This book explores the property of co-reference within various texts as a possible means of distinguishing genre types. Based on observed rather than invented material, it supplies empirical data on co-reference as a cohesive mechanism within authentic English texts. Co-referential form and frequency are identified in nine texts representing three genres: academic journals, news magazine articles and fictional narrative texts.
This study offers not only quantitative but also qualitative information regarding co-reference in three individual text types, thereby laying the foundation for a comparative study of the three different genres. Focusing on the property of co-reference in this way singles out differences in language use and allows for some pertinent statements to be made regarding modes of co-reference as an indicator of text variety.