Seminar 5

Askar Aru, 327 group

Propositions. Theme and rema in discourse. This and the new in discourse. The
topic and comment in the discourse. Macro structure of discourse.
Superstructures of discourse.

Coreference is the relationship between the components of an utterance (usually named

groups) that denote the same non-linguistic object or situation, i.e. they have the same
referent. Coreference is at the heart of the coherence of discourse.

* Other meaning of the" topic" of the discourse:

Theme (from the Greek theme – from the Greek. "What is the basis") – that about which
something is stated in this sentence. The topic of a discourse is its main content, its
(macro -) proposition. The terms used are: global theme, macro theme,
macro proposition, macro structure vs local theme, micro theme, proposition, and
micro structure.

Rema is the message that is usually related to the information that has not yet been
discussed in the current discourse.
The reasons for the interweaving of topics in a casual conversation:
1) Inclusion of topics related to the external situation;
2) Each interlocutor tends to talk about his own, most exciting to him (perhaps in
informal relations between communicants).
Typology of polythematic discourses:
•  Polythematic reactive;
•  Polythematic without reaction;
•  Conflict-free;
•  Conflicting.
The linearity of the discourse.
A discourse has a beginning, a continuation, and an end. We can generate/perceive only
one unit of speech, one unit of time.
The beginning of a discourse sets the framework for its possible interpretation and
determines its tonality and evaluative characteristics. The words that precede the
subsequent communicative moves become a speech context that has a huge impact on
the perception and processing of the discourse by the listener.
The information in the utterance is distributed linearly --> the evaluation of the same
phrase depends on the context:
•  He is fully committed to the ideals of civil society. A real democrat.
•  He developed the country and made huge sums of money from it. A real democrat.

The topic of the discourse.

 The meaning of the term "topic" in the linguistic literature:
As a unit of opposition "topic – rheme" (English Theme – rheme, topic – focus, topic-
comment). The subject (known information) is located at the beginning and is
represented by the nominal group of the subject; the Rhema (new information) is
represented at the end of the statement.