1. Referents
Referents are often pronouns, adjectives or possessive adjectives that refer to someone or something. For example, ‘Donnie stared at his hands. He wondered how long he had been holding the steering wheel.’ In this example, ‘he‘ refers to Donnie and ‘his hands‘ refers to Donnie’s hands.
2a. Look at this extract from The Lake (Chapter 5). Find all the referents.
He rested his head on the steering wheel. He began to think.
Nobody saw you…It was her fault. This is your chance Donnie, the chance you have been waiting for. No one will miss her. She’s done you a favour…
Donnie stepped out of the car.
You need to get rid of the body.
Donnie looked around.
Easton swamp. Put her in there. No one will ever find her.
Below the rear of the Mercedes, Donnie could see Annie’s feet. He looked away and closed his eyes.
Choose the best answer
2b. In the extract above, who does ‘you’ refer to?
i. Annie because she isn’t dead
ii. Donnie because these are his thoughts
iii. An unknown person
2c. What is the referent that is used for Easton swamp?
i. her
ii. there
iii. this
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