Week 3, p.11-21 Style and Stylistics PDF

MODULE 1 STYLE AND STYLISTICS UNIT 1 THE CONCEPTS OF STYLE AND STYLISTICS Contents 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Objectives 3.0 Main Content 3.1 Meaning of Stylistics and its approaches 3.2 Style as Choice 3.3 Style...

MODULE 1 STYLE AND STYLISTICS UNIT 1 THE CONCEPTS OF STYLE AND STYLISTICS Contents 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Objectives 3.0 Main Content 3.1 Meaning of Stylistics and its approaches 3.2 Style as Choice 3.3 Style as the Man (or Style as Individuality) 3.4 Style as Deviation from the Norm 3.5 Style as Conformity 3.6 Style as Period or Time 3.7 Style as Situation 4.0 Conclusion 5.0 Summary 6.0 Tutor-Marked Assignments 7.0 References/Further Reading INTRODUCTION Stylistics, a yoking of style and linguistics, is a discipline which has been approached from many perspectives. Its meaning varies, based on the theory that is adopted. When we carry out the different activities that are connected to our area of business, either in spoken or written forms, we often use devices of thought and the rules of language, but there are variations so as to change meanings or say the same thing in different ways. This is what the concept of style is based upon: the use of language in different ways, all for the purpose of achieving a common goal - to negotiate meanings. 2.0 OBJECTIVES At the end of this unit, you should be able to: i) define style and stylistics; ii) identify and explain at least three perspectives on style; and iii) explain stylistics as a multi-dimensional discipline. 3.0 MAIN CONTENT Pause a moment and think about this before you continue your reading: Can you think of some areas of human endeavour where the term ‘style’ can be employed? How is the use of style in those areas different from style in language studies? You should now be able to realise that style in its general sense supply means a way, method or manner of doing something. However, in this context, we locate style within language studies. 11 Stylistics is a broad term that has assumed different meanings from different linguistic scholars. But it can simply be said to be the study of style in language studies. Style on its own as defined by Lucas (1955:9) is: the effective use of language, especially in prose, whether to make statements or to rouse emotions. It involves first of all the power to put fact with clarity and brevity. Style has also been defined as the description and analysis of the variability forms of linguistic items in actual language use. Leech (1969: 14) quotes Aristotle as saying that “the most effective means of achieving both clarity and diction and a certain dignity is the use of altered from of words.” Stylistics is also defined as a study of the different styles that are present in either a given utterance or a written text or document. The consistent appearance of certain structures, items and elements in a speech, an utterance or in a given text is one of the major concerns of Stylistics. Stylistics requires the use of traditional levels of linguistic description such as sounds, form, structure and meaning. It then follows that the consistent appearance of certain structures, items and elements in speech utterances or in a given text is one of the major concerns of stylistics. Linguistic Stylistic studies is concerned with the varieties of language and the exploration of some of the formal linguistic features which characterize them. The essence and the usefulness of stylistics is that it enables the immediate understanding of utterances and texts, thereby maximizing our enjoyment of the texts. The concepts of style and stylistic variation in language are based on the general notion that within the language system, the content can be encoded in more than one linguistic form. Thus, it is possible for it to operate at all linguistic levels such as phonological, lexical and syntactic. Therefore, style may be regarded as a choice of linguistic means, as deviation from the norms of language use, as recurrent features of linguistic forms and as comparisons. Stylistics deals with a wide range of language varieties and styles that that are possible in creating different texts, whether spoken or written, monologue or dialogue, formal or informal, scientific or religious etc. Again, stylistics is concerned with the study of the language of literature or the study of the language habits of particular authors and their writing patterns. From the foregoing, stylistics can be said to be the techniques of explication which allows us to define objectively what an author has done, (linguistic or non-linguistic), in his use of language. The main aim of stylistics is to enable us understand the intent of the author in the manner the information has been passed across by the author or writer. Therefore, stylistics is concerned with the examination of grammar, lexis, semantics as well as phonological properties and discursive devices. Stylistics is more interested in the significance of function that the chosen style fulfils. 12 3.2 Style as Choice While examining the concept, stylistics, it is equally essential to give attention to the notion of choice. Choice is a very vital instrument of stylistics since it deals with the variations and the options that are available to an author. Since language provides its users with more than one choice in a given situation, there are different choices available to the writer in a given text. This then depends on the situation and genre the writer chooses in expressing thoughts and opinions. Traugott and Pratt (1980: 29 — 30) clarify the connection between language and choice as the characteristic choices exhibited in a text. With the writers choice, there is a reflection of his ego and the social condition of his environment. In determining the appropriate choice of linguistic elements, two important choice planes are open to the writer: the paradigmatic and the syntagmatic. The paradigmatic axis is also referred to as the vertical or choice axis while the syntagmatic is the horizontal axis. The vertical axis gives a variety of choices between one item and other items; the writer then chooses the most appropriate word. Thus, the paradigmatic axis is able to account for the given fillers that occupy a particular slot while still maintaining the structure of the sentence. At the paradigmatic level, for example, a writer or speaker can choose between “start” and “commence”, “go” and “proceed.” 3.3 Style as the Man (or style as Individuality) This is based on the notion that every individual has his or her own unique way of doing things and that no two persons are of exactly the same character. There are always distinctive features that distinguish one person from the other; thus in literary style, one is able to differentiate between the writings of Soyinka and Achebe, based on their use of language, among other things. A person’s style may also be shaped by his social and political background, religious inclination, culture, education, geographical location, etc. Simply put, the notion of style as the man sees style as an index of personality. Put in another way, this perspective sees style as individuality (Olateju 2016). In other words a speaker’s or a writer’s style is their idiolect – their individual way of deploying language. But this perspective is not without its own problems. For example, one may exhibit different styles on different occasions; when this happens, do we say the writer has different personalities? 