The article by Tanya Reinhart explores the concept of sentence topics in pragmatics, distinguishing it from discourse topics. Sentence topics are specific linguistic phenomena where only sentences can have a topic, determined by their context and structure. The article discusses the challenges in defining sentence topics, noting that while various approaches have been proposed, there is no consensus. Reinhart examines two main approaches: defining topics as what the sentence is about (pragmatic aboutness) and defining them as old information. She argues that pragmatic aboutness is more suitable for capturing the essence of sentence topics, as it considers the context and purpose of the utterance. The article also explores the interaction of syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic factors in determining sentence topics, and how topics influence sentence interpretation, particularly in presuppositions and anaphora. Finally, Reinhart critiques the old information approach, showing that it fails both theoretically and empirically to fully explain the nature of sentence topics.The article by Tanya Reinhart explores the concept of sentence topics in pragmatics, distinguishing it from discourse topics. Sentence topics are specific linguistic phenomena where only sentences can have a topic, determined by their context and structure. The article discusses the challenges in defining sentence topics, noting that while various approaches have been proposed, there is no consensus. Reinhart examines two main approaches: defining topics as what the sentence is about (pragmatic aboutness) and defining them as old information. She argues that pragmatic aboutness is more suitable for capturing the essence of sentence topics, as it considers the context and purpose of the utterance. The article also explores the interaction of syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic factors in determining sentence topics, and how topics influence sentence interpretation, particularly in presuppositions and anaphora. Finally, Reinhart critiques the old information approach, showing that it fails both theoretically and empirically to fully explain the nature of sentence topics.