A Cross-Cultural Study of Discourse Coherence: Unique Coherence Mechanisms in Chinese Literary Texts and Their Cultural Motivations

Abstract

In the context of deepening globalization, the importance of cross-linguistic and cross-cultural communication has become increasingly prominent. As a key criterion for both language comprehension and translation quality, discourse coherence faces theoretical and practical challenges posed by cultural differences. Most current coherence theories are based on English corpora and fail to account for the implicit coherence mechanisms widely found in Chinese literature. Drawing on Kehler’s theory of coherence, Asher and Lascarides’ Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (SDRT), and other relevant models, this study analyzes Chinese and English literary texts, including Honglou Meng and Pride and Prejudice, to explore differing strategies for constructing coherence. Through comparative analysis of ellipsis, imagistic linkage, and topic shift in Chinese texts, the study highlights the limitations of English-based models in explaining coherence in Chinese discourse. It argues that Chinese coherence relies heavily on shared knowledge and metaphorical structures rooted in high-context culture, whereas English discourse coherence depends on explicit logical relations and grammatical connectives. The study proposes a strategy of “cultural coherence transformation” for translation and advocates for the incorporation of cultural pragmatics into coherence theory to build a more cross-culturally applicable analytical framework.