CHAPTER - II
STYLISTIC STUDY: PAST AND PRESENT
CHAPTER II
STYLISTIC STUDY: PAST AND PRESENT
2.1. Stylistics
Stylistics is a method of textual interpretation in which
primacy of place is assigned to language.
Language is most
important to stylisticians because the various forms, patterns and
levels that constitute linguistic structure are an important index of
the function of the text. The text’s functional significance as
discourse acts in turn as a gateway to its interpretation.
The
preferred object of study in stylistics is literature. The traditional
link between stylistics and literature brings with it two important
caveats. The first caveat is that creativity and innovation in
language use should not be seen as the exclusive preserve of literary
writing.
Many forms of discourse often show a high degree of
stylistic dexterity, such that it would be incorrect to view dexterity
in language use as exclusive to canonical literature. The second is
that the techniques of stylistic analysis are much about deriving
insights
about
linguistic
structure
and
function
as
they
are
concerned in understanding literary texts. It is the full gamut of the
system of language which makes all aspects of a writer’s craft
relevant in stylistic analysis.
Moreover, stylistics is interested in
language as a function of texts in context, and it admits that
utterances are produced in a time, a place and in a cultural and
cognitive
context.
These
‘extra
linguistic’
parameters
are
inextricably linked with the method a text means.
The study of stylistics intend to explore language, and, more
specifically, to explore creativity in language use.
It enriches the
ways of thinking about language and, exploring language offers a
substantial contact on the understanding of literary texts.
Interest
in language is always at the fore in contemporary stylistic analysis.
The process of stylistics can be conformed to the following three
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basic principles.
They stipulate that stylistic analysis should be
rigorous, retrievable and replicable.
The stylistic method is
rigorous means that it should be based on an explicit framework of
analysis. Stylistic analysis is strengthened by structured models of
language and discourse that explain the process and understanding
of various patterns in language.
Next, the stylistic method is
retrievable means that the analysis is organized through explicit
terms and criteria, the meanings of which are agreed upon by others.
Then, a stylistic analysis seeks to be replicable means that the
methods should be sufficiently transparent as to allow other
stylisticians to verify them, either by testing them on the same text
or by applying them beyond that text. The stylisticians are now less
anxious to find out what a text means. They are more interested in
the systematic ways language is used to create texts that are similar
or different from one another, and they also link choices in texts to
social and cultural context.
2.1.1. Stylistics and Language
Stylistics
is considered a branch of linguistics that
is
concerned with the investigation of expressive and evocative values
of language. Affective content is an integral part of language. No
language act can be said to be totally devoid of the affective
content.
Language is said to be a system based on relations
between mind and speech. According to the French linguist Charles
Bally
(quoted
by
William.J.
Entwistle:
1953)
“Stylistics
investigates the facts of expression in organized language from the
standpoint of their affective content, i.e., the expression of facts of
sensitivity
sensitivity”.
by
language
and
Stylistics
is
the
action
concerned
expressiveness of literary language.
of
with
language
the
upon
study
of
The term style denotes the
manner and quality of linguistic expression.
It is evident that one
finds a variety of styles of language in vogue in society. The style
of language is determined by the environment and the intention of
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the speaker. A speaker doesn’t use the same style of language while
talking to a shopkeeper or his subordinate as he does while chatting
with the members of his family.
Similarly, different styles of
language obtained in different social groups, were formed on
different considerations. Thus language has many styles.
Literary
style of the language is a special form of verbal style that co-exists
with other styles in the language. Stylistics is the study of the most
specialized and complex linguistic function.
realized in the quality of expressiveness.
This function is
Expressive language is
one that is most expertly used. The description of literary language
from the point of view of its expressive content is an important
form of linguistics.
Stylistics is concerned with the relationship
between sentences in an organized structure of the work of art,
whereas linguistics studies the relationship within the sentence.
The study of language as an art is referred to as stylistics, whereas
the study of language as a means of communication is said to be
linguistics.
The study of literary language is considered to be the
domain of stylistics. Stylistics tries to explore the highest possible
potentialities of language in a systematic manner.
It develops the
sense of descriptive attitude in the critic. Style is the element that
connects language with literature. This is known as stylistics which
connects linguistics with literary criticism. R.A. Sayce (1953)
quotes that “Stylistics might perhaps be considered as the link
between the scientific study of language and the literary study of
style”.
