Abstract
This paper undertakes, through the prism of linguistic (stylistic) analysis, a reading of the ideological discourse in Festus Iyayi’s novels- Violence, The Contract, and Heroes, with the broad aim of establishing the nexus between literature and ideology, through the instrumentation of language, for societal transformation. The paper explores the symbiotic relationship between language and literature and how the former is used in the study and understanding of the latter. Attempt is made to identify the patterns of use of language with reference to the purpose of commenting on quality, the exegesis and interpretative meanings of the text. The scaffold upon which our analysis is anchored is the Marxist literary criticism based on socialist and dialectical theories. It is the contention of the Marxist theorists that literary works are a reflection of the social institutions from which they originate. Terry Eagleton has affirmed that Marxist criticism “is not merely sociology of literature” but paying attention to its forms, style and meaning with a view to grasping those forms, style and meaning “as the products of a particular history. In all, four major literary tools-narrative technique, lexical choice, dialogue and authorial comments are deployed as indices for our analytical framework, using the Critical Discourse Analysis. What is apparent is that no success can be achieved in the reading and understanding of a literacy text without a manifest use of language.
Highlights
Contemporary scholarship of literature involves an array of theories –Marxism, socialism, hermeneutics, structuralism, psycho-analysis, feminism, post –colonialism and semiotics, Eyeh (2011:145)
Four major literary tools-narrative technique, lexical choice, dialogue and authorial comments are deployed as indices for our analytical framework, using the Critical Discourse Analysis
The beam of the searchlight of this paper is on the linguistic/ stylistic reading of the ideological discourse permeating the novels of Iyayi: Violence (1979), The Contract (1982) and Heroes (1986)
Summary
Contemporary scholarship of literature involves an array of theories –Marxism, socialism, hermeneutics, structuralism, psycho-analysis, feminism, post –colonialism and semiotics, Eyeh (2011:145). Any truly important work of a art serves as a means of cognizing life, expresses the artist's attitude to the world, his class sympathies and antipathies and his attitude to man and society is a means for forming the personality and its world outlook and morals;awakens the creative ability in the reader, viewer or listener and develops and perfects aesthetic taste. The relationship between creative literature and these other forces cannot be ignored especially in Africa where modern literature has grown against the gory background of European imperialism and its changing manifestations: slavery, colonialism and neo-colonialism To this end any analysis of Iyayi’s works will always reveal that the personal experience of the writer (Iyayi) in the world he tries to cognize has added some potency, plausibility and flavor of excellence to his literacy works. Is the “primary building material without which the complete building (the message) cannot be put in place”
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have