clerk是什么意思Chapter 5 Semantic-level__ Stylistic Analysis

2021年1月19日发(作者：懊悔)
Chapter 5

Semantic-level Stylistic Analysis

Review of the last chapter
1) Lexical and syntactic deviation
2) Syntactic overregularity
3) Leech and Short
’
s (2001) approach to lexical- and syntactic-level stylistic analysis
4) A model for analyzing grammatical-level stylistic features
5) Suggested areas for further study

Contents of this chapter
1. Introduction: literal language and figurative language
2. Contradiction
3. Transference
4. Deception
5. Ambiguity
6. A model for analyzing semantic-level stylistic features
7. Suggested areas for further study
8. Summary

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1. Introduction: literal language and figurative language
This chapter is to deal with the stylistic analysis of literary and non- literary
texts from the
semantic perspective of language.

Thornborrow
&
Wareing
(2000:
95)
made
a
distinction
between
literal
language
(the
first
meaning of a word in the dictionary)
and
figurative language (the rhetorical meaning of a word)
.
For example, when we use the word
tree
for a plant it is a literary usage, and when we use the
word to describe our ancestry, it is a figurative usage such as in the phrase
a family tree
.
Another word for the figurative usage of language is
trope
, which refers to language used in
a figurative way for a rhetorical purpose. Tropes are frequent in most language use. In a way, to
deal with the stylistic analysis at the semantic level is to deal with tropes and their stylistic effects.
Thornborrow & Wareing (2000: 95-113) deal chiefly with the following four types of tropes and
their
stylistic
effects:
simile,
metaphor
(which
is
divided
into
explicit
metaphor,
embedded
or
implicit
metaphor,
extended
metaphor
or
megametaphor,
anthropomorphic
metaphor
or
personification, mixed or compound metaphor, etc.), metonymy, and synecdoche.
Wang
Shouyuan
(2000:
61-80)
referred
to
the
figurative
usage
of
language
as
semantic
deviation
, which refers to the
“
linguistic effects involving something odd in the cognitive meaning
of
a
word,
a
phrase,
etc.
”

(Leech,
2001:
131).
Semantic
deviation,
also
called
deep- structure
deviation
,
is
subdivided
into
the
four
subtypes
of
contradiction,
transference,
deception,
and
ambiguity. The following discussion is to be based on this approach.

2. Contradiction




Contradiction
of
meaning
is
a
type
of
semantic
deviation
which
conveys
self-conflicting
information.
It
can
be
further
divided
into
its
three
subtypes
of
oxymoron,
paradox,
and
transferred epithet.
2.1 Oxymoron
Oxymoron is
“
[t]he
yoking together of two expressions
which are semantically incompatible,
so
that
in
combination
they
can
have
no
conceivable
literal
reference
to
reality
”

(Leech,
2001:
132), as is the case in the following examples:
my male grandmother
,
a true lie
,
a philatelist who
doesn
’
t
collect
stamps
.
Below
are
more
examples
in
our
daily
life:
a
victorious
defeat
,
cruel
kindness
,

unwilling
generosity,

bitter-sweet
memories,
proud
humility,

and

orderly
chaos
.
What
follows is an example in literature:

Juliet: Good night, good night! Parting is such
sweet sorrow
.
That I shall say good night till it be tomorrow. (W. Shakespeare,
Romeo and Juliet
)





The self- contradictory phrase
sweet sorrow
is used here to express a mixed feeling of both joy
and sorrow by Juliet experienced at the same time.
Below are more examples:

a living death (J. Milton,
Samson Agonistes
) (
虽生犹死
)
a foolish wit, a witty fool (W. Shakespeare,
Twelfth Night
) (
愚蠢的智人、聪明的愚人
)
eloquent silence (M. Twain,
Running for Governor
)
Writing is busy idleness. (Goethe)

2
活死人（茅盾《子夜》
）

好聪明的糊涂法子（
《朱自清文集》
）

无声的语言（茅盾《水藻行》
）


2.2 Paradox
Leech (2001: 132) defines paradox as
“
[a]
statement
which is absurd, because self-evidently
false
”
, as is illustrated in the following sentences:
“
My grandmother is male
”
;
“
That lie is true
”
;
“
Philatelists don
’
t collect stamps
”
.
According
to
Feng
Cuihua
(1995:
193),
“
A
paradox
is
a
figure
of
speech
consisting
of
a
statement
or
proposition
which
on
the
face of
it
seems
self-contradictory,
absurd
or
contrary
to
established
fact
or
practice,
but
which
on
further
thinking
and
study
may
prove
to
be
true,
well- founded, and even to contain a succinct point.
”

Below are examples of paradox in literary works:

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.
(Oscar Wilde,
The Picture of Dorian Gray
) (For sarcasm)

My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began,
So is it now I am man,
So be it when I shall grow old




Or let me die!
The child is father of the man
And I could wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety.
(W. Wordsworth,
My Heart Leaps up When I Behold
)

