The analysis of the novel "A room with a view"

Introduction Every writer has his own style of writing. Trying to gain the definite stylistic effects the writer uses the different stylistiс devices. Our work is devoted to the stylistic means which Edward Morgan Forster uses in his novel “A Room with a view”, namely the means to make the sentences more emotional. The aim of our work is to reveal the main stylistic means to express the emotional content.

The aim has defined the next tasks:

1.  To give some information about Edward Morgan Forster’s biography and his works.

2.  To give the definition of the notion “emotion”

3.  To reveal the main stylistic means to express the emotional content.

4.  To make the practical research

The novel “A Room with a View” is the practical material of our work.

The work consists of introduction, two chapters and conclusion. In the first chapter we reveal the main stylistic means to express the emotional content of the statement.

The second chapter represents the immediate studying of E.M. Forster novel and information about him and his creative work. While making our work we used the works of such linguists as Vinokur G.O., Suvorov S.P., Arnold I.V. and many others. We have translated all given examples from the novel “Little Dorrit”, so we have used the works on the translation theory of Levitskaya T.R., Fiterman A.M., Komissarov V.N., Alimov V.V., Shveytser A.D., Garbovskiy N.K., Dmitrieva L.F. and others. At the analysis of a practical material the English-Russian dictionary of Мuller and explanatory dictionaries of publishing house of the Oxford university were used.

Chapter 1 The emotion and the means of its expression in the works of fiction

 

1.1 The notion of the emotion

Every word has denotative and connotative meanings. The denotative meaning is the meaning which denotes the notion.

But the word can have the emotional component of the meaning if it expresses an emotion or the feeling.

The emotion is a short feeling: joy, pleasure, trouble, anger.

The feeling express a longer aptitude: love, respect etc.

The pure signs of the emotion are the interjections. These words represent the special level of the lexicology because they don’t have the notional and logical meanings.[1]

The interjections express the emotions in the common meaning. They don’t even show its positive or negative feature.

For example, the interjection “Oh” can express the joy and the sorrow. For example:

Oh, I am so glad!

Oh, I am sorry.

Oh, how unexpected!

The emotional words shouldn’t be confused with the words, which denote the emotions and feelings:

Fear

Delight

Gloom

Cheerfulness

Annoy

The emotional words shouldn’t also be confused the emotional meaning of which depends on the reactions connected with the notion:

Death

Tears

Honour

Rain

From the linguistic point of view these are the different groups. The relations between the components inside the lexical meaning are more different than in the emotional words.

In many works of fiction, for example, the abundance of the words connected with the rain transmits the feeling of the loneliness and sorrow. For example, Ernest Hemingway, begins one of his stories by the description of the rain in an Italian town, where in the hotel only two Americans stay. The American woman feels the loneliness and sorrow:

There were only two Americans stopping at the hotel. They did not know any of the people they passed on the stairs on their way to and from their room. Their room was on the second floor facing the sea. It also faced the public garden and the war monument. There were big palms and green benches in the public garden. In the good weather there was always an artist with his easel. Artists liked the way the palms grew and the bright colours of the hotels facing the gardens and the sea. Italians came from a long way off to look up to the war movement. It was made of bronze and glistened in the rain. It was raining. The rain dripped from the palm trees. Water stood in pools on the gravel paths. The sea broke in along line in the rain and slipped back down the beach to come and break again in a long line in the rain. The motor cars were gone from the square by the war monument…

The expression of the emotion or feeling usually is connected with the desire to transmit this emotion to other people. So, the accumulation of the “rainy” words is very effective.

1.2 The means of the expression of the emotions in the works of fiction

The authors use different means to express the emotions in their works. Let’s consider them.

