Information Sequencing in Written Texts: A Cross-Genre Study

Abstract

The main goal of this article is to analyse the topical sequentiality of three subgenres: nar- ratives for young children, news items and tourist brochures. The 60 texts under analysis (twenty of each type) were written specifically for publication, and consequently do not provide the possibility of direct feedback between the writer and the reader. However, their main rhetorical purpose and their register are clearly different in each and it is proposed that this will play a key role in their topical sequentiality (Keenan & Schieffelin; Givón, Topic; Functionalism; Lautamatti; Siewierska; Dik, Theory Part II). The results of the study demonstrate that the communicative intentions of the journalist, the advertiser and the writer of tales play a decisive role in the topical progression of the three subgenres investi- gated.

El objetivo principal de este artículo es analizar la secuenciación tópica de tres subgéneros: narraciones infantiles, noticias de sucesos y folletos turísticos. Los 60 textos analizados (20 de cada tipo), escritos para ser publicados, tienen unas características de género y de registro específicas que van a determinar su organización tópica y estructural (Keenan & Schieffelin; Givón, Topic; Functionalism; Lautamatti; Siewierska; Dik, Theory Part II). Los resultados del análisis demuestran que las intenciones comunicativas del periodista, del autor de cuentos y del escritor de folletos desempeñan una función determinante en la progresión tópica de los tres subgéneros investigados.