Repetition as a Stylistic Technique in Yoruba Literary Works

Incantation is a poetry used purposively to assert a magical power on both natural and supernatural creatures. There are various extant studies on the literary, stylistic as well as psychological aspects of Yorùbá incanta on with li le attention paid to syntactic analysis of its language. Therefore, this study examined incantation with a view to identifying form of Theme and to determining the textual pattern through which enchanter codifies his/her wishes. Halliday's Systemic Functional Grammar served as theoretical framework. The data for the analysis were samples of incantations purposively selected from the pool of incanta ons available in Yorùbá language. Twelve samples were analysed in the study. It is noticed specifically that, the enchanters do switch from topical unmarked and interpersonal themes under the invocation phase while the thematic pattern of the cultural-bound-assertions phase is structurally favoured topical theme and textual Theme. The prayerful phase is usually activated through either topical or interpersonal Themes. Meanwhile, process (verb) as marked experiential element is more pronounced and productively used in this phase than content phase. Focusing on the textual metafunction especially, the choice of Theme and contextual logicalness (cohesiveness) of the whole text, the results showed preponderance of topical Theme in a great numbers of incanta ons. This discovery entails that Themes in Yorùbá incanta on are usually of contemporary issues relating to inner and outer world of the enchanter.

Inquiry in African Languages and Literatures. Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, 2018

This study examines linguistic strategies employed by Kola Akinlade in his detective novels, with a view to determining his literary idiolect. Halliday's Systemic Functional Linguistics SFL) is adopted as the linguistic framework to analyze eight detective novels namely: Owo te tmddkunsikd, Agbdko Nile Tete, Albsi Qlpgo, Asenibanidaro, Ta Id gbingi Ord?, Aja to n lepa Ekun, Owo Eje, and Sahgbd Fp. The linguistic strategies extracted for the purpose of 'his study are: coinages, code-mixing and coded language. The study establishes that coinage serves stylistic and aesthetic purposes, and enables expressions of new concepts and ideas emanating from science and technology. Furthermore, code mixing reveals Akinlade's bilingual competence, while the use of coded language is a mark of Akinlade s special creative ability. This work specifically establishes Kola Akinlade' s individuality and personalized language style as an accomplished literary artist.

Kampala International University Journal of Education

It is noted that scholars of linguistics have argued and proved that stylistics is a two-faced sub-linguistic field. In essence, stylistics is relevant in the study of both linguistic and literary texts which serves as the basis for distinguishing linguistic stylistics from literary stylistics. Literary texts are usually analysed to bring to fore the essence of focusing on the language of literature but to also demonstrate the concerns of literary-stylisticians as they set definite boundaries in analysing literary texts. In this paper, a poem titled “Goloba” by Ademola Dasylva is analysed to justify the claim that linguistic stylistics is a veritable approach for analysing and interpreting literary texts, by looking into the graphological features, phonological features, lexico-syntactic features and lexico-semantic features inherent in the poem. These linguistic features are distinctive in interpreting literary texts and the distinctions between linguistic stylistics and literary s...

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), 2022

This study documents and analyzes oral poetry of traditional Igbo society in the aim of discovering how language is manipulated to create the poems, and what the patterns, forms, and variants of the language convey, and reveal about the nature of the traditional society which produced them. The main thrust of this study is to explore into the role of language in elucidating the meaning of poems in the context of the socio-historical realities of the traditional society which created them. It is argued here that understanding the linguistic resources of poems is instrumental to appreciating them as works of arts. Though Eme and Nwankwere, (2020) carried out a stylistic analysis of Igbo folktales in musical rendition, little has been done to analyze Igbo oral poetry stylistically. A total of eight poems were recorded from the writer"s introspection and used for this study. Formalism and sociological theories are the theoretical frameworks guiding the work, while Simpson"s 2004 framework is adopted for the analysis. The analysis reveals that such devices as repetitions, neologisms, figures of speech, unique word choices and parallelism are used to create stylistic effects in the poems. The study, therefore, concludes that the beauty of poetry is in understanding the meanings communicated by the nuances of its language.