The writers very often use the epithets. The epithet is a lexical and syntactical trope. It can function as an attribute, an adverb and an address. For example: A silvery laugh (attribute) To smile cuttingly (adverb) My sweet (address) The epithets must have the expressive connotations because thanks to these connotations we can know the attitude of the author towards the subject or the person. There are the tautological, explanatory and metaphorical epithets.[2] The tautological epithet is the epithet which emphasizes the main feature of the notion. For example: The sable night Wide sea Fair sun The explanatory epithet shows the most important feature of the notion, but it does not mean that this feature is inherent in the whole class. For example: A grand style Unvalued jewels Vast and trunkless legs of stone The metaphorical epithet indicates the resemblance or dissimilarity. There are, for example, the animistic metaphorical epithets, when the author gives the men’s characteristic to the inanimate objects: An angry sky The howling storm There are also the anthropomorphous metaphorical epithets when the men’s characteristic and actions are given to the animals or the objects: Laughing valleys Surly sullen bell As we said above, the novel “Little Dorrit” abounds in the epithets. Let's consider them. A blazing sun upon a fierce August was no greater rarity in Southern France then, than at any other time. Палящее солнце в жгучем августе было не редкостью для юга Франции в то время. We see that Charles Dickens uses in this sentence the tautological epithets blazing sun and fierce August. These epithets underline the main features of the sun and of the August. The fair little face, touched with divine compassion, as it peeped shrinkingly through the grate, was like an angel's in the prison. Красивое маленькое личико, с оттенком божественного сострадания, как если бы оно выглядывало сквозь решётку, было похоже на лик ангела в тюрьме. A sullen girl! Her rich black hair was all about her face. Угрюмая девчонка! Её роскошные чёрные волосы закрывали её лицо. It was a Sunday evening in London, gloomy, close and stale. Был воскресный вечер в Лондоне, мрачный, душный и зловонный. Melancholy streets in a penitential garb of soot, steeped the souls of the people who were condemned to look at them out of windows, in dire despondency. Унылые улицы в покаянном одеянии из сажи погружали в страшное отчаяние души людей, которые были обречены смотреть на них из окон. In these examples the epithets are explanatory –

The fair little face

sullen girl

penitential garb

and metaphorical –

divine compassion gloomy, close and stale

Melancholy streets The explanatory epithets (fair, sullen, penitential) indicate the main characteristic namely of this subject and this person. The metaphoric epithets indicate usually the men's characteristic which are applied to objects: The thunder and lightning had long ago passed over, but the rain was furious. Гром и молния давно уже прекратились, но дождь был свирепым.

Oh, fie, fie, my dear, that's folly.

О, стыдно, моя дорогая, это безумно. As we can see, in these examples the adjectives function as the epithets mainly, but there are also the sentences where the nouns have this function: Amy, my love, you know Mr. Clenmann ever better than I have the happiness of doing. Эмми, любовь моя, ты знаешь Мистера Кленмана даже лучше, чем я имею счастье знать. “Selfish brutes!” said the girl, sobbing and heaving between the whiles. “Not caring what becomes of me! Leaving me here hungry and thirsty and tired, to starve, for anything they care! Beasts! Devils! Wretches!” «Эгоисты, грубияны!» сказала девушка, рыдая и вздыхая временами. «Им плевать, что со мной происходит! Оставить меня здесь голодную и уставшую, без воды! Они ни о чём не беспокоятся! Звери! Дьяволы! Негодяи!» The words “Beasts! Devils! Wretches!” are used as a metaphor, but we will consider them below. We can see, also, many cases of the repetitions using. The repetitions is the stylistic means which is used in English oftener than in Russian. The stylistic repetition is the repetition of a word or word combination in one sentence, paragraph or the whole text. The number of the repetitions can be different, but they must be noticed by the reader.[3] The main function of the repetition is the emotional or the strengthening one. There are many repetitions in the novel “Little Dorrit” which have different stylistic meanings. Let’s consider them:

