In the study of language,some of the interestingquestions arise in connection with the way language is used rather than with what its components are.we are mainly concerned with how it is that language users intepret what other language users intend to convey and how these users make sense of what they read understand what speakers mean despite what they say ,recognize connected as opposed to jumbled or in coherent discourse.
Interprting discourse
When we concentrate on the description of a particular language,we are normally concerned with the accurate representation of the forms and structures used in that language.However,we are capable of mor than reccognizing correct vesus incorrectform structure.We can cope with fragmentssuch as "Trains collide,two die."a news head line ,and know that a causal relation exists between the two phrases.We can also make sense of noticesNo shoes,no services on shop windowsin summer,understanding that a conditional relation exists between the two phrases
Cohesion
We know that texts must have a certain structure which depends on factors different from those required in the structure of a single sentence.These factors are described in terms of cohesion or the ties and connections which exist within texts.They include ,for example,pronominals,lexical items,sentnce connectors etc...
The analysis of these cohesive ties within a text gives us some insight into how writers structure what they want to say and they decide whether something is well-written or not.However,connectedness is not simply based on connections between words.Ther must be some other factor which help to distinguish texts which mke sense from those which do not.This factor is called coherence.
Coherence
It refers to something which exists in people.It is people who make sense of what they read and hear.Our ability to make sense is only a small part of that general ability we have to make sense of what we percieve in the world.It consists in incorporating disparate elements into a single coherent interpretation.
Here is a good example:
Her:That s the telephone
Him:I m in the bath
Her:OK
There certainly no cohesive ties.How do they make sense from what happens?They use the information contained in the sentences expressed .It is suggested that exchanges of this type are best understood in terms of the conversational actions performed by the speakers.We can characterize the brief conversation in the following way:
She make a request of him to perform action
He states reasonswhy he cannotcomply with request
She undertakes to perform action