Uni-Tübingen

Lorenz Dietmar Geiger

Contact: lorenz-dietmar.geiger[at]uni-tuebingen.de

 

Biographical Information

  • Since 9/2019: Research assistant and PhD student in the Research Training Group 1808: Ambiguity – Production and Perception, Universität Tübingen
  • 02/2018–07/2018: Erasmus +, Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie, Poland
  • 10/2016–10/2019: M.A. Slavistik, Universität Tübingen
  • 10/2016–03/2019: M.A. English Linguistics, Universität Tübingen
  • 02/2016–08/2019: Student assistant, SFB 833, Project A7: Focus and Extraction in Complex Constructions and Islands, Universität Tübingen
  • 01/2014–08/2019: Student assistant, chair Prof. Dr. Tilman Berger, Universität Tübingen
  • 10/2012–12/2016: B.A. Slavistik (HF), Anglistik/Amerikanistik (NF), Universität Tübingen

Research Interests

  • Ambiguity
  • Information structure
  • Interface Discourse-Sentence
  • Syntax
  • Verbal anaphora

Abstract

Predicate anaphora, such as the verbal proforms do so, do it/that or verbal ellipsis are all means of reference to verbal material. Although these anaphora share that they refer back to a (usually) verbally triggered antecedent, they may do so in different ways, with different discourse conditions, and to different antecedents.

The aim of this project is to investigate the information structure, of these constructions and how this reflects on the interface of sentence and discourse itself. In order to accomplish this, I conduct several corpus studies. In these studies, I observe the predicate anaphora in naturally occuring contexts. To gain more than one viewpoint, I examine the exact same linguist situation in English and in German using parallel corpora. The way in which predicate anaphora are translated, shows a certain degree of optionality and communicational intent.

This allows me, to make assumptions about the reasoning of speaker (and potential listeners), when it comes to the choices of anaphora that they make. These choices may reflect on the discourse, common ground and also on the sentence level, allowing for a clearer picture of the division of labor in the employment of anaphoric devices.

Teaching

Talks

  • "DP splits as a discourse structuring device" (with Andreas Konietzko), Information Structure  and Ambiguity - The Process of Integrating Sentences into Discourse, Talk. 2019. Universität Tübingen.
  • "To Split, or not to Split, that is the Question under Discussion" (with Andreas Konietzko), Linguistic Evidence, Alternate talk. 2018. Universität Tübingen.
  • "DP splits: A challenge for the left periphery" (with Andreas Konietzko), Word Order in the Left Periphery (WOLP2017), Poster talk. 2017. University of Oslo.