Misconstruing Context Potential (Tenor) As Language Sub-Potential (Register)

Martin (1992: 523):

Within register, it [tenor] is the projection of interpersonal meaning, and so is realised primarily through the interpersonal metafunction in language.

Blogger Comments:

[1] In SFL theory, tenor is the interpersonal dimension of context, not register.  The confusion is thus along two theoretical dimensions simultaneously: stratification (context vs language) and instantiation (potential vs instance type).

[2] More accurately, tenor is the theoretical application of the interpersonal metafunction to context.