Stylistic theories and classifications By G Leech I

Stylistic theories and classifications By G. Leech, I. R. Galperin, Y. M. Skrebnev

Modern classifications of expressive means in the English language G. Leech I. R. Galperin Y. M. Skrebnev

G. Leech “Essays on Style and Language”, 1967, London the language of literature normal deviant Paradigmatic deviation Syntagmatic deviation (парадигматическое нарушение) (синтагматическое нарушение)

Paradigmatic deviation (парадигматическое нарушение) The writer chooses between equivalent items, which are contrasted to the normal range of choice Inches Feet Yards Farmyard (двор фермы) normal away deviant away He was standing a few feet away (poetic: farmyards away).

Paradigmatic deviation (парадигматическое нарушение) personification In this case we deal with purely grammatical oppositions: Personal / impersonal; animated / unanimated; concrete / abstract. As Connie had said, she handled just like any other aeroplane, except that she had better manners than most. Can only be aeroplane Personified on the grammatical level associated with human beings Deviant use

aeroplane train car Normal inanimated neuter it aeroplane Deviant animated female she

Syntagmatic deviation (синтагматическое нарушение) The writer repeatedly makes the same selection in a syntagmatic chain of language units. Instead of We have “Robert turned over a hoop in a circle” “Robert Rowley rolled a round roll round”

Syntagmatic means Denoting (выражающий) the relationship between a word and other members of a syntactic unit containing it

I. R. Galperin “Stylistic”, 1971 Level-oriented approach Phonetic expressive means and stylistics devices Lexical expressive means and stylistics devices Syntactical expressive means and stylistics devices

alliteration onomatopoeia Phonetic expressive means and stylistics devices Rhyme rhythm (full, incomplete, compound or broken, eye rhyme, internal rhyme. Stanzas: couplets, cross, triple, framing)

I. Interaction of different types of a word’s meanings: dictionary, contextual, derivative (производный), nominal, and emotive Lexical expressive means and stylistics devices II. Interaction between two lexical meanings simultaneously (одновременно) materialized in the context III. Stable word combinations in their interaction with the context

I. Interaction of different types of a word’s meanings: dictionary, contextual, derivative (производный), nominal, and emotive A Means based on interplay of dictionary and contextual meanings B Interaction of primary and derivative meanings C Opposition of logical and emotive meanings D Interaction of logical and nominal meanings üMetaphor üMetonymy üIrony ØPolysemy ØZeugma and pun v. Interjection (Междометия) and exclamatory words v. Epithet v. Oxymoron §antonomasia

practice All present life is but an interjection An ‘Oh’ or ‘Ah’ of joy or misery, Or a ‘Ha! Ha!’ or ‘Bah!’ – a yawn or ‘Pooh!’ Of which perhaps the latter is most true. (Byron) Interjection and exclamatory words Mr. Facing–Both–Ways does not get very far in this world. antonomasia Dear Nature is the kindest Mother still. (Byron) metaphor May’s mother always stood on her gentility; and Dot’s mother never stood on anything but her active little feet. (Dickens) Zeugma and pun

II. Interaction between two lexical meanings simultaneously (одновременно) materialized in the context üSimile üPeriphrasis üEuphemism üHyperbole

practice The earth was made for Dombey and Son to trade in and the sun and the moon were made to give them light. (Dickens) Hyperbole Treacherous as a snake simile In private I should call him a liar. In the Press you should use the words: ‘Reckless (опрометчивый) disregard (пренебрежение) for truth’. euphemism The fair sex Periphrasis (=women)

III. Stable word combinations in their interaction with the context üClichés üProverbs and sayings üEpigrams üQuotations üAllusion üDecomposition of set phrases

practice You know which side the law’s buttered Decomposition of set phrases Ecclesiastes said, ‘that all is vanity’. Quotations Crushing defeat (сокрушительное поражение ) Clichés A thing of beauty is a joy for ever. (Keats) Epigram

Epigram üa witty, often paradoxical remark üa short, pungent (едкий), and often satirical poem, esp one having a witty and ingenious ending

Syntactical expressive means and stylistics devices (Syntagmatic or structural) The juxtaposition (смежное положение) of the parts of an utterance The type of connection of the parts The principal criteria The peculiar (необычный) use of colloquial constructions The transference of structural meaning

Devices built on the principle of juxtaposition üInversion üDetached (обособленный) constructions üParallel constructions üChiasmus üRepetition üEnumeration (перечисление) üSuspense (прерывание повествования - напряжение üClimax üAntithesis (противопоставление)

practice In the days of old men made manners Manners now make men. Chiasmus (Byron) A tone of most extravagant comparison Miss Tox said it in. Inversion They looked at hundred of houses, they climbed thousands of stairs, they inspected innumerable kitchens. climax She was lovely: all of her – delightful. Detached (constructions Youth is lovely, age is lonely; Youth is fiery, age is frost. Antithesis

practice For glances beget (порождать) ogles (влюбленный взгляд), ogles sighs, sighs wishes, wishes words, and words a letter. (Byron) Repetition Know ye the land where the cypress (кипарис) and myrtle (мирт)… Know ye the land of the cedar and wine … …………………………………… ‘Tis the clime of the East – ‘tis the land of the Sun. (Byron) Suspense The principle production of these towns … appear to be soldiers, sailors, Jews, chalk, shrimps, officers, and dock-yard men. Enumeration