3.4 Style as Deviation from the Norm When an idea is presented in a way that is different from the expected way, then we say such a manner of carrying it out has deviated from the norm. The concept of style as deviation is based on the notion that there are rules, conventions and regulations that guide the different activities that must be executed and which define the norm. Thus, when these conventions are not complied with, there is deviation. Deviation in stylistics is concerned with the use of different styles from the expected norm of language use in a given genre of writing. It is a departure from what is taken as the common practice. Language deviation 13 refers to an intentional selection or choice of language use outside of the range of normal language. Language is a system organized in an organic structure by rules and it provides all the rules for its use such as phonetic, grammatical, lexical, etc. Thus, any piece of writing or material that has intentionally jettisoned the rules of language in some way is said to have deviated. Stylistics helps to identify how and why a text has deviated. Trangott and Pratt (1980: 31) believe that the idea of style as deviance is favoured by the “generative frame of reference.” It is an old concept which stems from the work of such scholars as Jan Mukarovsky. Mukarovsky relates style to foregrounding and says that “the violation of the norm of the standard… is what makes possible the poetic utilization of language” (see Traugott and Pratt 1980: 31). Thus, deviation can be ‘conscious’ or ‘unconscious’, but what we regard as stylistic is the conscious deviation. Deviation may occur at any level of language description e.g. phonological, graphological, syntactic, lexico-semantic, etc. At the graphological level, for example, we may see capital letters where they are not supposed to be. At the syntactic level, subject and verb may not agree in number. Or the normal order of the clause elements may not be observed e.g. Adjunct may come before the subject. At the lexico-semantic level, words that should not go together may be deliberately brought together. e.g. “dangerous safety,” “open secret.” 3.5 Style as Conformity Generally speaking, language is rule-governed style as conformity can be seen as the first available option for a writer to express himself. This is so because virtually all possible fields that a written or spoken material can belong to have been established. Any style that is distinct is so as a result of deviation. In fact, it is on the notion of style as conformity that the idea of style as choice operates and then results in or brings out the possibility of style as deviation. That is, a writer needs, first of all, to decide whether to conform with the established style or to deviate. It is not in all situations that a writer enjoys flexibility to deviate. Style as conformity is often strictly enforced in certain fields or circumstances. This is often in academic/educational field as regard students’ research projects. It is also found so in some professional writings, where a considerable conformity to the established format or diction is expected for a text to earn acceptability logicality and credibility. One major weakness of conformity to the established style is that it clips creativity. But the moment a text accommodates or injects some creativity in its style, it becomes marked as deviation from the norm. Self-Assessment Exercise Mention and explain two areas of human endeavour in which style as conformity is relevant. 14 3.6 Style as Period or Time Style may also relate to time/period. This is so because language is dynamic — it is always changing. This becomes obvious when we look at the stages in the development of the English language e.g. Old English, Middle English and Modern English. When we look at a script in Old English now, it will seem as if it were written in a different language because of the differences in syntax, vocabulary, spelling, etc. Even within the so-called Modern English, there are variations. The type of English we use today is different from Shakespearean English in many ways. So, since language changes along time axis, style is also expected to vary along the same axis. The study of language along time axis is termed diachronic linguistics. You may compare diachronic linguistics with synchronic linguistics which deals with the study of language at a particular time/period. The style of any given period has recognizably predominant features that make such a period distinct. A period usually dictates the style employed by the writers. For example, Shakespeare and his contemporaries used a particular style of writing i.e. writing in verses. It was not until Herik Ibsen came up with plays in the prose form that the previous style was abandoned. Similarly, the Victorian, Elizabethan, Renaissance and even the modern periods all have peculiar styles different from another. In a nutshell, the noticeable convention and pattern of language use that inform the urge of a particular period, make the style of that period. 3.7 Style as Situation Usually, language is used according to situation or circumstance. It is the context that determines language choice in speaking or writing. Certain words are appropriate for certain occasions, while some are considered taboo, vulgar or abominable. For example, a Professor, in a scholarly conference, cannot indulge in a vulgarism like: “that theory is fucking up”. Consequently, a given situation has a great influence on the choice made at every level of language description. The concept of register further buttresses this point. For example, registers as aspect of style tend to be associated with particular groups of people or sometimes specific situations of use (Journalese, Legalese, Liturgese, Babytalk, the language of Sport Commentaries), the language of criminals —argot, the languages of the courtroom, the classroom, etc). We shall say more about register, later in this course. 4.0 CONCLUSION From the above, it becomes clear that the study of style is the preoccupation of stylistics. Stylistics itself can be approached from different perspectives. The basic objective of stylistics is to reveal how language is used to express what it expresses in a given text. 15 5.0 SUMMARY Stylistics is an important area of linguistics which has attracted the attention of many scholars. Apart from its academic relevance, stylistics is applicable in many other areas of human endeavours where language is used. As a student, of stylistics, you should pay close attention to how language is used in any text. We have focused in this unit on some popular perspectives on style, namely, style as choice, style as the man, style as deviation, style as conformity and style as time/period. 