Modality and Discourse Processing
نویسنده
چکیده
Abstract Two self-paced reading time experiments investigated the application of the semantic theories of Discourse Representation Theory (Kamp 1981; see also, Heim 1982) and Modal Subordination (Roberts 1987, 1989) as the basis for a model of discourse processing. The results of Experiment 1 support the empirical contrast as described by Roberts (1987, 1989), that is, that intersentential anaphora is constrained by the scope of modal operators. The results of Experiment 2 suggest that there are processing effects associated with the increased semantic complexity of a semantic representation. By the Minimal Structure Hypothesis, I explain the different processing times associated with different modals. The advantage of this discourse processing model is that it uses grammatical information to rule out incoherent discourses. Thus, the Roberts-Heim-Kamp framework seems to be a promising enterprise for constraining a psycholinguistic theory of discourse processing.
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