Introduction to Stylistics

Introduction to Stylistics

• Stylistics is how meaning is created through language in literature and various texts
• Stylistics focus is on the text and why it works, specifically the journey from words to meaning

Stylistic Analysis Tools

• Linguists utilize models, theories, and analytical frameworks
• Tools used are qualitative and quantitative analysis of phonological, lexical, grammatical, semantic, pragmatic, and discoursal features

Aspects of Analysis

• Analysis covers cognitive aspects in the reader's processing of features
• Emphasis is on phonological, lexical, grammatical, semantic, pragmatic, and discoursal features

Perspectives in Stylistics

• Some approaches focus on the text producer (author)
• Some approaches focus on the text (all types of discourse)
• Some focus on the reader and their role in constructing meaning

Evolving Trends in Stylistics

• Focus on meaning production as a dual exercise
• Includes text-informed inferences and understanding mental processes that facilitate text comprehension

Core Concepts of Stylistics

• Stylistics is about understanding how language creates meaning in various types of text
• Is linguistic approach to literature
• Considers perspectives of text, author, and reader in any stylistic analysis
• Emphasis on text, author, and reader when doing an analysis
• Traditionally focused on literary texts, but has expanded to various discourses beyond literature

Broadened Scope

• Stylisticians analyze non-fiction, advertising, academic writing, and news reports
• Also extends to non-printed forms eg: TV, pictorial advertising, film, and multimodal publications

Linguistic Foundation

• Is rooted in linguistics
• Informed, systematic, retrievable, and contextual analysis are all required
• Aims for methodological rigor, consistency, and falsifiability
• Compared to other literary criticism, it has a more scientific basis

Objectivity in Stylistics

• Stylistics may seem objective due to its linguistic basis
• No analysis is fully objective becuase linguistic paradigm, or methodology can influence it

Useful Tools and Methods

• Provides valuable tools for analyzing how meaning is created through linguistic means
• Its interdisciplinary nature allows for informed analyses

Interdisciplinary Character

• Stylistics bridges linguistics and literary studies
• Draws from philosophy, cultural theory, sociology, history, and psychology which all contribute to its creative potential

Criticisms and Praises

• Some criticize stylistics for its interdisciplinarity
• Others admire it for its advantages and inspiring potentials derived from its interdisciplinary character.

Purpose of Stylistics

• According to Simpson (2004), the purpose is to explore and creatively examine language in use
• Provides insights into language and literary texts

Enriching Language Exploration

• Offers an illuminating analytical method
• Enhances understanding of language by exploring texts where rules are bent or stretched

Reflexive Capacity

• Possesses capacity, shedding light on the language system it derives from
• Reveals insights into language 'rules' via examination of texts showcasing unconventional language use

Contemporary Stylistic Analysis

• Contemporary stylistic analysis places a strong emphasis on interest in language
• Is only recommended for those with a genuine interest in language
• Explores creativity in language and its use
• Offers insights into texts and enriches understanding of language rules/variations

The Practice of Stylistics

• Requires rigor
• Requires retrievability
• Requires replicability

Rigorous Stylistic Analysis

• This means using a clear analytical framework
• Requires an organised rather a random approach
• Relies on models explaining understanding of language patterns

Retrievable Stylistic Analysis

• Must use clear terms and criteria agreed upon by scholars
• Other scholars should understand the methodology
• Consensus allows for testing categories used in the analysis

Replicable Stylistic Analysis

• The methodology must be clear for others to verify
• Analysis can be tested on the same text and replicated elsewhere
• Should distance itself from work based on assumptions; conclusions must be clear and accessible

Historical Roots of Stylistics

• Began by studying how people expressed themselves orally, based on Aristotle's teachings
• It took off in the 1960s, especially in the UK and the US due to the Russian Formalism influence
• Early stylisticians focused on making literary more 'scientific', focusing on formal features of texts, particularly poetry

Early Criticisms and Expansions

• Early formalists were admired for their linguistic focus, but were criticized for fixating on linguistic form and neglecting to acknowledge how these forms affect readers
• Some looked at stylistics only as a subset of literary criticism
• In the late 1970s, emphasis shifted to the function/context of language

Functional Stylistics and Pragmatic Approaches

• Halliday's functional model emphasizes the social context of language use
• Pragmatic, since the 1980s examined how language is used in different situations
• Necessary to understanding not just what's said but also how/why

Cognitive Turn and Corpus Stylistics

• Cognitive examines how brains work when making meaning
• Corpus, a recent trend analyzing using computers, analyzed large texts and seen as a practical tool

