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The Pragmatics of Discourse Coherence: Theories and applications
Edited by Helmut Gruber and Gisela Redeker
[Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 254] 2014
► pp. 53–83

Contrastive relations, evaluation, and generic structure in science news

Assuming a close relation between generic structure and coherence structure, this paper attempts to classify the meanings linked by contrastive relations in the genre of science news. The analysis reveals five typical configurations recurrent in the genre which are characterized predominantly by linguistic evaluation and the entities or situations evaluated. The units observed are discussed from three different perspectives: first, from a narrowly semantic point of view; second, with regard to their strategic role in fulfilling the texts’ genre-specific purpose; and finally, with regard to their role in the evaluative coherence in the texts, using both a focus-based and a relational approach to coherence.
Published online: 26 November 2014
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https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.254.03hau
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