FG and the dynamics of discourse 235- Mackenzie and Keizer (1991: 194) and Hannay (1991: 138) consider New-
Tops as a subcategory of Focus, i.e. Presentative Focus. - In this connection Mackenzie and Keizer (1991: 187) argue, for example,
that not all GivTops need be contextually given, or introduced into the dis-
course by means of a NewTop, but can also be situationally given
(Situationally GivTops) or generally given (Generally GivTops): e.g. Watch
out! The ceiling is caving in!). Similarly, it seems that not all inferrable
elements are inferred from a GivTop or fulfil a SubTopic function, for many
inferrable elements may also act as NewTops. These may be new at the con-
textual level but given or inferrable with regard to the addressee`s general or
situational pragmatic information: e.g., What did you see in the circus?
Well, there was an elephant that amazed us with his tricks.... - Note, however, that D-Topic relationships may also hold between nominal
expressions. - In FG ‘focality’ encompasses “those pieces of information which are the
most important or salient with respect to the modifications which S [...]
wishes to effect in P [....], and with respect to the further development of the
discourse” (Dik 1997: 312). - Worthy of mention here is Lambrecht’s (1994: 97) differentiation of activa-
tion accent and Focus accent in that a point of prosodic prominence is not
necessarily an indicator of either a Focus relation or inactiveness of a refer-
ent. It may be one or the other, or both at the same time. An activation
accent expresses temporary cognitive states of discourse referents and may
fall on a constituent expressing a presupposed proposition (even if it is not
in Focus): e.g. the underlined constituents in I saw Mary and John yester-
day. She says hello, but he’s still angry at you. vs. I saw Mary yesterday.
She says hello (John was very busy that morning) [emphasis mine]). - If only that the label ‘NewFoc’ does not seem to be very felicitous, since
non-contrastive Focus need not fall on New information. Besides, both
kinds of Focus, NewFoc and ContrFoc, entail a certain degree of newness or
newsworthiness, albeit of different kinds. Hence both kinds could deserve
the label ‘NewFoc’. - We shall endorse Lambrecht’s (1988: 1) definition of ‘presupposition’ and
‘assertion’:
[...] [presupposition entails] the proposition or set of propositions
which the speaker assumes the hearer considers true (believes,
knows) and is aware of at the time of utterance and which is rele-
vant in the context of utterance. [...] [By contrast, assertion is what
is] added to or superimposed on the pragmatic presupposition by
an utterance [the proposition which the hearer is expected to know
as a result of hearing a sentence].