Coast where he teaches courses in Literature in English. He holds Ph.D. in Literary Stylistics. His research interest includes Literary Stylistics, Emergent Music genre, Humour in Literature, African Literature (Oral and Written). Samuel Kwesi Nkansah has presented papers at both local and international conferences. He has also published in both local and international journals.

Style is one's way of doing a thing. It can be of dressing, speaking, acting, teaching and writing which is influenced by a lot of factors or ideologies such as history, religion and culture. However, the style of a writer albeit creative may pose a challenge to readers. This study attempts a linguistic stylistic analysis of Godswill Okiyi's Who is Afraid of Adams Oshiomhole with the aim of identifying some of the linguistic features the writer used and to understand the cultural and historical ideology behind the text and also appreciate the author's style. Halliday's functional linguistics approach is adopted as a theoretical framework where particular note is taken on the stylistic functional effects and thematic significance of the linguistic features in literary texts. The researcher found out that linguistic styles are produced for the purpose of communication and that for communication to be effective in the society, there must be an understanding between the participants in a communication process. This research also highlights the stylistic features in the text under study and how these styles were used to reveal Okiyi's ideas, and highlights the extent to which Okiyi's cultural and linguistic background affects his style of writing.

Research on Humanities and Social Sciences, 2013

Stylistics is the study and interpretation of texts from a linguistic perspective. It also attempts to establish principles capable of explaining the particular choices made by individuals and social groups in their use of language, such as socialization, the production and perception of meaning, critical discourse analysis and literary criticism. Thus, stylistics is a distinctive term that may be used to determine the connections between the forms and effects within a particular variety of language. This paper, therefore, examines the stylistic analysis of "Ekun Iyawo" (a sub-genre of oral poetry sung by the bride as she prepares to leave for her husband's home). The objective of the paper is aimed at appreciating the beauty of language, by giving an in-depth linguistic analysis to the strident song which the poet singer renders at this joyful occasion. Our analysis shows a preponderant use of poetic devices such as alliteration, anadiplosis, anaphora, epiphora, etc. Also, the syntactic elements found in the poem are brought out and discussed. The writers conclude that "Ekun Iyawo" (bride's Song) is an important aspect of marriage ceremony in Yoruba land. In view of this reason, therefore, this age long tradition of our ancestors must be upheld.

Orímóògùnjẹ́, O.C. and Àkàngbé, C.A. (eds) New Trends in Yorùbá Language, Literature and Literature: A Festschrift in Honour of Professor Phillip Adédọ̀tun Ògúndèjì. Clemeve Media Konsult, Ibadan, Oyo State, 2017

Bulletin of the John Rylands Library

Press, 1977), who demonstrates that all the characteristics held up as typical of 'poetic language' can also be found in registers of 'ordinary speech', and vice versa. See also Tony Bennett's criticism of the poetic language/ordinary language distinction, in Formalism and Marxism (London: Methuen, 1979), and Roger Fowler's argument that 'ordinary language' is in fact divided into numerous distinct registers each governed by its own conventions, in Essays on style and language, ed. Roger Fowler (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1966).

AKUGBA JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS, 2015

This paper underscores from a ayHstic point of view. the functional aspects of proverb in selected Yoruba written literature with a view to identifying and describing their communicative functions. The study is vividly captured in Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) framework as promulgated by Michael Halliday (1961). SFG sees language as a form of social and functional behavior. The contextual and functional aspects of SFG are useful tools for the analyses of this paper. Six Yoriibd literary texts, which have abundant proverbs and which exhibit thematic and stylistic similarities, were purposively selected from Adebayo FYdetFs Basorun Gaa , Oladejo Okediji's Agbt'dagba Akan and Kd r'tn Ka po, Akinwunu Isola's O Le Kit and Afatmo ati awpn Arbfo nfuran, and Kola Akinfade's Aja To N Lepa Ekitn. The proverbs were subjected to stylistic analysis. The paper reveals that Yoriibd proverbs play important roles in interpersonal relationships as well as community development. This is in addition to their more expected role in encapsulating, preserving and maintaining indigenous values and knowledge, which should he revisited for national development. Also. Yoriibd literary works exhibits aesthetic and communicative functions in cultural and situational contexts. They, thus, contribute to the literary value and clear understanding of the texts.