2.1.2. The Nature of Stylistics
Modern stylistics is the systematic study of patterns of
language use in a variety of texts. The study of language use makes
genuine utilization of the facts of structural study of language in
revealing the patterns of language use in a variety of texts
representing
behavior.
a variety of situations
and
intentions of verbal
A language user moves in a variety of situations during
25
his normal social life and interacts verbally in a proper manner so
as to realise his particular purpose of a particular action.
The use
of language is realized as verbal art and is discussed in relation to
aesthetics.
It is a discipline concerned with the study of beauty in
the works of literature.
The language use is as specialized as in
other kinds of text that are classed under non-literary.
a profile of language use that
shows
It represent
great potentiality and
versatility as regards expression of finer elements of human mind,
and it is more complex and varied in structure and pattern.
The
purpose of language use in works of literature is rather nonpractical and hence is termed as artistic.
Therefore, the works of
literature are representative of verbal art, and a systematic study of
verbal art in this sense is known as stylistics.
2.2. Style
The word style means a way of writing.
characteristic use of language.
A style is a
It is one of the most controversial
and elusive terms of linguistic and literary studies.
The term is
most commonly used by both linguists and critics alike.
In
literature, the technical connotation of style either absorbs the
concept of tone or gets dissolved in the idea of rhetoric. Similarly,
in linguistics, its significance either gets submerged into the notion
of ‘variation’ and ‘variability’ or gets restricted to those features of
the discourse that refer to the relations among its participants. The
word style is associated with written literary texts.
The written
style of various authors can be identified, through the idiosyncratic
forms of usage the particular writer incorporates in his or her
writings.
These peculiar features of the language as used by the
writers can be expressed to assess the specific style of the novelist.
This kind of scientific approach to the study of style is termed as
stylistics. The term ‘Style’ is either applied to the linguistic habits
of a particular writer, or to the way language is used in a particular
genre, period, etc. It is the result of more than one linguistic item
26
and the study of style must not be restricted to phonological,
morphological, lexical or syntactical observations.
Style is one
which embraces the entire domain of language.
2.2.1. Definitions of Style
The
term
‘Style
is
recognized
by
people of different
persuasions with different outlooks and frames of mind.
Hence a
number of definitions by various scholars are as listed below.
Chatman (1967) defined style as follows:
1. Style as good writing.
2. Style as individual manner.
3. Style as general property of writing.
4. Style as a manner of discourse or a tone of speaking.
According to
Hockett
(1958)
style is
defined
as “The
utterance in the same language which convey approximately the
same information,
but which are different in their linguistic
structure can be said to differ in style”.
Riffaterre (1959)
emphasis
(expressive,
says that
affective
“Style is understood
or
aesthetic)
added
as
to
an
the
information conveyed by the linguistic structure, without alteration
of meaning. Which is to say that language expresses and that style
stresses......
Enkvist (1964) has dealt with the objectively verifiable
definitions and grouped them into six categories. They are:
a) Style as a shell surrounding a pre-existing core of
thought or expressions.
b) Style as the choice between alternative expressions.
c) Style as a set of individual characteristics.
d) Style as a deviation from norm.
e) Style as a set of collective characteristics.
f) Style as those relations among linguistic entities that
are statable in terms of wider spans of a text than the
sentence.
27
Thakur (1972) has quoted the definitions of style in the
following way.
1. Style as a feature of our general behavior.
2. Style as a feature of thought.
3. Style as distinguishing feature of every writer.
4. Style as a feature of both thought and language.
5. Style defined in the relation to the subject matter.
6. Style as ornament.
7. Style defined as inter-sentence link.
8. Style as choice.
9. Style as the deviation.
10.
Style as the aggregate of contextual probabilities.
Kelkar (1970) says, “Style may be defined in the context of
language as purposeful language variation”.
He again quotes that
“Style is the variation in language proceeding from the exercise of
freedom while meeting the exigencies of the available resources of
language and of the conveying of meaning”.
H.C. Trivedi says that stylistics investigates the way language
is used in a literary text with the aid of linguistic description.
Interpretation of a literary text takes into account the meaning
which is co-extensive with and inseparable from the language
patterns which constitute the complete text. Stylistics enables us to
identify and name the distinguishing features of literary texts, and
to specify the generic and structural subdivisions of literature.