6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENTS (1) What do you understand by style? (2) Discuss the concept of stylistics in its broad sense. (3) Explain each of the following: (a) Style as choice (b) Style as the man or individuality (c) Style as deviation from the Norm (d) Style as conformity (e) Style as time/period (f) Style as situation. 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING Allan, B. et al (Eds.). (1988). The Montana Dictionary of Modern Thoughts. London: Fontana. Leech, G. (1969). A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry. London: Longman. Lucas, F. L. (1955). Style. London: Cassell and Coy. Malmkjaer, K. (Ed.). (2002). The Linguistics Encyclopedia. London & New York: Routledge. Olateju, A. (2016) Language and Style [- listics] in Literary and Routine Communication: The Yoruba Example. An Inaugural Lecture. University of Ibadan. Traugott, E. & Pratt, M. (1980). Linguistics for Students of Literature. New York: Harcourt Brace. Turner, G. (1973). Stylistics. Harmondsworth: Penguins Books. Wales, K. (1989). A Dictionary of Stylistics. London: Longman. 16  UNIT 2 THE NATURE AND GOALS OF STYLISTICS Contents 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Objectives 3.0 Main Content 3.1 What is Stylistics? 3.2 The Nature of Stylistics 3.3 The Goals of Stylistics 4.0 Conclusion 5.0 Summary 6.0 Tutor-Marked Assignments 7.0 References/Further Reading 1.0 INTRODUCTION A study of the varieties of language whose properties put that language in context in an attempt at establishing the principles capable of accounting for the particular choices made by individuals in their use of language is important. In this unit, therefore, we shall examine issues relating to the nature and goals of stylistics in order to identify the principles that are responsible for individual styles in the use of language. 2.0 OBJECTIVES At the end of this unit, you should be able to: i) define stylistics further and explain its nature; ii) discuss the concept of style in stylistics and mention various approaches to style; and iii) explain the goals of stylistics. 3.0 MAIN CONTENT 3.1 What is Stylistics? Since its emergence as a significant academic field within the scope of linguistics in the 1960s, stylistics has continued to attract intellectual attention of varying degrees. Several meanings and theories of stylistics exist in linguistic scholarship (Crystal and Davy, 1969, Fowler, 1975 and Wales, 2001 etc.). While some see stylistics as a branch of linguistics that deals with the study of varieties of language, its properties, principles behind choice, dialogue, accent, length and register (Bradford, 1979 and Downes, 1998), others insist that it attempts to establish principles capable of explaining the particular [style] choices used by 17 individuals and social groups in their use of language (Turner, 1973, Birch, 1995 and Fowler, 1998 etc.). Taken together, all these arguments demonstrate that style is central to the study of stylistics. The word, style, refers to the choice of words/expressions in a given context by a given person, for a given purpose, and so on. Thus, studies in style have shown that style is “the selection and arrangement of linguistic features which are open to choice” (De Vito, 1967), Often times, the authors identity is given away by some details reflecting, habit of expression or thought, and these seem to confirm that each writer has a linguistic thumb- print, an individual combination of linguistic habits which somehow betrays him in all that he writes. Accordingly, a writers idiosyncratic way of expressing himself or herself is an offshoot of his or her personality. Crystal and Davy (1983) opine that style is the “effectiveness of a mode of expression”. Style may be said to relate to communicative performance, which is the demonstration of the speaker’s or writer’s language capacity in generating and understanding specific communicative contexts. Stylistics, therefore, is the study of style. But style itself, by its nature, is a subject of debate. 3.2 The Nature of Stylistics Stylistics is a borderline discipline between language and literature;. It focuses on language use in both literary and non-literary texts. In doing this, it uses insights from numerous disciplines such as literature, psychology, sociology, philosophy and so on. Therefore, while it has its own focus, it is multidisciplinary in nature. Stylistics looks at style in such dimension as: Style as Choice: This considers style as the characteristic choices that a writer/speaker makes in a text at the various levels of language description. Style as Deviation: What is deviant i.e. what does not conform to the standard is said to be stylistically significant. This can also be at any level of language description. Style as Situation: The situation is the context in which a text comes to life. This could be physical, socio-cultural, pragmatic, etc. Style as Temporal Phenomenon: This deals with the time of relevance of style. That is, whether it is still in vogue or not (ancient or modern). A good example is Old English versus Modern English. Style as the Individual: This focuses on the specific features that are associated with particular individuals i.e. writers or speakers idiolects. 18 3.3 The Goals of Stylistics Stylistics is adaptive in nature such that its framework, as a veritable linguistic analytical approach, deals with a whole range of human discourses: medical, religious, political, legal, social, interpersonal, group communication, and so on. The practice of stylistics is targeted at achieving certain goals: 1) To establish discourse peculiarities: Stylistics studies the peculiarities that characterize the discourse of a writer, speaker, period, people or genre. Hence, stylistics could bring out certain features of Soyinkas works which are different from Osofisans works. It could help us identify the British English style as different from the American English style, etc. 2) To induce appreciation of discourses: Stylistics involves the appreciation of a discourse in order to increase our enjoyment of the discourse. It opens the readers mind to the form and function of a particular discourse. Stylistics is sensitive to different linguistic manipulations and choices in a given text. It unfolds the beauty in authorial and characters linguistic choices and opens the reader or listeners mind to the aesthetic appeals of such choices. 