ABSTRACT
In Chapter 5 we observed that the particle le was used to report ‘deviations’ and ‘solutions’ in a procedure, whereas in narrative discourse (Chapter 6), we demonstrated that the particle le indexes modifications in the structure of the common ground, which apart from ‘deviations’ and ‘solutions’ also included ‘additions’ to the common ground. What form, then, will these earlier notions take in conversational exchanges? Conversations are composed of ‘minimal joint projects’, which emerge in the course of interaction and combine to form ‘extended joint projects’ (Clark 1996). We therefore expect that in a conversation the particle le will be used to attract the addressee’s attention to modifications in the established shared common ground at various minimal project types. Conversations, however, are not structured as procedures and narratives are, but show ad hoc development. Therefore the central question at this point becomes the way in which the structure of the shared common ground is modified in conversations.