Stylistics can tell us how to name the constituent parts of a literary
text and enable us to document their operations (Richard Bradford:
1997).
That language in literature is functional and purpose-oriented
and not merely a matter of embellishment and verbal artistry; that it
draws from the discourse of real people in a real world, though the
discourse
is
manipulated
for
purposes
within
its
specific
communicative and social context; and that it is placed within a
particular socio-cultural and historical setting - these are different
facets of this awareness of the relationship between literature and
28
language that has been explored in recent works in literary and
linguistic criticism (Fowlers: 1986) and in stylistics (Widdowson:
1978).
Richard Ohmann (1964) states that, style is a characteristic
use of language, and it is difficult to see how the uses of a system
can be understood unless the system itself has been mapped out.
Syntactical
effects
recurrence,
and
in
also
literary
works
syntactical
include
ambiguity.
complexity
The
and
syntactical
‘texture’ of language may be analysed and tested by grammatical
description provided the grammatical categories and scales enables
to locate different types and degrees of complexity at different
places and different depths in terms of the structural patterning.
According to David Lodge(1972) ‘Style’ has been widely
used as
a term in criticism for centuries often in a rather
impressionistic
way,
in
attempts
to
draw
attention
to
the
characteristic or peculiar use of language in a particular text, author
or period.
The definitions of style possess one common feature. It
admits that some features distinguish the writer’s use of language,
vocabulary, etc.
A stylistic study involves not only grammatical
description but also study of context, diction, meaning, etc.
2.2.2, Style as Choice
Style is a distinctive way of using language for some purpose
and to some effect. The concept of style crucially involves choice
which rests on the fundamental assumption that different choices
will produce different styles and thereby different effects.
To a
great extent our everyday experience is shaped and defined by
actions and events, thoughts and perceptions.
It is an important
function of the system of language which account for these various
existences in the world. This means encoding into the grammar of
the clause a mechanism for capturing what we say, think and do. It
also means accommodating in grammar a host of more abstract
29
relations, such as those that pertain between objects, circumstances
and logical concepts.
When language is used to represent the
existence of the physical or abstract world in this way, to represent
patterns of experience in spoken and written texts, it fulfills the
experiential function.
The experiential function is an important
marker of style, especially of the style of narrative discourse,
because it emphasizes the concept of style as choice.
The
stylisticians are interested to know why one type of structure should
be preferred to another, or why, from possibly several ways of
representing the same happening, one particular type of depiction
should be privileged over another. Choices in style are motivated,
and these choices possess a profound impact on the way texts are
structured and interpreted.
2.3. Review of Literature
Some of the works done in this area are reviewed in the
following passage to serve as a background for the present study.
Mohanambal (1987) in her study of Mulk Raj Anand’s “Two
Leaves and a Bud” has analysed the language use and language
structure in different sociolinguistic contexts.
The study has been
dealt with sociolinguistic, lexical and structural analysis.
The
structural aspect is based on the taxonomical model for the study of
phonology, morphology and syntax.
The lexical features such as
native usages and loan blends have been listed.
A systematic
analysis has been carried out at the various linguistic levels like
phonological, morphological, syntactical and lexical. The style has
been analysed from the linguistic and literary points of view by the
use of certain devices.
presented.
The stylistic aspects of the novel are
Certain rules have been framed to explain the types of
nativization.
The various linguistic features found in the language
of the author have been illustrated.
Kannayya
Kanchana’s
(1987)
study
of
Indian
English
analyses the linguistic aspects of Indian English and the non-
30
linguistic aspects of Indian English.
It is a study of the styles of
numerous authors belonging to the Indian nationality.
In this both
descriptive and contrastive methods are being employed.
Here the
contrastive method has been used to identify the similarities and
dissimilarities that were found in the fifteen short stories.
This
study has tried to expose two things. One is to identify the features
of style found in the text chosen for analysis. The other thing is to
identify the factors reflecting Indianness in Indian writings in
English.
The work chosen for analysis was a text of fifteen short
stories of the Indian authors. In the descriptive method the aspects
of language structure such as phonological, semantic etc. were taken
up for analysis.
Alan Nevil Francis (1989) in her study “A Psycho stylistic
analysis of the linguistic techniques” used by William Faulkner in
the ‘The sound and the Fury’ analyses the psycho stylistics of
characters and characterization through speech acts. It is critically
examined
from
a
linguistic
angle.
