Reported speech and reporting clauses in the Novelas ejemplares by Miguel de Cervantes

This article analyzes the reporting clauses of reported speech in four Novelas ejemplares. Theoretical problems around reported speech and reporting clauses are raised and a methodology for the study of these expressions is proposed. The position of the reporting clauses (preceeding, intercalated and postponed), the elements that make them up (demarcative signs and external indicators) and the four most frequent communication verbs (decir, responder, replicar and preguntar) are studied. It is concluded that three criteria explain the features of the reporting clauses: their position in discourse, the communicative context and the type of reported speech.