Non-resolving responses to polar questions: A revision to the QUD theory of relevance

Abstract

The influential Question Under Discussion (QUD) theory of discourse (Roberts, 2012) formal- izes Grice’s notion of relevance. In this paper, we identify a class of relevant discourse moves where Roberts’s account undergenerates, and propose a more inclusive definition of relevance. For example, if asked Should we cancel the picnic?, one can reply If it rains without fully re- solving the question. However, in Roberts’s theory, all relevant responses to polar questions are predicted to fully resolve the question because a relevant answer must eliminate at least one alternative in the QUD. We propose that a non-resolving response to a polar question is relevant if it eliminates a set of worlds that overlaps with only some alternatives in the QUD. The new account turns out to make good predictions in the domain of polar questions, and beyond.