3) To ascertain linguistic habits: An authors style is the product of a particular linguistic habit, conditioned by some social, cultural and ideological environments. The objective of stylistics is to help determine the linguistic background and orientation of a given writer or speaker. Thus, according to Chatman (1971), every analysis of style can be seen as an attempt to discover the artistic principles that underpin the choice a writer has made. As a useful tool in the interpretation of a texts, stylistics serves as a mode of analysis for learning language and developing awareness for the workings of language and the development of confidence to work systematically towards effective interpretation of a text. This knowledge would lead us to arrive at an objective rather than a subjective conclusion. The knowledge of stylistics equally results in the proper analysis of speaking and writing habits to discover patterns which characteristically differentiate one variety of language from the other. A number of factors namely: situations, mode of communication, context, socio-linguistic constraints, as well as the need to conform to linguistic appropriateness, account for variation across genres. According to Crystal and Davy (1969: 10): the aim of stylistics is the analyse language habits with the main purpose of identifying, from the general mass of linguistic features common to English as used on every conceivable occasion, those features which are restricted to certain kinds of social context; to explain, where possible, why such features have been used, as opposed to other alternatives; and to classify these features into categories based upon a view of their function in the social context. 19  4) To make critical judgements: The application of stylistics on a discourse may help a stylistician to make an evaluative or critical judgement. Stylistician often makes value-judgement statements like: “it is composed in grand style.” The critical judgements made, based on veritable data are usually objective, hence, stylistics can help us reveal a good style from a bad one. In order to achieve the goals stated above and some others that have not been mentioned here, stylistics looks at many features of a text such as: 1) Graphological Features: Through these features, a stylistician can reasonably explore and give descriptions of the physical appearance of a literary text. Here, such features as the use of punctuation marks to create stylistic effects are significant. However, a major feature here is foregrounding. In this instance, certain words are foregrounded or brought to the fore to give them prominence through the use of italics, capital letters, underlining, and so on. You will learn more about foregrounding later in this course. 2) Phonological Features: Looking at the phonological features is particularly important in the stylistic analysis of poetry or any spoken text. The focus here is on the management of the segmental (vowels and consonants) and the suprasegmental units of language e.g. stress and intonation. Different shades of meaning can be expressed through the stylistic manipulation of these units. 3) Syntactic Features: The focus of syntactic analysis here is the identification of the effects created by the various sentence types in a text. Such aspects as ellipses, parataxis, hypotaxis, right and left-branching sentences, etc are considered significant. For instance, dislocation in syntax is occasionally used to demonstrate the dislocation in human thoughts (stream of consciousness) and this is highly manifested in James Joyces novels. 4) Lexico-Semantic Features: The stylistic use of words here may produce denotative, connotative, collocative, affective, thematic, or stylistic meanings based on the speakers or writers intention. Certain characteristic use of words may help us to identify the context of a text, its genre, its communicative purposes, its author, and so on. Self-Assessment Exercises 1. What do you now think stylistics is? 2. What do you consider as the goals of stylistics? 4.0 CONCLUSION Stylistics adopts a multidisciplinary approach to achieve its goals. It examines language use in different contexts in order to determine the style, purpose(s), meaning(s), etc and the over-all merit of a particular work. With the techniques of 20  stylistics at your disposal, you will be able to evaluate any instance of language use with respect to its content and form. 5.0 SUMMARY In summary, stylistics enables us to interact meaningfully well with a text. It opens our minds to the various dimensions of a particular literary or non-literary work. It is a discipline which is relevant to all activities which rely on the use of language. Through our knowledge of stylistics, our knowledge of textual appreciation will increase, just as our knowledge of the workings of language will appreciate. In short, stylistics will make us informed observers and analysts of language use in the process of negotiating meanings. 6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENTS 1. Mention and discuss two goals of stylistics. 2. Describe briefly the nature of stylistics. 3. What is style in language studies? 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING Birch, D. (1997). Context and Language: A Functional Linguistic Theory of Register. London and New York: Pinter. Bradford, R. (1997). Stylistics London and New York: Routledge. Cook, G. (1974). Discourse and Literature: The Interplay of Form and Mind. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Crystal, D. & Davy, D. (1969). Investigating English Style. London: Longman. Lucas, F. (1995). Style, London: Cassel and Coy. Sebock, T. A. (1960). Style in Language. Cambridge: MIT Press. Toolan, M. (1998). Language in Literature: An Introduction to Stylistics. London: Hodder Arnold. Wales, K. (2001). A Dictionary of Stylistics (2nd ed.). Harlow: Longman. Widowson, H.G. (1992). Practical Stylistics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Williams, J. (2007). Style: Lesson in Clarity and Grace (9th ed.). New York: Longman. 21  UNIT 3 TYPES OF STYLISTICS Content 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Objectives 3.0 Main Content 3.1 Linguistic Stylistics 3.2 Some Features of Linguistic Stylistics 3.2.1 Lexical Repetition 3.2.2 Dimensions of Meaning 3.2.3 Syntactic Features 3.2.4 Phonological Features 3.2.5 Graphological Features 3.3 Literary Stylistics 4.0 Conclusion 5.0 Summary 6.0 Tutor-Marked Assignments 7.0 References/Further Reading 1.0 INTRODUCTION In this unit, we shall discuss linguistic stylistics and literary stylistics as two broad types of stylistics. In discussing linguistic stylistics, we shall use some poems and demonstrate how stylistics can be done at some levels of language description. We shall therefore look at graphological, phonological, syntactic, and lexico-semantic features. In addition, we shall also discuss the literary perception of style. 2.0 OBJECTIVES At the end of this unit, you should be able to: i) mention two types of stylistics and distinguish between them; ii) identify some features that can be looked at in a linguistic stylistic analysis; and iii) explain what is involved in a stylistic analysis of a literary text. 3.0 MAIN CONTENT 3.1 Linguistic Stylistics Linguistic stylistics explores the linguistic features of a text. Remember that there is reference to style as the selection of certain linguistic forms or features over other possible ones. Linguistic stylistics, therefore, points out those linguistic choices which a writer or speaker has made as well as the effects of the choices. 