我去看他们时，他们已经结婚了，就住在那个院子里。他们的新家什么也没有，除了一张床，一
张写字桌 ，
一把破椅子，
就只剩下感情了。
这女孩子是搞国画的，
所有的钱都花在买宣 纸、
买笔上了，
很穷。
不过，
他俩精神状态很好，
那个女孩子说：< br>“其实我们并
不穷
，
只是
没有钱
。
”
（王安 忆
《感情·
理
解·表达》
）


沉默的力量是伟大 的
，
这正如
最好的表演便是不表演
，
让看客永不知你的深浅，
把自己的想象、
猜测，
都加到沉默者身上。
（苏叔阳《安娜小姐和老杨同志》
）






From the above discussion, it can be seen that the two devices of contradiction, oxymoron
and paradox, are both devices that allow the literary writer to express a certain truth or message
through apparent falsehood. The distinction between the two lies in the fact that the former occurs
within a phrase while the latter beyond a phrase and usually within a sentence. An oxymoron can
be said to be a compressed paradox, formed by the conjoining of two contrasting, contradictory or
incongruous words.
2.3 Transferred epithet
According to Feng Cuihua (1995: 220-221), a transferred epithet is a figure of speech where

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an epithet (an adjective or descriptive phrase) is transferred from the noun it should rightly modify
to another to which it does not really belong. Generally, the epithet is transferred from a person to
a thing or idea. Consider the following examples:

A
sleepless night
And the first tenor singing of the
passionate throat
of a young collier, who has since drunk himself to death.
(D. H. Lawrence,
Tortoise Shout
)

…
Virtues
Are force upon us by our
impudent crimes
.
(T. S. Eliot,
Gerontion
)

3. Transference
In literature, transference of meaning is the process whereby literary absurdity leads the mind
to comprehension on a figurative level. It is so important an element in literature that poets and
critics
alike
have
tended
to
consider
it
the
only
thing
that
really
matters
in
literature.
(Wang
Shouyuan,
2000:
64)
Transference
in
literature
refers
to
such
traditional
figures
of
speech
as
metaphor, metonymy, and synecdoche.

3.1 Metaphor
3.1.1
Rhetorical metaphor
—
metaphor as a figure of speech
The classical view, as held by Aristotle, sees metaphor as a kind of decorative in addition to
ordinary language, a rhetorical device that makes language use colorful. This view highlights the
aesthetic
function
of
metaphors.
It
sees
metaphor
as
something
outside
normal
language
that
requires
special
forms
of
interpretation
from
the
listeners/readers.
Metaphors
are
seen
as
expressions that depart from literal meaning. Here metaphor is regarded as deviation from normal
language use.
Metaphor, the most important type of meaning transference, is defined as
“
a figure of speech
in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable
”

(
The
New
Oxford
Dictionary
of
English
).
For
instance,
John
is
an
ass
.
Consider
the
following
examples used in literature:

The hallway was
zebra-striped
with darkness and moonlight.
(Kurt V
onnegut, Jr.)

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
(Langston Hughes,
Dreams
)

Below are examples of metaphor used in magazines:

Norman Mailer the author, Wife Norris and
an anthology of children
(
Time
, April 18, 1983)


4
In marrying this girl he
married a bit more than he could chew
. (
Daily Telegraph
) [cf. bite off more than one
can chew]

Leech (2001: 151) holds that
metaphor is associated with a particular
rule of transference,
which may be called the
“
Metaphoric Rule
”
, and which may be formulated as F =
“
like L
”
. That
is, the figurative meaning F is derived from the literal meaning L in having the sense
“
like L
”
, or
perhaps
“
it is as if L
”
. And every metaphor is implicitly of the form
“
X is like Y in respect of Z
”
,
where X is the tenor, Y the vehicle, and Z the ground.
Feng
Cuihua
(1995)
classifies
metaphors
into
two
major
types,
that
is,
metaphors
with
single-aspect
resemblance
in
unlike
things
and
many-aspect
extended
metaphors
.
The
above
quoted metaphors are all examples of the first type.
In an extended metaphor, there is usually a
basic
comparison
which
is
developed
in
such
as
a
way
that
every
new
stage
of
its
elaboration
throws new light on the subject. For example,

It
’
s a tree, Lu. A chokecherry tree. See, here
’
s the trunk
—
it
’
s red and split wide open, full of sap, and
this here
’
s the parting for the branches. You got a mighty lot of branches. Leaves, too, look like, a dern if
these ain
’
t blossoms. Tiny little cherry blossom, just as white. Your back got a whole tree on it. In bloom.
…

(Toni Morrison,
Beloved
)

The metaphor running through the above passage is used to describe Sythe
’
s wound on the
back.
The
novelist
seems
to
describe
a
tree
in
a
beautiful
way,
but
he
is
in
fact
describing
something terrible to form a kind of contrast, which helps to reveal in an indirect sarcastic way the
utter tribulation of Sythe and her black fellowmen.
Blow
is
an
example
of
how
three
sets
of
metaphors
are
skillfully
blended
to
illustrate
the
difficulty of editing academic writing:

