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Table 1 Textual, interpersonal, and topical Themes in the Hallidayan framework

From: Visualizing texts: a tool for generating thematic-progression diagrams

Theme type

Linguistic elements

Textual Theme

Continuatives

Conjunctions or conjunctive adjuncts

wh- relatives

Interpersonal Theme

Vocatives

Modal adjuncts

Finite operators

wh- question words/groups (content interrogatives)

Topical Theme

First participanta, first circumstantial adjuncta, or first main verb

  1. aThese include wh- relatives and wh- question words/groups. These elements therefore have a dual thematic status, as both textual and topical in the former, and interpersonal and topical in the latter (Halliday and Matthiessen 2014, 112)