How far can a differentiation be drawn between literary and playful texts in English?

This inquiry addresses an facet of linguistic communication which is hard and controversial ; hard, because many of the stylistic techniques, feature of literary texts, are besides found in playful texts ; and controversial, because many observers hold strong sentiments about the spliting line between linguistic communication drama and linguistic communication art.

We can place when we are being confronted with playful usage of linguistic communication because there is by and large something about the text we are reading that work stoppages us as unusual, unexpected, humourous or thought provoking. Writers who do this are seeking to catch our attending and direct it to something that will assist them to make us. Language usage so enters a new dimension. It is no longer strictly functional, but attempts to prosecute our emotions and imaginativeness, to intensify the communicating and arouse our intelligence.

What we call literary linguistic communication decidedly falls into this class. It is art in the fullest sense, utilizing words, beat and rimes to prosecute us. In this essay I will foremost analyze illustrations of originative usage of linguistic communication in an recognized, literary genre, poesy. Then I will analyze originative ways of utilizing linguistic communication which are non usually considered literary, such as popular vocals, newspaper headlines, advertisement and graffito. This grounds will so be used to reply the inquiry posed by the topic of the essay.

Literary linguistic communication manifests itself via certain stylistic devices. Key amongst these is the construct ofhighlighting, whereby certain characteristics are emphasised. This “surprises the reader into a fresh perceptual experience and grasp of the topic matter” ( Jeffries, 1996, p.163 ) . Poetry has many illustrations of this. The usage of beat, rime, and repeat, every bit good as initial rhyme and vowel rhyme, all serve to prosecute our consciousness in a manner that standard authorship does non. I will cite an infusion fromREYNARD THE FOX, by John Masefield, ( Smyth, 1959, page 295 ) , to exemplify some of these characteristics:

1. And here, as he ran to the huntsman’s shouting,
2. The fox foremost felt that the gait was stating ;
3. His organic structure and lungs seemed all adult old,
4. His legs less certain, his bosom less bold,
5. The hound-noise nearer, the hill-slope steeper,
6. The thump in the blood of his organic structure deeper.
7. His pride in his velocity, his joy in the race,
8. Were withered off, for what usage was gait?

The verse form is rhythmical, with lines 1, 2, 3 and 6 holding four stressed syllables. Lines 4, 5, 7 and 8 have the same ocular and rhythmical signifier, with a comma dividing each line and a stressed syllable and falling modulation before each comma and at the terminal of each the line. In add-on, line 5 has rhythmically matched hyphenated words on either side of the comma. This rhythmical construction gives an feeling of velocity and heaving, and enables one to place with the fox.

The usage of initial rhyme in line 2 ( fox foremost felt ) and vowel rhyme in line 6 ( thump, blood ) besides contribute to the gait of the piece, with first the initial rhyme underscoring the velocity of the fox’s transition, and so the vowel rhyme four lines subsequently, pass oning how his gait is get downing to decelerate. The rime besides plays its portion in the rhythmical construction. The vowels at the terminal of each line rime in pairs, and the surrogate matching of longer vowels ( shouting / relation, steeper / deeper ) with shorter 1s ( old / bold, race / gait ) helps to give the piece the jerky beat which goes with the fox’s pace.

Songs employ many of the same literary devices as poesy, particularly those that rely as much on their words as they do on their music for consequence. In George Gershwin’sA WOMAN IS A Erstwhile Thingthere is an interesting drama on “sometime” , with the significance “fickle” , an unusual use. The rhyme strategy ( warn you/mourn you ; name you/ blasted you/ claim you ; ) contributes to the beat, as does vowel rhyme ( born/mourn ; shame/blame/claim ) . Note besides the usage of a Afro-american slang, another literary device which adds genuineness to the content. ( Davis, 1996, page 190 ) . These are all techniques more associated with poesy. Here are the first two poetries: ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.thepeaches.com/music/composers/gershwin/WomanIsaSometimeThing.htm )

Listen to yo ‘ daddy warn you‘Fore you start a-travelingWoman may born you, love you and mourn youBut a adult female is a erstwhile thingYes a adult female is a erstwhile thingYo ‘ mammy is the first to call youThen she ‘ll bind you to her apron twineThen she ‘ll dishonor you and she ‘ll fault youTill yo ‘ adult female comes to claim you‘Cause a adult female is a erstwhile thingYes a adult female is a erstwhile thing

More common utilizations of literary techniques in non-literary contexts are headlines in the tabloid imperativeness. Although the content and general authorship manner of these newspapers would non usually be classified as literature, it has to be admitted that important accomplishment goes into the crafting of their headlines. An frequently quoted illustration is the Sun’s “IT’S BEEN A BUM YEAR” ( 23/12/1992 ) in response to the Queen’s usage ofannus horriblis( a atrocious twelvemonth ) to depict 1992 in her Christmas Speech. It is cagey because it manages to capture both her sentiments and makes a wordplay on the Latin wordannus, intending “year” , but sounds similar anus.

