ABSTRACT
This chapter considers some general conventions for using pronouns and their realization in English and in Chinese. It discusses some questions concerning the pragmatic principles that underlie the use of pronouns. The forms indicating coreference in English are unstressed pronouns, stressed pronouns, full noun phrases (NPs), and anaphors. Pronoun forms are marked or unmarked, with contrasting interpretations. The unmarked forms are simpler morphologically than the marked and often have simpler or more general interpretations. Pronouns and other NPs used for coreference form a closed system, that is, they offer a limited set of contrasting possibilities. In making coreference speakers must choose between marked and unmarked pronoun forms, a choice that has clear consequences. The unstressed pronoun indicates neutral coreference with another NP. In Chinese the markedness contrast between pronouns is realized by lexical and null pronouns. The restriction on coreference with backwards anaphora holds only for lexical pronouns.