22 The foregoing implies that linguistic stylistics is primarily concerned with the use of language and its effects in a text. Given a piece of literature, a poem for example, a linguistic stylistic analyst will be interested in describing the form and function of language in the poem, paying attention to certain curiosities that may be accounted for in linguistic terms. This does not imply that linguistic stylistics ignores the meanings which a poem conveys. In fact, the meaning is the focal point. But what the system of language is used to do is of paramount importance to the stylistician who works within the system of linguistic stylistics. Widdowson (1975: 5) posits that “… it may well be the case that the linguists analysis of the language of a poem is dependent on some prior intuitive interpretation of what the poem is about.” Linguistic stylistics, then, directs its attention primarily to how a piece of discourse expresses the language system. By language system, we mean linguistic features that can be examined based on the levels of language. In the section that follows, we shall examine some linguistic features based on the levels of language description. But before then, let us note that the gap between linguistic stylistic and literary studies has been bridged by the advent of the discipline of linguistic stylistics. Linguistic stylistics was introduced to act as a complementary approach to literary criticism where the linguistic study of texts was conspicuously absent. Linguistics, being “the academic discipline which studies language scientifically” (Crystal and Davy, 1969: 10) has everything to do with language usage and its applicability. According to Ayeomoni (2003: 177), Like any scientific discipline, the linguistic study of texts is precise and definite as it employs objective and verifiable methods of analysis and interpretation of texts. Linguistic stylistics studies the devices in languages (such as rhetorical figures and syntactical patterns) that are considered to produce expressive or literary style. It is different from literary criticism in that while literary criticism rests solely on the subjective interpretation of texts, linguistic stylistics concentrates on the “linguistic frameworks operative in the text” (Ayeomoni 2003: 177). This gives the critic a pattern to follow; what to look out for in a text; and consequently his standpoint can be verified statistically. Similarly, the linguistic study of a text reveals a writers style and purpose of writing. For instance, the use of proverbs in Achebes novels defined his style. Thus, if one criticizes a text through the parameters of linguistic usage, it can be verified, but if on the other hand, one relies primarily on literary criticism, one will only react to a text as his emotion dictates. However, Hassan (1985) cited in Ayeomoni (2003) notes that linguistic stylistics acknowledges the fact that it is not just enough to study the language of literary texts, since 23 there are two aspects to literature: the verbal and the artistic. In view of this factor, linguistic stylistics has its major purpose, which is relating language use in literary texts to its artistic function. So when language as used in the text is studied, it is not studied in isolation of the artistic function, it is studieds in order to ascertain how the writer has used language to express his message. According to Ayeomoni (2003), linguistic stylistics is known by such other terms as: Stylistics: (Hassan, 1985; Kachru and Herbert 1972; and Widdowson 1975). Modern Stylistics (Freeman, 1973). The New Stylistics (Fowler, 1986; Cluysenaar, 1975; Leech and Short, 1981). Literary Linguistic Stylistics (Michael Short, 1982). 3.2 Some Features of Linguistic Stylistics In this section, we shall limit ourselves to some linguistic features that would serve as a platform for an in-depth stylistic analysis of any text, though in this unit, we restrict ourselves to poetry. 3.2.1 Lexical Repetition As a form of lexical repetition, words may be repeated, synonyms or near-synonyms may be used. At times, poets repeat some lexical items, near-synonymy may be used, for instance, to foreground the intended message. For instance, look at these lines: Jilt her Rape her Milk her Suck her In the above extract from Okpanachis The Eaters of the Living (p. 80), we find a sense of lexical relation. “Milk” and “Suck” in the context of the poem function as synonyms. The synonymous selection is, however, determined by the emotion of the poet. The overall intention of the poet is to emphasise his disdain for the political situation of his country. If we look closely at the poem, the words correspond with the social situation of the country which the poet depicts. 3.2.2 Dimensions of Meaning Semantics generally deals with meaning. In a stylistic analysis at the lexico-semantic level, apart from the issue of lexical repetition, we look at the lexical choices made by a writer or speaker. Here, words can be chosen for their denotative, connotative and other dimensions of meanings. Look at this line: 24  “But tomorrow cannot be consoled.” The above line is taken from Yeibos Maiden Lines. Syntactically, i.e., in terms of grammar, the line is normal. The sentence begins with but, giving the assumption that it contrasts with the idea that precedes it. But if we look at the sentence semantically, “tomorrow” is not an animate thing that can be consoled, it is only humans that can be “consoled” or not consoled. Making “tomorrow” to go with “consoled” creates some effect at this level. 3.2.3 Syntactic Features Syntax has to do with the arrangement of units larger than the word. These units include groups/phrases, clauses and sentences. Look at this sentence: “He went home”. The pattern of the sentence is SPA (S — Subject, P = Predicator, A — Adjunct). A poet can violate the order of the above sentence in the form below: “Home he went” (This has ASP pattern). The item “home” occurs in the initial position of the sentence to foreground it. This is deviation for a specific effect. 3.2.4 Phonological Features (Sounds) Phonology refers to how sound is organised to be meaningful. Sound patterning functions linguistically in poetry to project a poets purpose or concern in a work” (Aboh. 2008: 67-8). Poetry has fashions and different forms of sound patterning. Let us look at this example taken from Dasylvas Songs of Odamolugbe; Their stanzas of stifling scandals Cause the masses to curse (p. 27) This is an example of alliteration. The sound stanzas and scandals are the poets deliberate selections. The sound effect created by such selection gives the reader a deeper sense of understanding the enormity of corruption and insincerity in the Nigerian society. It is the insincerity of the rulers that cause the masses to curse. 