The
different
linguistic
techniques exploited by the writer have also been examined.
The
three techniques like stream of consciousness, omniscient narrative
and dialectal technique were analysed. A focus on the main
characters in the novel and their language use is also studied. The
characters
semiotically.
extraordinary
sense
of
perception
is
examined
A portrayal of the characters has been made through
the use of different techniques.
structure of the novel.
There is an explanation about the
The language use of characters has been
analyzed by means of the characters psyche.
Their linguistic
behavior seems to be correlated with their mental activities.
Suganthi’s (1990) study deals with the language used in Mulk
Raj Anand’s novel “untouchable”.
In this study the socio-cultural
reflection of the novel and stylistic elements have been analysed.
The socio-cultural background of the novel is illustrated through the
use of phrases and sentences.
Some of the lexical items, phrases,
usages etc. have been listed out. This study exposes the mode and
use of modern English in the prose writings related to Indian
31
themes.
The style of language used by the writer is identified
through the various elements reflecting the linguistic aspects of
style.
Some of the stylistic features employed by the author have
been listed.
studied.
The language structure and language use has been
It
also
analyses
the
socio-cultural
setting
of the
untouchable that is portrayed in the novel in contrast to the caste
Hindu’s.
Nisha (1990) has attempted “A sociolinguistic study of the
use of Indian English in newspapers”. The researcher has analysed
the substance of Indian English in newspapers through a linguistic
approach, then the socio linguistic features of Indian English and
the acceptability of Indian English in society.
Some of the major
Indian newspapers like ‘The Indian Express’, ‘The Hindu’, ‘The
Tribune’, ‘Deccan Herald’, ‘The pioneer’. ‘The Mail’ and ‘The
Indian Nation’ were considered for the study.
The theoretical
framework used in this study is considerably pragmatic.
Indian
features that were found in all the major levels of language used in
newspapers, such as the grammatical level, phonological level,
lexical level and semantic level have been analysed. An analysis on
the sociolinguistic significance of Indian English has been carried
out by showing how many words borrowed from Indian languages
point to the fact that Indian English is being adapted to the whole
gamut of the significant elements and aspects in the cultural life of
India.
The study has presented both language structure and
language use and their significance with reference to the society.
The lexical items, morphological forms, phrases and sentences
drawn from the headlines, sub-headlines, context of the news
advertisements, etc have been illustrated.
An analysis on the
linguistic and sociolinguistic aspects was dealt with.
In the
linguistic aspect usages such as kinship terms, terms of greetings,
nouns, etc were listed out.
The use of loan blends, headlines,
phrases, sentences, registers etc are also included.
the use of conversation has also been brought out.
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An analysis of
Chitra (1990) has dealt with a sociolinguistic study of English
language use in television programmes.
The study is made on
television communication, analysis of attitudes, structural analysis
and some stylistic features in advertisements.
The subject of this
study has been related to the effectiveness of language use in
television programmes.
It has focused upon the use of English
language alone in the programmes telecast by doordarshan.
The
study has been conducted in an urban setting of Coimbatore.
The
attitude of the people towards the use of language in television
programmes was being judged.
An analysis of the structure of
language used in English news bulletins was made.
There is a
stylistic analysis of English language used in television.
The
influence of the regional languages on the English language of
television programmes ha.s been identified. It has studied the use of
English language in advertisements. The co-relation between social
parameters like sex, age, literacy level etc has been analysed.
R.K. Narayan’s ‘Mr. Sampath’ was studied by Reena George
(1991).
such as
In this study an analysis of the different aspects of style
language use and
social groups,
dialogue discourse,
Indianness in the work, stylistic features and semiotics were carried
out. The language use and structure of the novel has been studied
in view of the social background. The four major divisions in
language structure such as phonology, morphology, syntax and
semantics have been mentioned in this study.
view on Indian writing in English.
origin are illustrated.
There is a general
The various words of Indian
The different features of style are brought
out. It also deals with text semiotics.
Helen Unius Backiavathy’s (1991) study of Hopkins Poems
analyses his technical innovations and stylistic devices in Hopkins
Poems. The study portrays the different aspects of style. It presents
a detailed sketch on the poet, his poetic style, the language used and
the various aspects of style and stylistic deviation.
The analysis
has been brought out through phonological, lexical, semantic and
syntactic aspect.
