Uptake, Clarification and Argumentation Julian J. Schlöder Abstract: In a theory of conversations as joint projects, communicative success is established upon uptake of the project, and failure is dealt with through clarification. Founded in a deeper investigation into uptake and clarification, this thesis develops a theory of conversational arguments. I examine the notion of uptake and separate it into two distinct uses of the term, strong and weak uptake, that are both relevant to discourse obligations in different ways. Failure to take up a proposal is a communicative failure and must be repaired by the interlocutors, either through clarification or through self-repair. I outline preparatory conditions that at least partially govern the facilitation of uptake and that express part of the clarification potential of any utterance. This clarification potential is visible in excerpts of naturally occurring dialogues. Complementing clarification, speakers can also self-repair by anticipating clarification requests and resolving them preemptively. Combining the notion of strong uptake with the work on clarification and self-repair, I obtain a theory of argumentation where arguments are characterized by the questions they answer or anticipate. This framework is complemented by a theory of social roles which are motivated by the preparatory conditions of strong uptake. Keywords: logic, language