And
so,
anticipating
no
literary
treat,
I
plunged
into
the
forest
of
words
of
my
first
manuscript.
My
weapons were a sturdy eraser and several batteries of sharpened pencils. My armor was a thesaurus. And if I
should become lost, a near-by public library was a landmark, and the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences on its
reference shelves was an ever-ready guide.
Instead
of
big
trees,
I
found
underbrush.
Cutting
through
involved,
lumbering
sentences
was
bad
enough, but the real chore was removal of the burdocks of excess verbiage which clung to the manuscript. (S.
T. Williamson,
How to Write Like a Social Scientist
)

In the above passage, there are three sets of metaphors: plunge
—
get lost
—
landmark
—
guide;
forest
—
tress
—
underbrush
—
burdocks
—
lumber;
weapons
—
batteries
—armor
—
cutting
through
—
removal.
3.1.2
Cognitive Metaphor
—
metaphor as a thinking mode and cognitive tool




In
the
cognitive
linguistic
view,
metaphor
is
defined
as
“
understanding
one
conceptual
domain
in
terms
of
another
conceptual
domain
”

(K?
vecses,
2002:
4).
Thus,
the
essence
of
metaphor
is
understanding
and
experiencing
one
kind
of
thing
in
terms
of
another
(Lakoff
&
Johnson, 1980: 5).

All
metaphors
are
composed
of
two
domains.
They
allow
us
to
understand
one
domain
of
experiences
in
terms
of
another.
The
domain
to
be
conceptualized
is
called
the
target
domain

5
(traditionally
termed
“
tenor
”
),
while
the
conceptualizing
domain
is
termed
the
source
domain

(traditionally
termed
“
vehicle
”
).
The
transference
of
the
properties
of
the
source
domain
to
the
target domain is referred to as
mapping
(or
projection
). The source domain tend to be concrete
and
familiar
whereas
the
target
domain
abstract
and
novel.
For
example,
the
metaphorical
expressions like
bubble economy
,
soft landing
, and
bottle-neck phenomena
help to conceptualize
various economic situations. The semantic properties of the source domains of bubbles, bottles,
landing aircrafts are mapped onto the target domain of economics.
Metaphor
is
not an unusual
or deviant
way
of
using
language.
The
use
of
metaphor
is
not
confined to literature, rhetoric and art. It is actually ubiquitous in everyday communication. It is
estimated that 70% of English lexical meanings are metaphorical. Metaphors are not only a way of
expressing ideas, but also a way of thinking.
Below are more examples of conceptual metaphors illustrated with linguistic metaphors:

You are wasting my time. You are running out of my time. [Conceptual metaphor: TIME IS MONEY]
He is feeling up while I am feeling down. [Conceptual metaphor: HAPPY IS UP; SAD IS DOWN]
The ship is coming into view. He is out of sight. [Conceptual metaphor: VISON IS CONTAINER]
She is in love. He fell into depression. [Conceptual metaphor: STATES ARE CONTAINER]
The
sentence
is
filled
with
emotion.
Try
to
pack
more
thoughts
into
fewer
words.
[Conceptual
metaphor:
LINGUISTIC UNITS ARE CONTAINER]

What follows are two articles discussing stylistic analysis from the perspective of metaphor:
Hu
Zhuanglin
’
s
(2004:
55-69)
discussion
includes
the
following
topics:
1)
conventional
metaphor (daily metaphor/linguistic metaphor) vs. non- conventional metaphor (stylistic metaphor,
including literary metaphor or poetic metaphor); 2) metaphor forming the style of a literary text
(William Blake
’
s
The Tyger
; E. M. Forster
’
s
A Passage to India
; William Carlos Williams
’

Poem
;
Cao Xueqin
’
s
A Dream of Red Mansion
); 3) metaphor forming the personal style of a writer, such
as the styles of the writers of D. H. Lawrence, William Golding, William Faulkner, Joseph Conrad,
James
Joyce,
John
Banville,
etc.;
4)
metaphor
forming
the
style
of
a
genre;
and
5)
metaphor
reflecting the style of an age.
Yang
Shuhua
’
s
(2004:
203-224)
discussion
embraces
the
following
topics:
1)
lexical
metaphor and grammatical metaphor; 2) significance of metaphors in regard to genre and stylistic
effects,
including
a)
metaphors
in
different
varieties
(conversation,
popular
science,
scientific
research paper, modern lyric poetry, etc.), and b) metaphors and stylistic effect in terms of lexical
metaphors in literary discourse and grammatical metaphors in scientific discourse.
We can also deal with the role of metaphor in the stylistic analysis of non-literary discourse
such as oratorical discourse, ads, news headlines, and political discourse, etc.
3.2 Metonymy
3.2.1
Rhetorical metonymy
Metonymy
refers
to
“
the
substitution
of
the
name
of an
attribute
or
adjunct
for
that
of
the
thing
meant
”
,
for
example
suit

for
business
executive
,
or

the
turf
for
horse
racing

(
The
New
Oxford Dictionary of English
). Below are more examples of metonymy:

I like to play with
rosy cheeks
.
The
kettle
is boiling.

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