The various creations of the poet and special
33
coinages have been listed out.
The poems selected for the study
were “The Windhover”, “Pied Beauty” and “God’s Grandeur”. This
study focuses mainly on the phonological aspect of style.
The
stylistic features such as alliterations, assonance, consonance,
rhyme and rhythm, have been illustrated. The use of repetitions is
also listed.
Various devices such as metaphor, simile, imagery and
symbolism are brought out in the semantic aspect.
Samuel Suresh (1993) in his work has approached a linguistic
study on language structure and language use in advertising.
The
study has presented the variation in the structure and function of
language related to the advertisement and media domains of
language use. It has attempted to give a factual presentation of the
difference found in the language of advertising when compared to
other domains.
For this analysis the data has been taken from all
the English advertisements that appeared in the printed media like
magazines,
newspapers,
etc.
both
Indian
and
foreign.
The
researcher has identified the linguistic elements in an advertisement
and has classified them.
There is a description about the role of
advertising in the society.
Sheila Jayaraj (1993) in her study on Nehru’s prose writings
analyzes the language structure and language use of his writings.
The linguistic and literary aspects as well as the non-linguistic
aspects of Nehru’s language style have also been analyzed.
The
three major works in prose were selected: “Glimpses of world
history”, “An Autobiography” and “The Discovery of India”. It has
dealt with the structural aspects based on the taxonomical model of
phonology, lexis, syntax and semantics.
The linguistic and social
influences on the author’s narrative course have been considered for
describing the pattern of style.
features
has
been
examined
An analysis of the linguistic
at
the
phonological,
morphological, syntactical and semantic levels.
lexical,
Loan blends and
native usages have been classified and listed. The analysis presents
features of Indianness in Nehru’s works.
At the syntactical level
the simple, compound and complex sentences have been illustrated
34
with examples from the works.
The features like alliteration,
assonance, consonance, socio-cultural usages, etc., have been listed.
In the concluding chapter Nehru’s works have been appreciated.
Mahalakshmi’s (1993) study ‘A comparative and Stylistic
study of the language use of poets Shelley and Bharathidasan
analyses comparative literature and stylistics, the poetry of Shelley
and Bharathidasan, comparative characteristics and contrastive
features of the two poets.
It has been dealt with the phonological,
semantic and allegorical stylistic features.
The language structure
and language use reflected in the work has been emphasized.
The
analysis was carried out with a perspective of the current trends
related
to
stylistics
like
linguistic
criticism,
semiotics,
structuralism, psycho-analytical criticism and the reader-response
theories of criticism, etc.
The commonness in the social context
and psychological dispositions were identified. The various aspects
of revolution which had their impact on the poets are pointed out
from the thematic and pragmatic points of view.
Through the
procedures employed in comparative, contrastive and descriptive
methods the linguistic and literary analyses have been made.
The
language use and language structure has been presented through the
adoption of techniques of precision, repetition and by the use of
attributes and redundant usages.
Suganthi (1995) has attempted a stylistic study of Mulk Raj
Anand’s selected novels. It has brought out the expressive language
techniques adopted by him.
The units belonging to various
language levels were taken and analysed to establish how the author
manipulates them to bring aesthetic effect to his writings.
The
study has analyzed the notion of style, the structural aspect of Mulk
Raj Anand and his style and also the sociolinguistic aspect.
Language use among various classes of people has been explained
with extensive examples from the text.
The terms related to
kinship, derogatory, mode of address, etc., use of non-verbal
communication strategies, humour, pathos, sarcasm, have also been
illustrated with examples from the text. The following novels were
35
selected for the study: untouchable (1935), Coolie (1937), Seven
Summers (1951) and Private Life of an Indian Prince (1953).
The
various stylistic features have been identified. The study has been
identified in the area of literature, linguistics and stylistics.
The
description and illustration of the stylistic features classified under
phonological, morphological, lexical and syntactic level have also
been presented.
The use of idiomatic expressions, comparative
techniques involving similes and metaphors has been listed.
Hardy’s ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ was studied by Kavitha
(1996). She has dealt with a stylistic analysis of characterization in
this work. There is an analysis of character and character portrayal
techniques. A stylistic analysis of the expressions has been used to
describe physical appearance, psychological state and action. There
is an analysis of the phonemic variations in the speech of the two
contrastive characters. The attributes, manner of speaking, and the
individual characteristic features of the two contrastive characters
have been analysed.
