Reflecting the fact that the majority of authors have tended to focus on spoken discourse, this essay will be mainly concerned with reported speech in verbal interaction. It begins by referring to a number of authors who have recognised the importance and ubiquity of reported speech in discourse and who have been highly influential in the field (such as Volosinov, Bhaktin and Goffman). It then considers the structure and forms of the device, which leads on to consideration of its role in interaction and the environments of its use.