Let's consider the next examples. You seem to come like my own anger, my own malice, my own – whatever it is – I don't know what it is. Кажется, вы появляетесь подобно моей злости, моей ненависти, моей.. ещё Бог знает чего – я не знаю, что это. What has my life been? Fag and grind, fag and grind, turn the wheel, turn the wheel! Чем была моя жизнь? Работа и работа, работа и работа, крути колесо, крути колесо! Go away from me, go away from me! Идите прочь от меня, идите прочь от меня! In these examples the function of the repetition is the emotional one. To show its emotional characteristic we can also give such translations as: What has my life been? Fag and grind, fag and grind, turn the wheel, turn the wheel! Чем была моя жизнь? Работа, работа, бесконечная работа, крути и крути колесо! Go away from me, go away from me! Идите прочь от меня, да идите же! The authors also use such stylistic device as the comparison. The comparison helps the author to make the novel's style more expressive. The comparison helps also make the narration more emotional. For example, Charles Dickens uses widely this device: Mr.Plornish's father is a poor little old gentleman, like a worm-out bird. Отец Мистера Плорниш бедный маленький старый джентльмен, похожий на измученную птицу. Mrs. Plornish was as proud of her father's talents as she possibly could have been if they had made him Lord Chancellor. Миссис Плорниш была так горда талантами своего отца, как если бы ему дали за них чин Лорд-канцлера. Thank you, sir, she's not quite as well as we could wish. Спасибо, сэр, ей не так хорошо, как бы нам хотелось бы. And so, like the country mouse in the second year of a famine, come to see the town mouse. И таким образом, это подобно деревенской мыши после года голодной жизни, пришла навестить городскую мышь. He is as sweet as honey, and I am as dull as ditch-water. Он милый и приятный, словно мёд, а я невыносимо скучный. Quick as lightning, Mr. Pancks, who, for some moments, had had his right hand in his coat pocket, whipped out a pair of shears. Быстрый как молния, мистер Пэнкс, который временами держал правую руку в кармане пальто, выхватил пару ножниц

The stylistic device of the metaphor is also used to make the statements emotional. In this case we may say about the zoonymic metaphors. The zoonymic metaphor is the appliance of the words of the second class to the persons. The words of the second class are the name of animals, birds and fantastic creatures. Usually, these words get the metaphorical, emotional or even offensive meaning. This fact is easy to note comparing the literal and metaphoric meanings of such words as ass, bear, beast, bitch, bookworm, donkey, duck, kid, monkey, mule, pig, shark, snake, swine, tabby, toad, wolf, worm, angel, devil, lamb, imp, sphinx, witch.[4] Let’s give an example from the “Little Dorrit” of Charles Dickens: “Selfish brutes!” said the girl, sobbing and heaving between the whiles. “Not caring what becomes of me! Leaving me here hungry and thirsty and tired, to starve, for anything they care! Beasts! Devils! Wretches!” «Эгоисты, грубияны!» сказала девушка, рыдая и вздыхая временами. «Им плевать, что со мной происходит! Оставить меня здесь голодную и уставшую, без воды! Они ни о чём не беспокоятся! Звери! Дьяволы! Негодяи!»

The verbal categories can also express the emotion. The transposition is one of the most important means of the expression. It is well known that the Present Indefinite Tense is used to tell about the past events. This tense is known also as the Present Historic Tense. The linguists Brugmann and Jespereson give also the term “The Present Dramatic Tense”. The Present Dramatic Tense makes the art illusion. The past events are told as they take place before the readers’ and the listener’s very eyes.[5]

The durative forms of the Present, Past and Future tenses are often used in the cases when they should be in the indefinite form.

The durative forms are more emotional. They can express the fleeting irritation of the interlocutors. For example, in the dialogue below the emotional character of the scene is determined by the verbal forms using:[6]

Ruth: You’re burning yourself out. And for what?...

George: You don’t even begin to understand – you’re no different from the rest. Burning myself out! You bet I’m burning myself out! I’ve been doing that for so many years now – and who in hell cares?

The durative form is used here for the actions which reveal the character of the personage.

The Present Continuous is used also in speech to express the surprise, distrust and indignation. Moreover, the Present Continuous Tense can be repeated:

Burning myself out! You bet I’m burning myself out! There is also the example the I.Shaw work “The young Lions”:

Everybody’s being so damned considerate.