The verbs related to speech act and lexical
items referring to the individual style of the characters are listed.
This study has also identified the stylistic relevance of the predicate
such as actions, features of individual styles, feeling etc. assigned
to the characters.
Radha (1997) in her study on Anitha Desai’s “Cry the
Peacock” analyses the elements of language such as metaphors,
similes, collocation, non-verbal communication, etc. and how they
contribute to the emotional aspect of the novel. In this study all the
metaphors and similes axe explained with relevance to their context
and theme of the novel. The non-verbal acts are also described with
examples from the text. The collocational strategies adopted by the
novelist have also been illustrated.
Prabhu (2002) in his study on the language use and the
rhetoric of English newspapers in India has analyzed the lexical and
syntactical use in newspapers, rhetoric of headlines, paragraphs in
newspapers and the rhetorical issues in news texts.
The primary
sources selected were: “The Hindu” and “The Indian Express” for
36
the month of June 1998 which is considered as the national English
newspapers in India.
In the study, language use and the rhetorical
devices, techniques and strategies have been explored. Also the use
of ideological slant that was hidden in the language of newspapers
have been examined and recognized.
The archaic and modern
forms, coinages, jargons, and terms with extended meaning have
been brought out. An analysis of acronyms and abbreviated forms,
Indian Terms, loan blends and coined words in Indian context have
been carried out in the study.
The use of deviant collocations,
colloquial terms, etc. has been illustrated.
There is an analysis of
syntactical patterns and the shift in focus to suit the ideological
slant.
The lexical items were classified under various headings.
The use of parenthesis was also taken for the study.
Bhavana’s (2002) study on Arundhati Roy’s, “The God of
Small Things” analyses thematisation, characterization, language
use, semiotics and sociolinguistic aspects.
The connotative and
figurative aspects of the writer’s language, length of sentences have
been studied. There is a portrayal of the characters. The character’s
social and other backgrounds such as literacy level, socio-economic
status and so on have been exposed by the way in which language is
used by the characters.
The choice of words, syntactic structures
etc. employed by the writer to build image about the characters are
also studied.
Language use is analyzed based on the actual choice
of a particular lexical item or syntactic structure. A brief study of
the sign system has been examined. The theme has been presented
successfully. Narrative statements, foreboding remarks, surmises by
the narrator are illustrated.
The similarities and differences
between certain characters have been tabulated for illustrative
purposes.
alliteration,
listed.
Various literary devices such as metaphors, similes,
personification,
neologisms,
synaesthesia,
etc.
are
An analysis of elliptical sentences, repetitions, lengthy
constructions, parenthesis, etc. has also been carried out.
A study
of the gestures, postures and facial expressions, etc. are analyzed.
37
Sara Vinolini (2002) in her study of language use in the
novels of Kamala Markandaya, has analyzed the writer’s style of
language
use,
style
of
targeting
the
readers,
characterization and the socio-cultural aspects.
style
of
The works such as
“Nectar in a Sieve” (1954), “Some Inner Fury” (1956), “Possession”
(1963), “A Handful of Rice” (1966), “The Coffer Dams” (1969) and
“Pleasure City” (1982) were selected for the study. An analysis on
the patterns of language use is brought out at the linguistic and
stylistic levels. The influence of Indianism in the writings is also
analysed.
A study at the phonological, lexical, syntactic and
semantic levels is brought out.
The traits of the characters
portrayed in the novels are discussed briefly. The stylistic features
related to language use are brought out.
It also focuses upon the
author’s style in creating the Indian consciousness.
Pankajam’s (2003) study on Vikram Seth’s “An Equal Music”
analyses the language use, narratology and discourse patterns. The
descriptions, narrative and literary devices were analysed and
interpreted. In this study the language use is analyzed in relation to
the narration by the protagonist.
The author’s use of rhetorical
devices has also been studied to enhance the theme.
The various
literary devices and parts of speech which help the author to
describe a character, setting, thoughts and feelings of the characters
have been analyzed. This study has probed to analyze how the first
person narration and setting were used in an effective way to unfold
the story of love and music.
according to the context.
Discourse patterns are produced
The various types of discourse used by
the novelist have been explored.
Sylvia Plath’s selected poems were studied by Suganthi
(2005).
