Topic Orientation Markers

Topic Orientation Markers are proposed as a type of Discourse Management Marker, a fourth type of Pragmatic Marker (PM) (Fraser, 1996). These expressions such as incidentally, before I forget and if I might continue, signal a meta-comment on the structure of the emerging discourse. This paper examines their four uses in discourse (return to a prior topic; continuation with the present topic; digression from the present topic; and introduction of a new topic) and touches on how they combine with Attention Markers such as oh, now, and anyway, another type of management marker.