Stylistic Analysis in the Poetry - Essay Example

STYLISTIC ANALYSIS due: I chose to discuss stylistic analysis in the poetry genre. This essay refers to a poem Sigh no more ladies (from “Much Ado about nothing”) by William Shakespeare. This play was written between 1564 – 1616. The country of origin is England. William Shakespeare describes men as promiscuous in nature. He advices women not to be surprised by men for they never take things seriously. He explains that for women to complain about men is a waste of time. Men are known to play with womans hearts. Women take love seriously while men take it as an adventure. The play explains that relationships between men and women always experience problems due to infidelity. This is not new in modern times, and it began long ago. This play talks about mans infidelity and how women can cope with it. Stylistic analysis is part of linguistics used to analyze style in language. It shows how it varies in different type of art, literature or entertainment. Author and time could be some factors that bring about variance. In writing, there are distinct styles used by each writer that differentiates him from other authors. There are also styles that are associated to a particular piece of work for example language used in newspaper or novel written by extinct Germanic authors (Gothic novel). Stylistic analysis is wide and does not have a numerical system (Jeffries 2010:1). Stylistic analysis should be able to differentiate text features, the way the reader understands them and their effects on them. Theory of foregrounding states clearly in detail and compares texts analyzed by reader with the original text. (Hoover 2007:5). According to this poem the aspects of analysis used are as follows; lexical and grammatical categories, figures of speech, repetition, Semantics, Semantic field and atmosphere. Semantics This refers to words or phrases. In this poem William Shakespeare use “Dumps, Dull, Heavy” (line 11), to show the state of women when they concentrate on mans infidelity. These Dumps, Dull, heavy can be connected to the semantic field of sorrow. “Sounds," “woe” are words that describe sorrow and sadness in women. In the play positive semantic field can be seen to illustrate positive feelings of joy as in contrary to sorrows. It is illustrated by the word “summer” (line 13). Semantic field and atmosphere The discussed semantic fields show the internal feelings of women when faced with problems with men. This kind of feeling leads to women making tantrums all the time they suspect or learn of their men infidelity. Women’s mood is connected to use of words; dumps, dull and heavy. This makes such kind of women difficult to live with. It explains how men use women as something that could be eradicated at any time. When women feel used makes them lack interest in what is happening around them. This leaves them with a great weight in their hearts that are difficult to forget (Franz 2009:4). Lexical and grammatical categories It means how words appear in the play. Lexical deviation and word meaning of words are mainly used to bring out character and to reveal the theme of the poem (Peer 2008: 17). The author sentence ending is used to evoke moods. In this poem, it is well illustrated by the use of (;) or (,) to make us understand that there is more to be said. Use of period (.) at the end of a word or line confirms finality. The vocabulary used is descriptive. The first stanza of the play William Shakespeare begins with verb sigh. In the second stanza, he uses verb sing. These two verbs explain the behavior of women when they are disappointed by men. Sigh is used to show inner feelings. Sing shows their reaction, for example, confronting their husbands on infidelity. The inclusive of the word ladies makes us know his audience is women. The fact that the writer writes, “mo” instead of more would rank this language as non-standard. This type of writing could only be associated to informal communication between peers. The lines have a persuasive tone (line 1) and (line 10). The writer is determined to make women understand his opinions. William Shakespeare being a man he is in a position to get women attention when he talks about men. This could also be interpreted as the way he lived. He seems to be very certain that men will never change. This makes us wonder it that men cannot change or just do not want to. It could be assumed that mans attitude towards love is different from women. Women take love seriously while men view it as an adventure ( Hobel 2010:2). William Shakespeare draws conclusion about men. They use of “were” “ever” (line 2) refers to the past. The author makes us understand that this problem of infidelity existed long ago. This supports the reason he urges women to move on with life. “To” (line 4) refer to mans lifestyle. The writer tells women not to be a judge on men on grounds of infidelity. He brings out the character of men. It is seen that men keep changing and that do not believe in one idea. This brings out the conflict between women and men. Women believe in chastity, and men do not. “Then” (line 5), (line 14), makes the line feel like an ultimatum. The writer manages to convince the reader that it is not worth to put more value to infidelity. It brings out the feeling of hopelessness. “But” in (line 6), (line15), brings out a feeling of hope. The writer shows that women should not be hopeless because there is a solution. Though it seems difficult to implement, the author is totally convinced that this is the only way out of the sad situation. He is trying to show women that to avoid a situation in (line 1), where they complain which leads to (line 11), where they feel rejected and depressed. “And” (line 