrated as part of the main event line. Concludes that the information attached to this morpheme is mildly or strongly discontinuous with preceding information or expectations. (HB)

Explores the hypothesis that speech acts cannot be located without bringing in knowledge beyond that of the textual referent itself. Points out that speech acts are made up of sentence context pairs through which one must search for a formal motion of context as a framing of speech activities. (FL)

Contends that the organization of comments made by one discourse participant on the contributions of another reveals a hierarchy of relevance and informativity. Illustrates this with discourse samples subjected to a particular method of analysis. (FL)

Presents a framework for expressing how choices are made in systemic grammars. Framework represents grammar as combination of systemic syntactic description and explicit choice processes called "choice experts." (DF)

Examines the narrative story structure of a short American Sign Language narrative using stylistic analysis plus the structure of pausing in the narrative. (FL)

Proposes a top-down procedural model for the dynamic extraction and use of context structure to resolve references. (FL)

Identifies various speech styles of English as marked by stance adverbials. Indicates that the discourse functions of stance adverbials differ considerably from the functions suggested by their literal meanings. (JK)

Presents an experimental approach to the linguistic analysis of discourse organization. (FL)

Compares three theories of coherence relations that differ in formality, broadness of coverage, and linguistic detail. Applies them to the concrete task of text analysis. Organizes the information according to principles of linguistic "stratification,""metafunction," and "paradigmatic/syntagmatic axiality," providing a three-way classification…

Notes that the empirical research in language psychology can be helpful in reorganizing the domain of literary studies. Presents a survey of the major considerations in regard to such an undertaking and provides a specific demonstration. (FL)

Discusses how children in one society on the Papuan Plateau, Papua, New Guinea, learn about making and responding to requests based on a strategy of appeal. (FL)

Presents an interpretive theory assigning all text to "Linguistic Worlds" (LWs). Shows how a special deictic LW (needed for default attribution to the speaker and useful for describing parentheticals, evaluative adjectives, and epitheticals) gives the capacity to characterize shifts in point of view accompanying the indirect first-person speech of…

Suggests that a factor underlying the complex analysis of prose is amount of elaboration. Reports findings of two experiments supporting this idea. (FL)

Examines the role played by relative clauses in American Sign Language. (FL)

Discusses the process of understanding of intent by which participants, through the comparative interpretation of a series of cues and symbols as they are revealed in speech, develop categories for a contextual model of communication. Argues that discourse is essentially dialogic and phenomenologically realizable. (FL)