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To appear (Marsh 2009): Special issue on Linearisation and Segmentation in Discourse

Editors: Liesbeth Degand, Cathrine Fabricius-Hansen et Wiebke Ramm

Language as well as other forms of communication are inseparably tied to some kind of linear-sequential form of presentation, due to the linear-sequential nature of the media on which they operate. Linearisation in its turn presupposes segmentation, i.e. decisions concerning the size and type of units to be brought into a sequential order at various levels. The relationship between linearization and segmentation in discourse raises a number of questions, such as :

  • Which principles govern the segmentation of the information to be (explicitly) conveyed?

  • What do the minimal discourse units look like, which kinds of complex structure do they build and how are these structures separated from each other?

  • How are linear sequences of discourse units mapped onto complex (potentially hierarchical) conceptual structures?

  • To what extend do (the grammars of) different languages impose different constraints on linearisation and segmentation?

This special issue presents a selection of papers that were presented at MAD’08 (International Workshop on Multidisciplinary Approaches to Discourse) held in Oslo, 20-23 February 2008.