Discourse Constraints on Anaphora
An interdisciplinary seminar and conference
Sponsored by the Marshall M. Weinberg Fund for Graduate Seminars in
Cognitive Science
University of Michigan,
Ann Arbor
Organized by
Ezra Keshet and
Eric
Swanson.
Much recent work in linguistics, philosophy of language, cognitive psychology and computer science focuses on questions about
anaphora and discourse. However, some major questions about the structure of discourse and its interaction with anaphors
remain unanswered. To this end, the majority of the Discourse Constraints on Anaphora Conference will consist of roundtable
discussions of the following four questions:
- What is the structure of discourse?
- How does the structure of discourse constrain the referents of pronouns?
- What do discourse constraints on anaphora teach us about reference?
- What do discourse constraints on anaphora teach us about the
structure of the mind?
The resulting conversations, between scholars with a diverse range of approaches, will serve as a snapshots of current thought
on anaphora and discourse. We hope that they will also mark the next step towards answering these questions. Roundtable
participants include
Barbara Abbott,
Alan Garnham,
Hans Kamp,
Craige Roberts,
Hannah Rohde,
Jason Stanley,
and
Matthew Stone.
Conference schedule:
| Monday, April 6 | 3:00-3:30 | Coffee, tea, conversation |
| 3:30-5:00 | Alan
Garnham (keynote speaker) |
| 5:15-6:45 | Roundtable 1 (Garnham, Kamp,
Stone):
What is the structure of
discourse?
How should it be represented? |
| 7:00 | Dinner and drinks at Eric and
Sarah’s |
Tuesday, April 7 | 9:00-9:30 | Light breakfast |
| 9:30-11:00 | Roundtable
2 (Abbott, Rohde, Kamp, Stanley):
How does the structure of
discourse
constrain the referents of pronouns? |
| 11:15-12:45 | Craige Roberts (keynote speaker) |
| 2:15-3:45 | Roundtable 3 (Abbott, Roberts,
Stanley, Stone):
What do discourse
constraints on anaphora
teach us about reference? |
| 4:00-5:30 | Roundtable 4 (Garnham, Roberts,
Rohde):
What do
discourse constraints on anaphora
teach us about the structure of the
mind? |
Email Eric Swanson (at
ericsw@umich.edu)
for access to readings and video from seminars.
The conference itself will be held in the Michigan Union, in the Anderson D room. An annotated local map is available
here. The major airport nearest Ann Arbor is
Detroit Metro (DTW). Hotels
within walking distance of the conference site include the
Bell Tower, the
Campus Inn, and the
Ann Arbor Bed and Breakfast.
Several
other hotels are easily accessible by
bus. Registration is free, but participants are asked to
email Eric Swanson (at
ericsw@umich.edu)
in advance for planning purposes.