3.2.5 Graphological Features Another way in which poets can make us contemplate the otherwise unmarked morphological structure of words is by playing around with word boundaries. Graphology means the arrangement of words based on their meanings. If a poet breaks the word “Kingdom” into “king - dom” the poet has tampered with the morphology of the word, thereby affecting the meaning. Let us consider the example taken from Ushies Hill Songs: On the wrinkled face of the hills I see my shortening shadow as my sun creeps towards the west hills gently, gently, gently 25  like afternoons flame l o w e r i n g to ash in the evening. (P. 35) The above poem describes birth and death. While the preceding lines of the poem explicitly point to aging, “lowering” (the graphological symbolism) shows interment. It describes the process of burial. 3.3 Literary Stylistics Literary stylistics is synonymous withto literary criticism, in a way. The ultimate purpose of literary stylistics is to explain the individual message of the writer in terms which makes its importance clear to others. The task of literary stylistics is to decipher a message encoded in an unfamiliar way, to express its meaning in familiar and communal terms and thereby to provide the private message with a public relevance. This activity is not essentially different from the criticism of other art forms. The literary stylistician is obviously sensitive to language, but his/her concern is not principally with the way the signals of the artist are constructed but with the underlying message which an interpretation of the signals reveals. Furthermore, literary stylistics is less interested in devising a meta-language into which the original message can be transferred. The literary stylistician is rather concerned with figurative and evocative uses of language which characterize the message being interpreted. Literary stylistics, then, is primarily concerned with messages and the interest in codes (language) lies in the meaning they convey in particular instances of use. The beauty of language and how it is used to capture reality is also the focal concern of literary stylistics. Literary stylistics takes interpretation as its aim. It is interested in finding out what aesthetic experience or perception of reality a poem, for example, is attempting to convey. Its observation of how language system is used will serve only as a means to this end. Literary stylistics, therefore, searches for underlying significance, for the essential artistic vision which language is used to express. It treats literary works as messages. Literary stylistics undertakes the interpretation of a text as the ultimate objective of analysis. It is based on the consideration of the stylistically significant features of the text (including 26 clause and sentence structure, paragraphing and cohesion) and of lexis. It is however the stylistic effects and functions produced by these features rather than the objective description of them that is more important here (i.e. in literary stylistics). To the literary stylistician, the description of language and style is not important in itself; instead, the primary task is to provide an account of his intuitions concerning the effect and functions produced by the text. This is expected to provide a sure basis for the interpretation of texts and for teaching interpretation. 4.0 CONCLUSION The above examples are just small parts of stylistic analysis, especially a linguistic stylistic analysis. The ability of an analyst to unearth stylistic features depends, by and large, on his linguistic and literary awareness. Linguistic stylistics and literary stylistics are not limited to the analysis of the language of literature. Any form of language use such as news reporting, advertising, football commentary, etc can be analysed stylistically from the two perspectives. The two perspectives are not mutually exclusive – they are different sides of the same coin. 5.0 SUMMARY In this unit, we have established a distinction between two main types of stylistics: literary stylistics and linguistic stylistics. Under linguistic stylistics, we examined some linguistic features that have stylistic effects. We argued that linguistic stylistics is primarily concerned with the description of language used in a text, while literary stylistics is principally interested in interpreting the message of a work of art; making a personal message of an artist gain communal significance. However, in practice, there is no justification for bifurcating stylistics into linguistic stylistics and literary stylistics. Therefore, these two forms of stylistics are merged in this course, in practice. Look at this diagram: Linguistic Literary stylistics stylistics Can you make any sense out of the diagram? Don’t you think that Linguistic stylistics and Literary stylistics are like two streams flowing into each other? 27 6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENTS (1) Mention and explain two types of stylistics. (2) Identify some features that can be focused on in a linguistic stylistic analysis. (3) Carry out a literary analysis of any poem of your choice. 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING Ayeomoni, N. (2003). “The Rrole of Sstylistics in Lliterary Sstudies”. In Oyeleye, L. & Olateju, M. (Eds.). Readings in Language and Literature. Ile-Ife: Obafemi Awolowo University Press. Crystal, D. (1969). Investigating English Style. London: Longman. Dasylva A. (2006). Songs of Odamolugbe. Ibadan: Kraft Books Limited. Kamalu, I. (2018). Stylistics: Theory and Practice. Ibadan: Kraft Books Limited. Okpanachi, M. (2006) The Eaters of the Living. Ibadan: Kraft Books Limited Ushie, J. (2002). Hill Songs. Ibadan: Kraft Books Limited. Yeibo, E. (2004). Maiden Lines. Ibadan: Kraft Books Limited 28  UNIT 4 TYPES OF STYLISTICS (II) Contents 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Objectives 3.0 Main Content 3.1 Reader-Response Stylistics 3.2 Affective Stylistics 3.3 Pragmatic Stylistics 3.4 Pedagogical Stylistics 3.5 Forensic Stylistics 4.0 Conclusion 5.0 Summary 6.0 Tutor-Marked Assignments 7.0 References/Further Reading 1.0 INTRODUCTION Stylistics has become so vibrant a field of study that it has drawn insights from a number of disciplines or fields. Each of these disciplines has its own approach to the study of style in texts. A situation such as this has brought about various types of stylistics. Thus, it becomes possible for a stylistician to do a thorough stylistic examination of a text by adopting any of the various approaches at his or her disposal. 2.0 OBJECTIVES At the end of this unit, you should be able to: (i) identify four other types of stylistics apart from linguistic and literary stylistics; (ii) explain the types of stylistics identified in (i); and (iii) describe the method(s) of each type of stylistics identified in (i). 3.0 MAIN CONTENT 3.1 Reader-Response Stylistics This type of stylistics stemmed from the strand of modern subjective criticism called reader- response criticism, otherwise known, in the German school of criticism as reception aesthetics. Very notable figures among the proponents of modern criticism, I.A. Richards and William Empson, steered the critics of texts towards appreciating the words, which are contained on the pages of a text, rather than considering the author of such a text. The author and the text are said to be separate. 