Tuesday, March 22, 2011

COURSE OUTLINE- Introduction to Stylistics


Course Title: INTRODUCTION TO STYLISTICS


Course Description:
“Introducing stylistics as the study of language in literature”
The STYLIST course offers an introduction to the study of literary stylistics. This involves examining the language of literary texts in the three genres of poetry, prose and drama and also other text-types like advertisements, songs and speeches (which, interestingly, share some of the characteristics of poetry). The course also has a view of helping students to arrive at a fuller understanding and appreciation of these texts. The course does not presuppose any technical knowledge of linguistics, but provides general explanations of principles and tools for the purpose of describing poetic, narrative and dramatic texts. The course will reveal that the language used in a literary text differs from everyday language in purpose and function, but not in kind.



General Objectives:
Stylistics course is concerned with the linguistic analysis of literary texts. Its aims are:
  • 1.       To introduce the most central concepts and analytical frameworks in    Stylistics;
  • 2.       To sharpen students’ awareness of how language works in literary text and author’s style in writing.  
  • 3.       To show how stylistic analysis can be used to explain the relationship between linguistic choices on the one hand and meanings/effects in readers' minds on the other;
  • 4.       To encourage students to use stylistic tools on additional texts, both during and after the sessions, so that they learn by doing;
  • 5.       To enable students to carry out detailed and systematic stylistic analysis of a variety of literary texts.


Topics Covered:
  • What stylistics is all about?
  • Stylistic Writing
  • Stylistics Devices (Rhetorical Devices, Figures of Speech)
  • Language in Literature
  • Mainly POETRY
o    Levels of language: Linguistic choice, style and meaning 
o    Being creative with words and phrases
o     Patterns, deviations, style and meaning
o     The grammar of simple sentences
o     Sound
·
  • Mainly PROSE
o   Style and style variation
o    The grammar of complex sentences
o    Discourse structure and point of view
o    Speech presentation
o    Prose analysis
  • Mainly DRAMA
o   Conversational structure and character 
o    Meaning between the lines
o    Shared knowledge and absurdist drama

  • ·         Other Text Types (e.g. advertisements)


Course Assessment:

Students are expected:
  •         to submit a piece of written coursework at the end of the course
  •         to take major exams; one for the midterm and one for the final term


2 comments:

  1. Hi! Im Elbert Im also teaching Stylistics I just want to ask permission if its ok to use your course description for my subject.


    Hope its ok

    thanks
    elbert

    ReplyDelete