7) connects the line to the previous as a continuation of advice. It brings out expectation of women by the society. It tells women that the society will not appreciate anyone who feels sorry for themselves. One needs to be strong to fit in. Use of adjectives blithe and bonny (line 7; line 16). The author uses adjectively to describe women to bring out their personality. The writer urges women to show a casual and cheerful indifference, and always look beautiful towards men. This may be seen an improper because it means that the women are not doing this to impress their lovers, but rather to get attention from other men. This could be regarded to as corruption of morals where people should put aside their beliefs and values to console themselves (Hadjetian 2007:3). Figures of speech - Metaphor It refers to use of word or phrase to suggest a resemblance. The writer William Shakespeare uses metaphor “One foot in sea and one on shore” (line 3). The metaphor refers to men. It emphasizes that no matter what women do it is difficult to please men. It also outlines that men are always double minded. The author seems to justify men polygamous nature. This evokes a feeling of hopelessness and disappointment to women. The author seems to warn women that they should never trust a man unless you are ready to get hurt. He insists that it is in their nature to have many lovers. Repetition It is the appearance of a word or phrase more than one time in a sentence or line. This is used to emphasize a point (Mcenery & Hardie 2012: 37). “Nonny, Nonny” (line 9 ; line18), repetition of the word makes one wonder, is this a solution because it is not morally acceptable. The writer advice women make most out men when they are with them and expect to give nothing in return. The writer seems to be encouraging women to live in escapism that is not to accept things as they are. This is not a solution because the reality is that women are not comfortable when men go astray. This could also be interpreted as telling women that it is time they change their way of thinking that they are supposed to be faithful to one man, as definition of “nonny” means a man with a woman playing the roles of her lover, but gets nothing in return. The writer seems to advocate that women get extra marital affairs to make for the unfulfilled desires. In the play words repetition of “And be you blithe and bonny, Converting all your sounds of woe into. Hey nonny, nonny” in first and second stanza for emphasize. The writer challenges women to forget about their pains and move on with their lives. He seems to illustrate that men can never change no matter how women wish that this could be true. Archaic Language Ancient form of language is known to turn into style in later days, for example, in many cultures it has happened to religious texts and statutes. Version of King James English is commonly used in some religious circles. Report shows that the regional dialect assumes stylistic function (DIJK 1985: 21). This is seen in word “leavy” (line 13) it is an archaic word meaning leafy. This could be used to bring in the time when the play was written. We can tell that this play was written in year 1564. The origin of the writer could also be determined to be England. William Shakespeare could as well use this type of language to differentiate himself from other authors. Cohesion It refers to the arrangement of words to achieve statement logic. The poem “sigh no more, ladies, sigh nor more” gives information about a conflict involving men and women. In the first stanza, the authors’ thoughts are related. The author addresses ladies regarding men. Use of word “ladies” (line 1) and “men” (line 2) show the relationship. The possessive form of “your” (line 8) and (line 17) refers to womans feelings. Register It refers to the degree of formality and informality. Formality is highlighted by presence of idiomatic phrases and use of contractions. In this poem, there is no use of contraction but the presence of punctuation and capitalization indicate formality. Schema Theory It means that what is needed to understand a text is not included in the information expressed in the text. It is drawn from user knowledge in language regarding person, objects or events the poem is about. Schema is always constructed on the basis of situations. This means that the different situation apply different methods to construct coherent text. In this poem, both stanzas express same feelings. Rhyme It refers to the repetition of the word that sounds similar at the end of the poem. In this poem, some words sound similar “More” (line 1) and “Shore” (line 3), “ever” (line 2) and “never” (line 4). Critical Discourse Analysis It refers to the extent to which interpretation influenced by tensions between the texts and its reception in regards to social relations (Matthews 2007: 28). In this poem, infidelity is not appreciated in society but in this poem it is brought out by the author as normal. Here the writer tries to bring out the fact that men were unfaithful is normal. He justifies their action by saying “men were deceivers ever." According to Teranishi (2008:85), the ability to understand and share feelings of another is very important. In this poem, William Shakespear brings out his feelings very accurately. In stanza one, he can defend his opinions about men. He supports them by making women know that mans infidelity was a historical issue. He advices readers in this case women how to solve infidelity by totally ignoring and acting as if everything was normal. In this stanza, he describes that it is not hard to set men free. It is all as a result of an attitude. He convinces women to change their stand that women are meant to be