It is in this way that we speak, for example, of the style of One Thousand and One Nights, even though it is probably the work of several anonymous compilers. However, we can still identify the specific linguistic features of the text that define its style, or more precisely the style of its implied author. ![]() In some cases, as in anonymous works or publications under a pseudonym, we might not even have this information. In this sense, it is generally possible to analyse the linguistic features of style based on the text itself, without any need to know the identity of its real author. Narrative style may be attributed to the implied author, which is the virtual entity that enounces the discourse. Thus, the style of a short story or novel is the sum of linguistic features that characterise its narrative discourse. In general, the style is a characteristic set of linguistic features associated with a text or group of texts. The form of discourse is what we generally call its style. This message not only has a content, which is the story, but also a form. 6.1 The Style of NarrativeĪccording to our semiotic model of narrative, discourse is the message that the implied author communicates to the implied reader. We will end the chapter by briefly pointing out the importance of literary translation in giving readers access to the rich variety of prose fiction stories written all over the world. After reviewing the most significant of these devices for narrative prose, we will examine the use of symbols and allegory in short stories and novels, an aspect of discourse that brings together language and theme. ![]() Foregrounding in prose fiction can involve different aspects of language, such as the use of figurative devices or figures of speech. Then, we will discuss the notion of foregrounding, which can help us to identify with more precision the features that distinguish literary from everyday language. To begin with, we need to explain what we mean by style, a characteristic set of linguistic features that is sometimes attributed to the implied author of a story, but also to the real author, or even to a group of authors or to a whole culture. In this chapter, we will present some key insights about the language of short stories and novels, mostly derived from rhetoric and stylistics, without fleshing out all the linguistic details. In recent times, the application of modern linguistics to the study of literary texts has given rise to stylistics, a discipline that maintains some of the interests and terminology of traditional rhetoric, while incorporating new concerns, concepts, and methodologies. The tradition of rhetoric still influences the analysis and classification of figures of speech and other linguistic devices employed in contemporary prose fiction. The study of language in literature and other forms of discourse has traditionally been the task of rhetoric, an ancient discipline that attempted to understand and teach the art of crafting effective and persuasive discourse. ![]() This diversity of styles and techniques makes it difficult to describe the language of narrative in any systematic way, short of saying that it is a reflection of the variability of language itself. At the other extreme, some stories are written in a style that is so far removed from everyday language that most readers have a hard time understanding it, as in James Joyceâs experimental novel Finnegans Wake. Some stories are told in a language that seems common or ordinary, with little use of adjectives and figurative devices, as in Raymond Carverâs âCathedralâ and other minimalist short stories. The language employed in prose fiction varies widely. 6.1 First page of the Book of Genesis in the Gutenberg Bible, Public Domain,
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |