Non-referential topical phrases in Romanian and the theory of topicality

Abstract

I discuss various theories of sentence topics against the background of attested examples of topicalization in Romanian. I argue that non-referential topical phrases constitute a problem for the concept of aboutness topic proposed by Reinhart (1981) and can better be accounted for in a theory where topicalized constituents are indicators of the discourse topic (von Fintel 1994). I examine various types of topicalized constituents, classified according to the relation they entertain with the previous sentences and the discourse topic. Furthermore, I discuss another function of sentence topics, which can be characterized independently of discourse relations: that of anchoring the new information in the common ground. I suggest a way in which this function can be subsumed under the general function of indicating discourse-topic dynamics.

Keywords

• classified according to the relation they entertain with the previous sentences and the discourse topic. Furthermore
• I discuss another function of sentence topics
• discourse and sentence topics
• topicalization
• aboutness
• Romanian