faithful to one man. He urges them to work on themselves to become better and more beautiful. He encourages them to stop blowing tantrums and instead look for a substitute of the man with another. In the stanza, one understands that the man substitute does not mean that a woman is emotionally or physically committed. They can have them for a good time and forget their troubles at home. In the second stanza the author substitute “sigh no more, ladies, sigh nor more” with “Sing no more ditties, sing no mo” to break monotony. In the stanza, the meaning is the same as in the first stanza. The author tells women not to talk about their men constantly. He tells the woman that this makes them feel used, disappointed and in the end their hearts are burdened by the pain. This could be interpreted that the author tells women to refrain from the memories as this would help them in self-control. In this stanza, he raises hope that there is always a better tomorrow. This gives women some relief that there is light at the end of the tunnel. This poem brings out mixed emotions of sorrow and joy. At the beginning of the poem, sorrow seems to be the dominate the poem but as the second stanza ends there is a feeling of relief and contentment (Shakespeare et al.1842:157). In conclusion the author, William Shakespeare has employed enough stylistic styles to convey his message in the poem to the reader. “Sigh no more, ladies, sigh nor more” is a poem addressed to women and men. When addressing men it would bring to their attention that women are not happy with their infidelity. Men could be able to understand women more and their behaviors. The fact that the author describes men as deceivers ever would encourage men to continue in their ways. This proves that they are not the first ones to be unfaithful. To mans audience this would be an example of the way of life designed for them; it would even make men be irritated by women who uphold chastity. If the poem is adapted today by men, this will lead to degeneration of morals leading to multiple affairs. If women took this poem seriously, it would change the way they perceive men. They would never believe in love as the poem brings out men as selfish and are determined to make women suffer. In a positive note, women would not result to suicide or hopelessness if they followed the author’s advice. In reality, there is always conflict between men and women. This poem serves as a guide to having healthy relationships that would stand the test of time. The author emphasizes that women if they would trust themselves and appreciate themselves would not have a problem in giving freedom to men (Purse 2011: 27). He illustrates the situation women find themselves as self-driven. It is because of their jealousy and possessive nature that prohibits them from accepting men as they are. Women should embrace equality to help solve the conflict between men and women. This conflict had been there for a long time because of the attitude of women to infidelity. Women are chaste in nature, and this makes it difficult for them to understand mans infidelity. This poem is a proof that women are key players in the conflict and are more responsible for solving it. Appendix William Shakespeare "Sigh No More, Ladies..." (From "Much Ado about Nothing") Sigh no more, ladies, sigh nor more; Men were deceivers ever; One foot in sea and one on shore, To one thing constant never; Then sigh not so, But let them go, And be you blithe and bonny; Converting all your sounds of woe Into. Hey nonny, nonny. Sing no more ditties, sing no mo, Or dumps so dull and heavy; The fraud of men was ever so, Since summer first was leavy. Then sigh not so, But let them go, And be you blithe and bonny, Converting all your sounds of woe Into. Hey, nonny, nonny. Bibliography FRANZ, A.-M. (2009). Stylistic Analysis of James Joyces Eveline. München, GRIN Verlag GmbH. http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:101:1-2010090913191. HOBEL, C. (2010). Stylistic Analysis of Robert Frosts The Secret Sits and William Shakespeares Sonnet 18. Google Books. Retrieved August 8, 2014, from http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=6RKFiZcPO7gC&printsec=frontcover&dq=stylistic+analysis&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Kt3kU9nCJM2V7Ab65oGQAw&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=stylistic%20analysis&f=false HOOVER, D. L., & LATTIG, S. (2007). Stylistics: prospect & retrospect. Amsterdam, Rodopi. HADJETIAN, S. (2007). "Swinging London" by M. Keyes - a stylistic analysis of a sample of literary prose. München, GRIN Verlag GmbH. http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:101:1-2010081423271. JEFFRIES, L. (2010). Stylistics. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. MATTHEWS, P. H. (2007). The concise Oxford dictionary of linguistics. Oxford [England], Oxford University Press. MCENERY, T., & HARDIE, A. (2012). Corpus linguistics method, theory and practice. Cambridge [u.a.], Cambridge Univ. Press. PEER, W. V. (2008). The quality of literature: linguistic studies in literary evaluation. Amsterdam, John Benjamins Pub. PURSE, L. (2011). Contemporary action cinema. Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press. http://universitypublishingonline.org/edinburgh/ebook.jsf?bid=CBO9780748646128. SHAKESPEARE, W., VALPY, A. J., MALONE, E., & JOHNSON, S. (1842). The plays and poems of Shakespeare: according to the improved text of Edmund Malone : including the latest revisions, with a life, glossarial notes, an index, and one hundred and seventy illustrations. London, Henry G. Bohn. TERANISHI, M. (2008). Polyphony in fiction: a stylistic analysis of Middlemarch, Nostromo, and Herzog. Bern, Peter Lang. Read More