29 This development in literary criticism is a radical departure from the Romantic conception of the author as being totally responsible for whatever meaning that one, as a reader, may encounter on the pages of a text. Inspired by Roland Barthes view, the new critics, as the proponents of modern criticism are called, believed that the meaning of a text can, solely, be determined through the interaction between the reader and the words one the pages of the text. This is what the reader-response criticism concerns itself with. Thus, the reader-response stylistics examines the readers response to a text as a response to a horizon of expectations. By a horizon of expectations, is meant that there is multiplicity of meanings or interpretations in a text and these can be accessed by the reader according to his or her level of what Jonathan Culler (1981: 25) describes as “literary competence”. A readers literary competence is highly informed by the social world in which a text is produced as it usually has a shaping effect on his or her interpretation of such a text. In the reader-response stylistics, there is an interaction between the structure of the text and the reader’s response. Thus, the reader becomes an active part of the text. The reader- response stylistics evokes a situation where individual readers give meanings to the text. This is because each reader will interact with the text differently, as the text may have more than one vivid interpretation. The theorists of this type of stylistics share two beliefs: (a) the role of the reader cannot be ignored; (b) readers do not passively consume the meaning presented to them by a literary text. Instead, readers actively make the meaning they find in literature. This is to say that literature exists and signifies when it is read and interrogated meaningfully. Furthermore, reading is a temporal process, not a spatial one as new critics (formalists) assume when they step back and survey the literary work as if it were an object spread out before them. In The Implied Reader: Patterns of Communication in Prose Fiction From Bunyan to Beckett (1974) and The Act of Reading: A Theory of Aesthetic Response (1976) (both cited in Murfin and Ray, 1998), the German critic Wolfgang Iser comments that texts contain gaps that powerfully affect the reader, who must explain them, connect what they separate, and create in his or her mind aspects of a work that are not in the text but are implied by the text. The reader ceases to be a mere passive recipient of the ideas planted in a text by an author, but an active contributor/maker of meanings. Reader-response stylistics/criticism has evolved into a variety of new forms. Subjectivists like David Bleich, Norman Holland, and Robert Crossman have viewed the readers response not as one “guided” by the text, but rather as one motivated by deep-seated, personal, psychological needs. 30 3.2 Affective Stylistics Attracted to the fascinating insights proffered by the reader-response criticism on the process of criticizing a text, an American critic cum stylistician, Stanley Fish, appropriated it (the reader-response criticism) as affective stylistics. Affective stylistics came around to be identified as one of the two varieties of a major branch of stylistics, namely, literary stylistics and expressive stylistics. Whereas expressive stylistics is writer/speaker - oriented, that is, focuses on style as purely the representation of the personality of the author, affective stylistics is reader/ hearer — oriented i.e. its focus is on the consumers. Like its close partner (the reader - response stylistics), affective stylistics searches out the emotional responses that a reader or hearer makes in the course of his or her interacting with, that is, reading or listening to a text. However, it goes further to examine the psychological operations that are usually involved in the readers process of reading or the hearers process of listening; hence, it is, otherwise, known as “process stylistics”. According to Fish (1970), in affective stylistics, the stylistician relies primarily upon his or her affective responses to stylistics, elements in the text. Here, the literary text is not formally self-sufficient; it comes alive through the interpretative strategy that the reader deploys. Hence, the need to analyse the developing responses of the reader in relation to the words as they succeed one another in the text. The work and its result are one and the same thing; what a text is and what it does. Affective stylistics could equally be seen as the impact of a texts structure on the reader as the work unfolds. During the process of affective stylistics, viewers continue to take in new information that must be incorporated into their current understanding of the work. With each new bit of information, the reader may form new expectations of where the work is going, perhaps, rejecting old interpretations, opinions and assumptions and making new ones. The affective domain includes the manner in which we deal with things emotionally, such as feelings, values, appreciation, enthusiasm, motivations and attitudes. 3.3 Pragmatic Stylistics Pragmatic stylistics is part of the manifestations of linguistic stylistics. This variety of stylistics shows the meeting point between pragmatics and stylistics, that is, how pragmatic resources, such as performative and speech acts, can be employed to achieve stylistic effects. Scholars have demonstrated that the objective of pragmatics is to show how users of any language can use the sentences obtainable in such a language to convey messages which are not directly or explicitly shown in the propositional content of the sentences. Pragmatics came round to fill the gap created by the truth-condition semantics. The latter is a semantic theory which holds the view that the truthfulness or the falsity of a sentence or an utterance is subject to the degree to which the propositional content of such a sentence or an utterance is verifiable from the world. But some of our sentences or utterances cannot be subjected to this condition of truthfulness or falsity. 