Devices built on the type of connection üAsyndeton üPolysyndeton üGap-sentence link It was an afternoon to dream. And she took out Jon’s letters. Gap-sentence link The heaviest rain, and snow, and hail, and sleet, could boast of the advantage over him in only one respect. Polysyndeton ‘There’s no use in talking to him, he’s perfectly idiotic!’ said Alice. Asyndeton

The peculiar use of colloquial constructions üEllipsis üAposiopesis [əepəusaiəpi: sis] (break-in-the-narrative) üQuestions in the narrative üRepresented speech (inner speech, uttered and unuttered

practice Over and over he was asking himself: would she receive him? Represented speech Good intention but - ; You just come home or I’ll … break-in-the-narrative Nothing so difficult as a beginning Ellipsis Scrooge knew he was dead? Of course he did. How could it be otherwise? Questions in the narrative

The transference of structural meaning üRhetorical questions üLitotes He was no gentle lamb Litotes How long must we suffer? Where is the end? Rhetorical questions

conclusion § all devices are classified into lexical and syntactical But Some devices involve both lexical and syntactical features Ex. : antithesis, climax, irony and others. § syntactical devices can be structural and compositional § Devices built on transferred structural meaning and the type of syntactical connection § Devices that involve a peculiar use of colloquial constructions But Very detailed this classification provokes some questions concerning the criteria used in some groups

Y. M. Skrebnev ‘Fundamentals of English Stylistics’, 1994 Leech’s system of paradigmatic and syntagmatic subdivision + Galperin’s level-oriented classification otherwise Skrebnev’s approach differs from both

stylistics paradigmatic syntagmatic 5 Levels of the language

5 Levels of the language Paradigmatic stylistics 1. Phonetics 2. Morphology 3. Lexicology 4. Syntax 5. Semasiology Syntagmatic stylistics

Paradigmatic stylistics 1. Phonetics 2. Morphology 3. Lexicology 4. Syntax 5. Semasiology

Paradigmatic Phonetics graphones I knew these Eye-talians! italics capitalization I AM sorry Repetition of letters Appeeee Nooooyeeeeer onomatopoeia Cock-a-doodle-doo

Paradigmatic Morphology deviation Stylistic connotation, stylistic coloring Tenses What else do Ion the background of a past Present tense remember? Let me see. There comes out – historical present -tense narration of the cloud our house … Gender Nouns Number Mood Where did you find it? “Who are you calling unanimated Animated nouns as‘it’? P’raps you’ll kindly call me ‘im and not it. ” demanded Mr Barden aggressively.

Paradigmatic Lexicology words positive Poetic Official professional neutral negative Colloquial Neologisms Jargon Slang Nonce-words Vulgar words Bookish archaic

Paradigmatic Syntax Deals with Completeness of sentence structure Communicative types of sentence Word order Type of syntactical connection

Completeness of sentence structure üEllipsis üAposiopesis üOne-number nominative sentence üRedundancy: repetition of sentence parts, syntactic tautology, polysyndeton

Communicative types of sentence Quasi-affirmative sentences: Isn’t that too bad? = That is too bad. Quasi-interrogative sentences: Here you are to write down your age and birthplace = How old are you? Where were you born? Quasi-negative sentences: Did I say a word about the money = I did not say … Quasi-imperative sentence: Here! Quick! = Come here! Be quick!

Word order Inversion

Type of syntactical connection üDetachment üParenthetic elements (изобилующий вводными предложениями, пояснительными замечаниями) üAsyndetic (бессоюзный) subordination and coordination

Paradigmatic Semasiology tropes = Figures of replacement Figures of quantity Figures of quality

= tropes Figures of replacement Figures of quantity üHyperbole üMeosis (litotes)

= tropes Figures of replacement Figures of quality üMetonymy üPeriphrasis (+ euphemism and anti-euphemism) üMetaphor üAllusion üPersonification üAntonomasia üAllegory üIrony

Syntagmatic stylistics Phonetics Alliteration Assonance Paronomasia (using words similar in sound but different in meaning with euphonic effect) Ex: And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting Rhythm and metre Rhyme

Syntagmatic stylistics Morphology Deals with the importance of grammar forms used in a paragraph or text that help in creating a certain stylistic effect

Syntagmatic stylistics Lexicology Studies the “word – and - context” juxtaposition Each literary text is unique

Syntagmatic stylistics Syntax Parallelism Anaphora Epiphora Framing Anadiplosis (the final element of one sentence is repeated in the beginning of the next sentence) Ex: Three fishes went sailing out into the West Out into the West, as the sun went down. Chiasmus

Syntagmatic stylistics Semasiology üSimile üSynonymous replacement üClarifying synonyms üClimax üAnti-climax üZeugma üPun üTautology üOxymoron üAntithesis

Practice What steps would you take if an empty tank were coming toward you? – Long ones. pun For East is East, and West is West … tautology The woman who could face the very devil himself of a mouse – goes all to pieces in front of a flash lightning. Anti-climax You undercut, sinful, insidious hog. Clarifying synonyms

Practice She dropped a tear and her pocket handkerchief zeugma My heart is like a singing bird simile He brought home numberless prizes. He told his mother countless stories. Synonymous replacement I love my love and my loves me! chiasmus

Practice Never wonder. By means of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, settle everything somehow, and never wonder. framing I prayed for the city to be cleared of people, for the gift of being alone – a-l-o-n-e: which is the one New York prayer … Repetition of letters No chitchat please graphone Who’s that dear, dim, drunk little man? alletiration