Discourse Analysis and Text Linguistics - 2021 Prof.
Fabián Rodríguez
Cohesion and coherence. SAMPLE ANSWERS
ACTIVITIES: COHESION
Activity 1: Conjunctions
Analyze the extract from Winnie-the-Pooh below in terms of conjunctions:
Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his
head, behind Christopher Robin. It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but
sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping
for a moment to think of it . . . And then he feels perhaps there isn’t.
Anyhow, here he is at the bottom, and ready to be introduced to you, Winnie-the-Pooh.
When I first heard his name, I said, just as you are going to say, ‘But I thought he was
a boy?’
Activity 2: Reference and lexical chains
Analyze the letter to the editor we saw in previous classes in terms of reference chains and lexical
chains (as in the sample analysis you saw in Paltridge’s chapter).
Activity 1: Conjunctions in the extract from Winnie-the-Pooh (analysis given by Paltridge)
- but sometimes he feels . . . comparison (adversative, contrast)
- if only he could stop consequence (condition)
- And then he feels . . . addition
- Anyhow addition
- and ready to be introduced addition
- When I first heard… temporal
- But I thought…. comparison (adversative, contrast)
Below are additional analyses of cohesion and coherence of the same extract that can be
added to those proposed by Paltridge.
Reference chains (in addition to those presented by Paltridge):
- There are two instances of ‘here’, and they are different:
Here (line 1) is a deictic expression - pointing to the context of situation- used as a way of
introducing someone or something.
here (line 5) – cataphoric reference: ‘at the bottom’
Lexical chains (in addition to those presented by Paltridge):
name (hypernym) feels
Edward Bear Winnie-the-Pooh think (synonymy)
(co-hyponyms)
feels (repetition)
Discourse Analysis and Text Linguistics - 2021 Prof. Fabián Rodríguez
Examples of ellipsis:
another way (of coming downstairs)
perhaps there isn’t (another way of coming downstairs)
and (he is) ready to be introduced
As regards coherence, we can say that:
In this text there is a continuity of senses: the text is about Winnie-the-Pooh and his particular way
of coming downstairs. There is continuous reference to him (names, pronouns) and to his actions
(coming downstairs and reflecting about it). The second paragraph is introduced by the conjunctive
adverb Anyhow, which functions as a discourse marker to signal movement to a new part of the story:
the purpose of this text, which is to introduce the character to the readers (you). There is also explicit
reference to the narrator (I).
That is to say, there is a continuity of senses in the continuous reference to the entities and events of
the text (referential coherence, in Spooren’s terms) and as to the relationship between them
(relational coherence, in Spooren’s terms, mainly expressed through the use of coordinating and
subordinating conjunctions): a description of Winnie-the-Pooh (entity) coming downstairs (event),
while thinking about it (event), as well as the reader’s and narrator’s reaction to this. A textual world
is created in which animals have names and surnames, live in places with stairs, and reflect about
their actions.
Appeal to the reader’s knowledge of the world is also present: there is a way of coming downstairs,
then you reach ‘the bottom’, every person or animal has a head, and heads have a back (the back of
his head). Since the character is introduced by his name, and as ‘coming downstairs’ and thinking,
the reader may at first think of him as a human being, (‘a boy’). However, the narrator implies this is
not so, and then the reader can infer that Edward Bear may actually be a ‘bear’. (This is not clear
from the present extract, however, since this is a fairy tale, we can assume there are pictures
accompanying the text, and these would provide the missing information. In a multimodal text –words
and images–, images are described in relation to the text as they form part of the devices the reader
uses to create their text representation).
The world presented in this part of the text can easily be accessed by the reader, who will create a
text representation that can be used to process the rest of the short story.
Activity 2: Reference and lexical chains in the letter to the editor
Afua Hirsch (We can mourn Prince Philip, but not the monarchy, Journal, 15 April) captures
precisely the ambivalence so many of us feel about the symbols of patriotism. How do we
show a love and appreciation of our country and many of its values while distancing
ourselves from the pernicious jingoistic narratives that so often accompany these? As a white
English male, I can learn a lot from the contortions that Hirsch describes as having to go
through herself, to prevent an apology escaping her lips for questioning the excuses made
about Prince Philip’s racism that we might have guffawed at, but can recognise in our own
internalised racism.
Marcus Page
Brighton
Discourse Analysis and Text Linguistics - 2021 Prof. Fabián Rodríguez
There are 3 (or 4?) main lexical chains in the letter:
Afua Hirsch a white English male racism
| | |
repetition naming repetition
| | |
Hirsch Marcus Page racism
|
meronymy
|
her lips
Note: Help me with this: the word ‘ambivalence’ in line 2 is explained in the following lines as
consisting of ‘show love and appreciation of our country and many of its values’ (line 3) and
‘distancing ourselves from the pernicious jingoistic narratives…’
What kind of lexical relation is this? Is there a lexical relation? Antonymy of positive
feelings (‘love and appreciation’) vs. negative ones (‘distancing’, ‘jingoistic’)? Or is it just
an explanation where the term is broken down into its components?
There are 5 reference chains in the letter:
Afua Hirsch many of us exophoric our country values I
anaphoric anaphoric anaphoric anaphoric cataphoric
herself we its these Marcus Page
anaphoric
our
anaphoric
ourselves
anaphoric
we
anaphoric
our
