Register: A functional linguistic theory

Abstract

This thesis is an exploration of ways in which the relationship between the 'how' and 'what' of textual meaning and variation can be theorised. Its major aim is to develop a functional theory of language which specifies register in terms of contextual and linguistic features, and which postulates a discursive relationship between the two. It aims, therefore, to theorise, in a more developed way than has so far been done, a functional linguistic account of register and a theoretical understanding of the relationship between text, context, language function and linguistic form. To this end I develop a conceptual model of contextualisation and relate this to a Cline of Register by which the progression of textual meaning, discursive variation and functional complexity can be represented