The poems selected were: “Daddy”, “By Candlelight”,
“Tulips”, “The Colossus”, and “Lady Lazarus”. This work analyses
Sylvia Plath’s creativity, metaphor in general and metaphorical
usage in her poems. The study has brought out the various domains
which are used as vehicles in metaphors.
metaphors used in her poems was also analyzed.
38
The frequency of
In this study the
contextual factors, psychological and emotional factors of Sylvia
Plath followed by the linguistic aspect revealing her aesthetic
peculiarity have also been focused.
Sundarsingh (2005) in his study language and mind style in
Shashi Deshpande’s “That long Silence”, analyses mind style and
characters
through
computational
approach,
question
patterns,
narrative discourse and Indianization. The study revolves around the
distinctive linguistic presentation of Jaya’s mental self, with focus
on
lexical
selection,
sentence
structure,
narrative
question patterns and the style of Indian English.
discourse,
The aspects of
the mind style of Roger Fowler, Leech and Mark Turner have been
applied. The quantitative analyses of lexical and syntactic features
are illustrated.
It is a revelation of the inconsistent human
relationships and the failure in human communication of a typical
Indian middle-class family.
R.K. Narayan’s works were studied by Jayananda Panicker
(2005).
It is a study of the Vedic thoughts and use of language in
the select novels of R.K. Narayan. Among his novels seven of them
were taken for the study.
It attempts an analysis on myth,
transcendental reality, didacticism and language use.
approached from a Vedic perspective.
the autobiographical elements.
thought
content
and
The work is
This study tries to analyze
The analysis was to follow the
observe
the
philosophy of life of the author.
changes
over
the
A descriptive method has been
adopted in the study of his language use.
devices have been illustrated in this work.
myth in the novels is also studied.
coming
Some of the stylistic
The significance of
The writer’s attitude towards
life and the extreme to which he is influenced by the Hindu Vedic
thoughts have also been described.
Brunda’s (2005) study “Raja Rao: A Stylistic Study of his
novels” analyses the confessional style the metaphysical style,
upanishadic style and a linguistic appraisal.
The three styles are
attempted to experiment with the language study.
The stylistic
features are examined. It focuses on the various styles employed by
39
the writer.
(1932)
The novels selected for the study were: “Kanthapura”
“the
serpent
and
the
rope”
(1960),
“The
cat
and
Shakespeare” (1965), “The chess master and his moves”(1988),
“The meaning of India” (1996) and “On the Ganga Ghat” (1998).
The narrative patterns are brought out along with the metaphors and
archetypal images.
The stylistic variations of the author from one
novel to the other have been analysed.
His fictional outputs from
the vantage point of the different styles he has employed are also
viewed. There is a brief discussion of his works which is followed
by the cultural syntax.
Chitra’s (2006) study of Eugene O’Neill’s selected Plays
analyses the various forms of language used for expressions.
The
plays selected were: “The Emperor Jones”, “The Hairy Ape” and
“Long Days Journey into Night”.
An analysis on the language use
and structure has been carried out.
The lexical and phonological
style of various forms of language has been brought out. This study
has attempted to describe the varied manners of speech and
expressions in language style of Negro.
socio-cultural usages are identified.
The lexical choices and
The special coinages and
various language use of the writer have been listed. The particular
word that is not used in standard American English was brought out.
There has been an attempt to compare the vocabularies to Standard
English.
The work was also analysed from a sociolinguistic
perspective.
After obtaining a comprehensive view of the methods adopted
by researchers in the above mentioned works the researcher has
undertaken the present study.
2.4. Critics’ Comments on Chitra Banerjee and
the Novels.
Ms. Divakaruni emphasizes the cathartic force of storytelling
with sumptuous prose.....
She defies categorization, beautifully
40
blending the chills of reality with rich imaginings. (Wall Street
Journal)
“Divakaruni is gifted with dramatic inventiveness and lyric,
sensual language..... “The Vine of Desire” offers many delights.
(Los Angeles Times Book Review)
“Divakaruni is an incomparable storyteller............. the beauty
of her talent is her ability to capture the true complexity of the
emotional landscape in her characters.... A lovely read.” (The
Denver Post)
“Divakaruni.... Paints worlds of complex characters and
cultures with an absorbing story line and beautiful language that
reads like poetry”. (The Oregonian)
“Compassionate........