Multimodal Stylistics

• Focus on more than just words, also colors, layout, and images and how they contribute to the meaning of a text
• 'Grammars' are sets of rules for conveying messages in different ways
• Not just about the words, but how the text looks and feels

Hybrid Approaches and Historical Stylistics

• Some branches mix differenct approaches
• Historical looks at language change over time using concepts from different Stylistic fields

Influences: Analogists (Caesar) vs. Anomalists (Cicero)

• Analogy refers to similarity between different things to highlight a shared characteristic, often for the purpose of explanation or clarification
• Anomaly something that deviates from the expected standard or form

Julius Caesar

• Caesar was general and statesman
• Prominent during Roman Republic demise/Empire rise
• Represented the "analogist" approach, focusing on practicality and clarity in language use

Cicero

• Cicero was philosopher, orator, and statesman
• In Roman republic he was known for eloquence/republican ideals
• Represented the "anomalist" approach, focusing on the aesthetic and eloquent of language

Analogists vs. Anomalists

• Analogists (Caesar) focused on practicality, clarity, & effectiveness of language
• Anomalists (Cicero) emphasized aesthetics, beauty, & eloquence in language, challenging traditional norms.

Aristotle

• Authored "Poetics" (384 – 322 BC), a pioneering work on artistic creation
• Aristotle's Poetics focused on expressing ideas before utterance, contributing to the understanding of language use in ancient Greece
• His works paved the way for stylistics development
• Stylistics was developed in ancient Rome 300 years later, branching into literary criticism

Three Main Historical Sources of Stylistics

• Rhetoric: Art of persuasive communication, emphasizing effective and eloquent speech and writing (Example: A political leader attempting to convince people)
• Poetics: Study of artistic creation, focusing on the expression of ideas before utterance (Example: Analysing a shakespearean sonnet)
• Dialectics: Study of creating and guiding dialogues, discussions, and methods of persuasion (Example: Socratic Method, where a teacher engages students in a dialogue)

Caesar vs Cicero Speech Styles

• Caesar's Speech Style was Represented as of the two speech styles in that of ancient Rome
• Analogists were advocates for practical approach to language use, clarity & effectiveness in speeches
• Cicero's Speech Style Represented the other distinctive speech style in ancient Rome
• Anomalists - an advocates for the aesthetic, based approach to language use, and with a focus on beauty and eloquence in speeches.

Historical Impact and Legacy

• The rise of stylistics in Rome led to a distinction between Analogsits (caesar) and Anomolists (cicero)
• There was contrast between practicality and asethics
• Caeser/Cicero influenced the development of Stylistics and its criticism
• Study of communication and literature continue to analyse language and rhetoric

Caesar and the Analogists

• They stressed regularity and system rules
• Focused on data and factual evidence
• Made efforts to speak in a straightfoward manner
• Seneca, and Tacitus were also representatives of
• Cicero and the Anomolists- Stressed

Cicero and the Anomalists

• "Ornate Dicere:' flowery writing.
• Innovative sentence structure.
• Creates anomalies on all language level
• Secondary to the true meaning (Rhetoric was called the "mother of lies")
• His styles revolved around three styles: high, middle and low

Style

• Style focuses on variation in language
• Is complext to define becuase of of questions about measurement, context, and perspective within stylistic branches

Multiple Perspectives on Style

• Socio-pragmatic perspective: Relates style to the formality of the text
• Variationist-sociolinguistic perspective: Views style as a social variable correlated with factors like gender Anthropological perspective: Defines style in the contextual domain

Challenges in Defining Style

• Belittlement based on assumed identification and an author's style
• Definitions can be simply language or how it's used in a given way

Broad Understanding of Style

• Style is not an author based style but something to characterize the character
• It has a intersection of style, stylistics

Relationship with Register

• Registers and Styles have a similarities
• Register is a feature of text and effects investigations

Distinctiveness and Textual Notion of Style

• Wales has stated that Style is distinct and what sets linguistic features of, Genre and period of etc...
• Some Examples are, to style of shakespeare or paul auster

Motivated Choice and Meaning Inference

• Choice from language or register conventions and contextual parameters.
• Challenged due to choices that change parameters and have a motivated change

Contextualization and Interpersonal Feature

• An interpersonal feature involving psychologically and socially motivated choices
• Style acknowledges how it fits what and how it is suppose to