Let’s considerate the example from the play of J.Osborne “Look back in Anger”: Jimmy: One day when I’m no longer spending my days running a sweet-stall, I may write a book about us all. In this sentence there are two cases of the expressiveness – lexical and grammatical. The word combination to spend one’s days and the durative form using are very expressive. If the irony and the dissatisfaction are expressed by the repeating, the interrogative form is combined with the special intonation: You’re not really suggesting that…are you? You are not trying to convince me that…? The indignation is expressed by the imitation of the distrust. The listener pretends that he can’t believe his ears. The connotation of the verbs’ forms depends on the context. Sometimes, the Present Continuous Tense became more polite and gentle than the Present Indefinite Tense. For example, the kind Mrs, Elliot says politely: I’d better show you the way. He’s not feeling so good today. All considered cases of the transposition have the emotional expressiveness. But the transposition can also have the functional and stylistic character. In the speech of the personages we can find out the colloquial forms I, he, we ain’t. For example, these forms are widely used in the novel of Charles Dickens “Little Dorrit”: He is a fine little fellow, ain’t he, sir? Он милый парнишка, не так ли сэр? «Разве я не надавил на них?»- возразил Мистер Пэнкс. «Что мне ещё надо делать?» The form aint’t is the reduced form of are not. But in the dialogues the meaning of this form is larger: it can substitute such forms as am not, is not, have not. We can also find out such colloquial forms as has, is, was which are used with the subject in the plural form: Times has changed. The transposition can be both double (when it concerns the tenses and the number) and single (when it concerns only the tense or the number). For example: Josie Well, I’m doing it, aren’t I? or Percy: …But what about me? I’m going to look a proper bloody fool, aren’t I? The perfect forms of the verbs in the colloquial speech are characterized by the omission of the auxiliary verb: You are done me a hill turn: you done me hout of a contrac (B.Show) Sometimes, the Participle II coincides with the Past Simple form. This fact results in the homonymy or even in the junction of these forms.

The modal verbs are important for the stylistic because they transmit the aptitude of the speaker towards to the information: doubt, negation, etc. The verbs can, may, must, ought, shall, will as the modal particles just, only have to be taken much attention. To understand this phenomena completely, let’s considerate the shall using in the poem of D.Thomas And Death Shall Have No Dominion. First of all, we would like to present this poem:

And Death shall have no dominion.

Dead men naked they shall be one

With men in the wind and the west moon;

When their bones are picked clean and the clean bones gone,

They shall have stars at elbow and foot;

Though they go mad they shall be sane,

Though they sink through the sea they shall rise again;

Though lovers be lost love shall not;

And Death shall have no dominion. The title of the poem forms its main theme. This is the heated argument of the poet with the Death. The sentence And Death Shall Have No Dominion is repeated twice – at the beginning and at the end of the poem. This repetition picks out the main idea of the poem and the other sentences become the development of this idea. Let’s considerate the first strophe in which the author says that the man joins with the nature after his death. The man’s situation at the moment of the death is very tragic but this tragedy will be overcome. The Death has no power over the man. It is well known that shall is not only the modal verb. In the modern English shall is the auxiliary verb of the Future Indefinite Tense. As a rule, shall keeps its modality when it is used in the Future

Indefinite Tense with the pronouns you, he, she, it, they.

But this rule is not kept strictly. In this poem shall is repeated eight times and by this fact it receives expressiveness and shows many modal opportunities. The poem is looks like the prediction and solemn promise. The special distribution in the context lets shall to express strongly the duty and the persistence. The expressiveness of shall in this poem is supported by the rich convergence. Besides the repetitions, there are the parallel constructions in the sixth, seventh and eithth lines and the antithesis of the light and the dull. For example: mad – sane, sink – rise.

We have considered the main means to express the emotions. The next chapter is devoted too the analysis of the emotional statements in the E.M.Forster’s novel.

Chapter 2. The emotional statements in the E.M.Forster’s novel “A room with a view”

emotion epithet forster trope