Provides
with graceful
economy a
complex backdrop of contemporary Indian Society”. (The Boston
Sunday Globe)
“Dazzling and powerful ....... Divakaruni’s descriptions, as
always, possess a fine lyrical beauty ............. Readers.......... Will
have much to feast on”. (The San Diego Union-Tribune)
“An exquisitely rendered tale of passion, jealousy, and
redemption...... Divakaruni combines a gift for absorbing narrative
with the artistry of a painter”. (Publishers Weekly)
“Compelling...........
Divakaruni
writes prose that is lush
............. She excels at depicting the nuances of the immigrant
experience.” (SF Weekly)
The scholar Husne Jahan says that: Divakaruni’s immigrant
narratives focus on celebrating immigration as a liberating agent at
an expense of over shadowing the influence of any other agency.
While they rarely get openly into issues pertaining to colonial or
post colonial politics, they do reveal striking parallels to orientalist
perceptions of many aspects of Indian Culture and society. (Jahan:
2003)
For Asian or African American women, sisterhood is a
strength and succour, enabling them to discover themselves as
persons and to nurture their ties with their community; friendship
41
with other women becomes, therefore central to the fiction of all
American “Women of Color”. (Urbashi Barat: 2000)
“What an irresistibly absorbing immersion in the pleasure and
anguish of growing up passionate in a world of duty, where each
comfort is hedged with a constraint and love unsettles every plan.
"Sister of My Heart” may be alive with exotic detail but its
emotions are very recognizable.” (Rosellen Brown)
“Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s account of family life in
Bengal is warm and richly detailed.
Her is one of the most
strikingly lyrical voices writing about the lives of Indian women
today”. (Amitav Ghosh)
Jamison in people magazine calls “Sister of My Heart” an
enchanting novel that presents conflicts with “deliciously operatic
heights”, yet creates “characters that come alive as real, modern
women”.
Jamison admires how Divakaruni makes the smells and
colors of Calcutta come to life with her “Palpable” descriptions.
(Jamison; People magazine: 1999)
About the novel “Sister of My Heart” Anderson Tepper writes
that in spite of the book’s colorful surface qualities, its story lacks
a believable heart. (The New York Times: 1999)
Williams writes that the plot is “contrived”, but the novel
“Sister of My Heart”, is “Still an engaging read, filled with
moving, tender moments”. (Williams: 1999).
Hafiza Nilofar Khan says that, “Sister of My Heart” opens
with the Chatterjee family already deprived of its male figures and
its former economic status.
As the three widows (Pishi ma, the
cousins parental aunt, and their mothers) and two young girls of this
family meander their way through the drama of life,
facing
marriage, motherhood, divorce, widowhood, etc., each stage brings
into focus a certain aspect of the upper class Bengali Culture and
tradition, which is cherished or criticized from the uniquely
feminine and diasporas perspective of the author. (Khan: 1999)
“Divakaruni’s narrative in
“The
Vine of Desire” is as
gracefully structured as a piece of chamber music, with its interplay
42
of themes and voices, ensemble and solo, working their way toward
a final resolving chord... If you find yourself counting the pages
left in the book, it’s likely to be because you wish there were many,
many more”. (Charles Mathews, San Jose Mercury News)
‘Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is a true story teller. Like
Dickens, she has constructed layer upon layer of tragedy, secrets
and betrayals, of thwarted love.... A glorious, colourful tragedy’ in
her novel “Sister of My Heart”. (Daily Telegraph).
“Divakaruni has always written well about the immigrant
experience, and here, through Sudha and Anju, she draws a
compelling contrast between the selflessness required of women in
India and the sometimes bewildering freedoms offered in their
adopted land... Vivid and lyrical”. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Chris Barsanti who reviewed “The Vine of Desire” states that
love is a tangled thicket of thorns in Divakaruni’s novel of Indian
immigrants trying to keep their lives together in San Francisco
despite the distractions of family pressures and unspoken tensions.
Anju and Sudha are onetime best friends who are reunited when
Sudha drops her husband and leaves India to Stay with Anju and her
husband, Sunil. This proves to be far from the joyous reunion the
two women had hoped for. Sudha has brought her young daughter,
Dayita, whom Sunil adores and who serves as a daily reminder to
the increasingly neurotic and uptight Anju of the guilt she feels
over her recent miscarriage.
This is a potent, emotional book
delivered by a writer who knows when to step back and take in the
poetry.
43