Stylistic Toolkit

• Tool kit include the use and interactions
• Norm of use through innovation

What is Stylistics

• It's using language to to create meaning or effect in a test
• It bridges littertary and language
• how language can e used to add purpose

Scope of Stylistics

• The scope includes fiction classics and current material
• Poetry, drama, scripts
• everyday like emails

Levels of Analysis

• Sounds of patterns
• How world are arranged
• Using the correct Sentences
• Using different meaning of of words
• Using correct words

Level 1 : Phonology - The Music of words

• Sounds and patterns of language
• Exploring how rhythm, rhyme create meaning for words

Examples

• The use of meters in poetry
• alliteration and omonpeoita

Kinds of Rhymes

• Couplet(AA), The moon is so bright, (A)
• It casts a soft light. (A)Quatrain (ABAB): The sun sets in the west, (A) Painting the sky with hues. (B) The world in peaceful rest, (A) As nightfall gently strews. (B)
• Tercet (ABA):The river flows so free, (A) Reflecting nature's sound. (B) A melody of endless sea

List of Various Poetic Forms-

A) Based on the number couplets 2 lines b) Trecer;3 lines 2) Sonet;4 lines 3) Cinquan;5 lines 4) septet 7 Lines 5) Nona 9 Lines

Phonology

• Analyzing beat using shakespeares
• Revealing hidden tension in writing

Lamb

• An iamb is a unit of poetic meter consisting of two syllables. The first syllable is unstressed (weaker
• The second sounds like da-DUM

Examples in writing

da-dumm can be used in the words Alone

Iambic Pentameter

• "Iambic" means it's an the unstressed syllable
• And penta meter means the five penta
• lline with ten syllables, alternating

Iambic Example

Each line in iambic pentameter follows this da-Dum which is a beat

Level 2: Morphology - Building Blocks of Meaning

• Focus on word formation
• To understand where prefixes and suffixes come from

Examples

• prefixes, suffixes, and compound words.
• Inflectional morphology (tense, number, etc
• Unusual word creations and their effects.

Inflectional VS Derviational Morphology

• When a word has a grammatical meaning
• When a new word has meaning

Inflectional

Each case, the base word core core meaning is changed when a suffix is adde

Derivational

Each addition creates transformed form (a completely new word with its own meaning)

Summarization

Summary, inflection morphemes is grammatical/ derivative is the making of new words in it meanings

MOrphogical Examples

Science fiction, Built from Latin and Greek roots ) Literature: Analyzing the impact of portmanteaus . Everday language is Exploring how slang and contractions evolve, shaping informal communication

Level 3: Syntax - The Architecture of Sentences

• To arragements of words phrases
• Is use of punctuation to portray meaning

Syntax Exapmles

Figurealives/simple sentence structure Figurelativges are is

Formal Example

• Comples sentence used Hemingway work often reveal tension.

Level 4: Semantics - The Power of Meaning

• Focuses on the words used between sentences
• Looks the coded and hidden meaning

Semantics Example

• connotation that has been imply
• the is culutral reference used

Literature analysis

Symbol that reveal hidden meaning Humor that reveal some hidden meaning

Level 5:Pragmatics Contex is king

• How language is used in specific contexts
• How language is used with audience

pragmatics Example

• To audience
• the meaning of words

More Example

• Specific Contexts
• adapting to vocables structure

Levels of Analysis

• Alliterations
• unusual word formation
• . Setentx and what words mean
• Who speaking too

Edgar Allan Poe

• Midnight with Edgar allan poem

Level of Analysis: Phonology

• Using of the sound
• Used a sence of darkness through

Level of Analysis: Morphology

• Archaic language.

Level of Analysis: Syntax

• Lines overlap
• Using a - to emphasizes speaker
• Reppetion which brings out the noise

Level of Analysis: Semantics

• The speaker is speaking with time
• Adding space to a feeling of seclusion.
• reflect the speaker's state of mind.

Level of Analysis: Pragmatics

• A speaker is used
• Create space to create inner turmoil
• Written in the 19th century, reflects Gothic

Overall Analysis

• Analyzes language used by how sounds choices is using contributes
• What kind a tension does it bring to your own

Guide Questions for Stylistics Analysis at Different Levels:

1. PHONOLOGICAL LEVEL
2. MORPHOLOGICAL LEVEL
3. SYNTACTIC LEVEL
4. SEMANTIC LEVEL
5. PRAGMATIC LEVEL

• Are there any repeated sounds or sound

Are there any

deliberate mispronunciations or dialectal features used for stylistic