Ad besides uses all the schemes that have been dealt with in earlier illustrations, and in add-on makes full usage of regional speech patterns, “ … sound effects, correspondences, metaphors, neologies, intertextual reverberations, affectional resonances and full fictional worlds.” ( Guy Cook, 1996 p. 223 ) .

Another country of popular civilization that makes usage of playful linguistic communication is graffiti. Although this is frequently seen as hooliganism, it is really frequently the lone agencies of public look for groups denied other avenues. ( Nwoye, 1996, page 230 ) . Nwoye analyses political graffito in a university lavatory, and demonstrates the scope of subjects from earnestly political to humourous.

Here is an illustration on a lighter note. I have added my ain remarks to explicate the humourous point. I found it referred to on the site: hypertext transfer protocol: //jn10.co.uk/stories/graffiti.php

Yorick is a asleep skull.

( This refers to a celebrated address from Hamlet, in which Prince Hamlet addresses Yorick’s skull. It is double cagey, because Hamlet is talking to a skull ( Yorick= skull ) and Yorick was a tribunal fool ( Yorick= sap ) and the wordplay on “numbskull” , a sap. )

What I have tried to show in this essay is that the similar stylistic devices are found in both literary and non-literary texts. Song wordss move along a spectrum from simple concomitant to music, where they possibly merely congratulate the beat, to the opposite terminal of the graduated table where it is the words that affair, and the music is incidental. The popular imperativeness is surely originative in its usage of linguistic communication. Ad copywriters are frequently merely every bit good at utilizing literary accomplishments as poets. Even graffiti authors sometimes show a well-developed lingual consciousness.

From the stuff I have examined it seems that the differentiation between literary and playful texts is far from clear. If the differentiation is non to be based strictly on stylistic techniques, what should it be based on? Harmonizing to Guy Cook ( 1996, page 217 ) , current academic sentiment favours the position that it is the content which is of import in specifying linguistic communication art, and that stylistic devices heighten this artistic content.

Harmonizing to this position, a cagey headline above a lubricious intelligence study can non be art, and neither can a one line piece of graffito. For a text to measure up as Art, it needs to hold both elements ; delighting and adept usage of linguistic communication, every bit good as important rational content. An opposing position might be that linguistic communication drama on its ain is an art signifier, and can be appreciated apart from its rational content.

In my sentiment, the instance for the domination of content is clear at either utmost. We can all recognize great literature, and we know that commonplace and inconsequential newspaper articles from the Tabloids do non measure up as such. Graffiti is excessively compressed to measure up as literature, as is most advertising transcript. However, there is clearly a big gray country in the center of the spectrum between evidently literary texts and those which are merely playful. I feel that for most of these texts, we should merely look up to the creatively which is presented to us without being excessively concerned from whence it comes.

Bibliography

Cook, G. ( 1996 )Language drama in English. In J. Maybin and N. Mercer ( Eds. )Using English- from conversation to canon( pp 198 – 227 ) . London: Routledge / The Open University.

Davis, R. ( 1996 )In the slang. In J. Maybin and N. Mercer ( explosive detection systems. ) as above, ( pp 185 – 191 )

Jeffries, L. ( 1996 )What makes English into art? In J. Maybin and N. Mercer ( Eds. ) as above, ( pp 162 – 184 ) .

Nwoye, O. ( 1996 ) Infusion fromSocial issues on walls: Graffiti in university toilets.( 1993 ) In J. Maybin and N. Mercer ( explosive detection systems. ) as above, ( pp 230 – 234 ) .

W. M. Smyth ( 1959 ) ( Ed. )A Book of Poetry. London, Edward Arnold LTD.

Web Sites

hypertext transfer protocol: //jn10.co.uk/stories/graffiti.php ( 2006 )

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.thepeaches.com/music/composers/gershwin/WomanIsaSometimeThing.htm( 2005 ) .

Both accessed on 22/02/2006.