31 Stylistics, as has been shown in the previous units, is traditionally concerned with the study of style in language. Verdonk (2002:4) defines it as the analysis of a distinctive expression and description of its purpose and effect. The partnership between both pragmatics and stylistics appears quite possible given the qualities that they share. Both are, for instance, interested in such features as are beyond the sentence boundary. The application of pragmatic and stylistic theories to text analysis indicates a clear departure from how texts were analysed when modern linguistics began to develop. In this respect, Dressier et al (1993:16) inform us that the tradition at the inception of the evolution of modern linguistics was for analysts to confine the analysis of a text to the domain of sentence which was, then, regarded as the largest unit with an inherent structure. The pragmatic meaning of a text can be recovered through the context that produces the text. It is the realization that context is necessary in the exploration of the pragmatic meaning that guides a language user or text producer into employing appropriate linguistic resources in the text in order to achieve the stylistic meaning through what Ayodabo (1997:136) regards as “...the degree of effectiveness of an utterance (herein referred to as text) in relation to the learners (or readers) at the perlocutionary level”. But for the perlocutionary level to be achieved, we are informed by the speech act theory (the proponents of which include Austin 1962 and Searle 1969) that the illocutionary acts must have satisfied certain felicity conditions. This is not our concern in the present study. It is therefore, obvious that the frequency of a speech act is highly significant in understanding the extent to which it has been stylistically exploited by text producers to exert some perlocutionary effect(s) on the reader(s) of such a text. In this arrangement, we have the yoking of pragmatics and stylistics. Pragmatic stylistics is, thus, viewed as a two-in-one theory of text analysis, which focuses on the effects of contexts on the text. 3.4 Pedagogical Stylistics This type of stylistics shows the instructional use into which stylistics is put. Wales (1997: 438) explains that stylistics has been, unarguably, considered a teachers ready tool of teaching language and literature to both native and foreign speakers of English. In order to achieve his goal of teaching with ease, a teacher is guided by certain strategies or objectives. Often times, a teacher cannot but be flexible in his or her course of achieving his or her teaching objectives. In this wise, a close ally to pedagogical stylistics is classroom discourse analysis. For long, pedagogical stylistics has been intrinsically linked with the teaching of the linguistic features of written texts as a means of enhancing students understanding of literature and language. It is based on the premise that stylisticians who are involved with teaching should be aware of the pedagogical orientation and reading paradigms which inform their practice. It is also a theoretical dimension to research undertaken into practice in the stylistics classroom. 32 Pedagogical stylistics emphasizes that the process of improving students’ linguistic sensibilities must include greater emphasis upon the text as action; that is, upon the mental processing which is such as proactive part of reading and interpretation; and how all of these elements — pragmatic and cognitive as well as linguistic — function within quite specific social and cultural contexts. The knowledge gained from the study of pedagogical stylistics will help students in understanding how language, grammar and rhetoric function in texts. It will follow these steps: firstly, students will acquire the knowledge that leads them to comprehend the basic grammatical and rhetoric concepts. Secondly, it will boost their practical knowledge, whereby students are able to analyse texts with the tool they have acquired at the first stage. The third stage is when students go into a mode of synthesizing all they have learned, which, in turn, allows them to move on to the production stage. Such a process is valuable, for example, in the contemporary creative writing classroom. It is important to note that the process described here is not simply literary stylistics, but fundamentally pedagogical stylistics. The fact that a close, stylistic analysis of texts, literary or otherwise, for formative ends is pedagogically valuable is amply demonstrated by pedagogical stylistics. 3.5 FORENSIC STYLISTICS Forensic stylistics is a part of forensic linguistics. In general, forensic stylistics is the application of stylistics to crime detection. Through the stylistic analysis of language use at the different levels of language description, it is possible to determine the author of a text. This may be applied to confessional statements to the police. Issues like voice recognition, identification of regional accents are often studied to arrive at useful conclusions in terms of crime detection (see Bloor, M. and Bloor, T. 2007). 4.0 CONCLUSION It has been shown in the foregoing that stylistics adopts a multi-disciplinary approach to the analysis of texts. We are, thus, made to appreciate the claim that though stylistics is located in linguistics we should not lose sight of the fact that it (stylistics) also draws inspiration from a number of disciplines. It is however the responsibility of an individual stylistician to determine when insights from specific disciplines or sub-disciplines are needed in his or her analysis of a text and how such insights can be effectively utilized. 5.0 SUMMARY Stylistics has been proved to be a useful tool in the hands of an analyst who wishes to analyse a text from any stand point. Analysing a text provides one a better way to read a text. Stylistics may be regarded as a window into the world of texts. An analyst may adopt a particular approach in opening the window into the world of texts. The different approaches that may be adopted are embedded in the different strands of stylistics as reader-response 33 stylistics, affective stylistics, pragmatic stylistics, pedagogical stylistics and forensic stylistics. 6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENTS 1. Identify any other three types of stylistics apart from linguistic and literary stylistics. 2. Explain carefully the types of stylistics identified in (1) above. 3. How does each type of stylistics identified in (1) above work? 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING Ayodabo, J. (1997). “A Pragma-Stylistic Study of Abiolas Historic Speech of June 24, 1993.” In Lawal, A. (Ed.). Stylistics in Theory and Practice-Ilorin: Paragon Books pp136-149. Baldick, C. (1996). Oxford Concise Dictionary of Literary Terms. New York: Oxford University Press. Bloor, M. & Bloor, T. (2007). The Practice of Critical Discourse Analysis: An Introduction. London: Hodder Education. Culler, J. (1981). “Literary Competence.” In Freeman, D. (Ed.) Essays in Modern Stylistics. New York: Methuen. Enkvist N.E. (1964). “On Defining Style.” In Enkvist, N. E., Spencer, J. (Eds.) & Gregory, M. Linguistics and Style. London: Oxford University Press. ppl-56. Fish, S.E. (1970). Literature in the Reader: Affective Stylistics. Washington DC: John Hopkins University Press. Retrieved from htt://gateway. Proquest. Com/open url?url- ver=z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pao:&rft_dat= xri:paoarticle:b222_1970-002-01- 000009.June 20, 2011. Fish, S.E. (1980). Is there a text in this class? The Authority of Interpretative Communities. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Osundare, N. (2003). Cautious Paths through the Bramble. Ibadan: Hope Publications. Tompkins, J. P. (1980). Reader-Response Criticism: From Formalism to Post-Structuralism. Baltmore: Johns Hopkins University Press. Verdonk, P. (2006). Stylistics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Wales, K. (1989). A Dictionary of Stylistics. London: Longman. 34