ANAPHORIC RELATIONSHIPS
An anaphoric relationship is quite simple the relationship between a pronoun and its antecedent. If a student has difficulty in identifying the antecedent, he/she may have difficulty in comprehending the passage. There are two primary strategies to use when trying to identify an antecedent: Substitution and diagramming.
Substitution simply involves replacing a pronoun with an antecedent from either the same sentence or a surrounding sentence and determining if the meaning of the sentence is still the same.
My friends in my class made a large card for our principal.
We were happy when he put it on display in the school lobby.
(My friends) were happy when (our principal) put (the card) on display in the school lobby.
This can be used either by writing the sentences on the board and substitution one antecedent at a time or by using word strips to cover the pronouns.
Diagramming involves taking a passage and actually drawing lines or arrows from pronouns to their respective antecedents. This allows quicker identification for large passages.
Katie Cox
February 6, 2003