Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

DISCOURSE MARKERS: ORGANISING THE DISCOURSE

108

Opening up and closing down

108a

Openings

Openings and closings are opportunities for speakers to manage the discourse in

terms of launching and concluding topics, opening, concluding or temporarily

closing a whole conversation, re-opening previously closed or interrupted

conversations. Some of the most common and frequent markers function to

facilitate openings and closings of these kinds, for example, so, (all) right, right

then

, now, good, well, okay, anyway, fine:

[opening an academic discussion]

Right, I suppose we should begin by considering the tricky question of the

Norman invasion.

[two friends in a café; small talk about different types of coffee]

A: Have you ever tried the different coffees?

B: No. 

A: No. I haven’t either. 

B: Flavoured coffees? 

A: Yeah. Er well even the ones that they have here. 

B: You know I wouldn’t know the difference I don’t think. 

A: I don’t know if I would either. No. I thought you know the way you just you

know you ask for coffee and they just give you something. 

B: Yeah. No. I’ve never tried them. 

[Pause] 

A: 

So how’s Laura getting on? 

B: I think she’s just looking forward to coming home. 

(pause, then So marking the opening of the speaker’s main topic: Laura)

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