Relevance Theory and the use of voice in poetry

2001 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 11-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara MacMahon

This article explores the extent to which the Relevance Theory concepts of interpretive and echoic use can help to explain the complexities of the use of voice in poetry. Echoic use in Relevance Theory is a sub-type of interpretive use, a use which can allow a speaker to communicate one of many possible attitudes towards a proposition, ranging from endorsement through disapproval to ridicule. My argument is that this model could be extremely powerful in accounting for the differences and relationships between perceived poets’/authors’ views and views presented directly in literary works. This approach goes some way towards integrating the study of poetry into a general account of communication. The article develops these arguments by using the Relevance Theory model in analysing the use of voice in a selection of poems by Dorothy Parker, Robert Browning, John Keats, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Fleur Adcock and Tony Harrison, and raises the question of whether all poetry might be considered interpretive.

IJOHMN ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 52-68
Author(s):  
Swati Rani Debnath

In literary works, truth and beauty have been expressed in a varied number of ways by authors of all genres. Rabindranath Tagore and John Keats, two prominent writers from two languages have linked beauty and truth in philosophical manners in many of their writings. Beauty and truth are not separate entities; they flow from the same spring. Tagore views beauty as linked to eternal characteristics of nature and truth is associated with it. Keats sees beauty from spiritual perspective and according to him, realization of truth leads to the fulfillment of beauty. Readers of Tagore and Keats get eye-opening insights from the viewpoints that are followed by their expressions in regarding the tenets of truth and beauty. Truth and beauty fulfill each other in their harmonious existence in the universe. The authors make us realize that beauty does not emanate merely from sensual pleasure; it is an abstract idea, a spiritual understanding that originates from rhythmic attachment with truth. This article compares and contrasts philosophies of truth and beauty from the writings of Tagore and Keats. In doing so, the paper investigates the literary works of the two writers and explores how they have philosophized truth and beauty in the domain of human thought as well as in the realm of spiritual discipline.


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Tan ◽  
Sandy Campbell

Books have long been recognized  resources for health literacy and healing (Fosson & Husband, 1984). Individuals with health conditions or disabilities or who are dealing with illness, disability or death among friends or loved ones, can find solace and affirmation in fictional works that depict characters coping with similar health conditions. This study asked the question “If we were to select a new collection of children’s health-related fiction in mid-2014, which books would we select and what selection criteria would we apply?”  The results of this study are a set of criteria for the selection of  current English language literary works with health-related content for the pre-kindergarten to Grade 6 (age 12) audience http://hdl.handle.net/10402/era.38842, a collection of books that are readily available to Canadian libraries - selected against these criteria http://hdl.handle.net/10402/era.38843, a special issue of the Deakin Review of Children’s Literature -  dedicated to juvenile health fiction, and book exhibits in two libraries to accompany the Deakin Review issue.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 67
Author(s):  
Moslem Ahmadi

The focus of this research is in the area of the British Romantic literature. Such a study is important in order to demonstrate how the great poets of the British Romantic literature possess the potential to be regrouped under new labels based on the existence of similar attitudes in their literary works. The findings from this research provide evidence that the labels by means of which the scholars group different poets of an age are not fixed and they are susceptible to change. The main conclusion drawn from this study is that new literary labels can be an excellent methodology for determining the real attitudes which influence different poets’ literary works. This paper recommends that new literary labels can be an excellent way for a better understanding of literary works. 


2008 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 313-320
Author(s):  
Hua Li ◽  
Jing Chang ◽  
Ming Dong

2013 ◽  
Vol 662 ◽  
pp. 243-248
Author(s):  
Wen Yuan Deng

The optical characterization of LaF3 thin film in DUV spectral range was experimental investigated by using a variable angle purged UV spectroscopic ellipsometer. In order to take into account the inhomogeneity, a theory model that dividing the single thin film into several sublayers was adopted. Two kinds of LaF3 thin films fabricated on fused silicate substrate with different substrates temperature were tested. From the obtained optical index and the physical thickness of different sublayer in the two different kinds of LaF3 thin films, it was found that, the inhomogeneity of the LaF3 thin film deposited with substrate temperature at 300°C was stronger than that of the LaF3 thin film deposited with substrate temperature at 250°C, indicating that the substrate temperature has important influence on the optical index and inhomogeneity of LaF3 thin films. For both of the two kinds LaF3 thin films, the agreement between the measured transmittance and the simulated transmittance using the parameters from regression of SE was nice, indicating that the selection of the material dispersion law and regression procedure were successful.


1996 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 325-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane Blakemore

This paper aims to re-assess the notion DISCOURSE MARKER as it is applied to a subset of so-called apposition markers. It is argued that the classification of markers of reformulation as discourse markers alongside expressions like but and so is incoherent from a semantic point of view, since this ignores the distinction between PROCEDURAL and CONCEPTUAL meaning. Moreover, this classification is based on an account of discourse which is not only based on an insufficiently general account of context, but which is also difficult to maintain in the light of the use of these expressions in parenthetical nominal appositions. An alternative account is developed in the framework of Sperber & Wilson's Relevance Theory building on recent work on the meaning of parentheticals and sentence adverbials.


Author(s):  
Vanessa Castagna

Portuguese literature traditionally occupies a marginal position in the system of translated literature in Italy, nevertheless in the last twenty years there has been a considerable increase in Portuguese literary works translated and published in Italy. Following the work of Raposo Costa on Portuguese authors published in Italy between 1898 and 1998, the authors and literary works published in Italy in the last two decades are catalogued here, with the aim of tracing the panorama and identifying the main features and trends in the selection of Portuguese authors for the Italian market.


2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (13) ◽  
pp. 332-348
Author(s):  
د. حميد يحيى أحمد الزبيري د. حميد يحيى أحمد الزبيري

the present study aims at exploring and describing the multiple functions of the PM ‘?amaanah’ in the corpus of Yemeni spoken Arabic. A total of 174 audio-recorded data of natural conversations were analyzed as spoken corpus of Yemeni Arabic. The study is based on an eclectic analytical method whose views have been drawn from the theoretical frameworks of the speech act theory, politeness theory, model of functional systemic linguistics (the interpersonal metafunction), and relevance theory. The findings of the study show that the PM ‘?amaanah’ functions as: an expression of oath; a commitment marker to a future action on the part of the speaker and the addressee; a mitigation marker, preceding potentially face-threating speech acts; a signal introducing reprimanding; an attitude marker expressing a speaker’s attitude and emotion; an epistemic marker evaluating the subjectivity of the speaker’s propositional content; an entreaty-marker on directive act; and a displeasure marker on the part of the speaker. The study concluded with a suggestion on conducting a further research exploring the discourse functions of the marker.


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