ABSTRACT
In a text, references are made to various objects; some of these references are to objects that have already been mentioned, and some are to objects that the reader should postulate, so that later in the text, additional information can be expressed about them. Thus, there are two basic ways in which objects are referenced in a text; one is as new objects, the other is as old objects. The sentences in a text tell the reader either that new objects are to be created, or that new information is to be added to old objects. This given-new distinction has been shown to be a central aspect not just of written text, but also of conversation and other forms of verbal communication (Clark, 1973, in press). However, reference in text is not simply a matter of determining whether an object has been previously mentioned; in addition, the context of the reference is important in determining whether in fact an object is old, and how a new object is to be represented. Hence our understanding of reference and the operation of given-new conventions in text will not be complete unless it takes into account the role of context in the resolution of reference.
