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Lesley Jeffries and Dan Mcintyre
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Stylistics
Stylistics is the linguistic study of style in language. It aims to account for
how texts project meaning, how readers construct meaning and why readers
respond to texts in the way that they do. This book is an introduction to
stylistics that locates it firmly within the traditions of linguistics. Organised
to reflect the historical development of stylistics from its origins in Russian
formalism, the book covers key principles such as foregrounding theory,
as well as more recent developments in cognitive stylistics. It includes
an examination of both literary and non-literary texts, and substantial
coverage of methodologies for stylistic analysis. Throughout the book,
the emphasis is on the practicalities of producing stylistic analyses that
are objective, replicable and falsifiable. Comprehensive in its coverage
and assuming no prior knowledge of the topic, Stylistics will be essential
reading for undergraduate and graduate students new to this fascinating
area of language study.

l e s l e y j e f f r i e s is Professor of English Language at the University of

Huddersfield.
d a n m c i n t y r e is Reader in English Language and Linguistics at the
University of Huddersfield.

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Lesley Jeffries and Dan Mcintyre
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Lesley Jeffries and Dan Mcintyre
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CAMBRIDGE TEXTBOOKS IN LINGUISTICS

General editors: p . a u s t i n , j. b r e s n a n , b . c o m r i e , s . c r a i n ,
w. dressler, c. ewen, r. lass, d. lightfoot, k. rice,
i. roberts, s. romaine, n. v. smith

Stylistics

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In this series:

a . r a d f o r d Transformational Syntax
l. bauer English Word-Formation
s. c. levinson Pragmatics
g . b r o w n and g . y u l e Discourse Analysis
r. huddleston Introduction to the Grammar of English
r. lass Phonology
b. comrie Tense
w . k l e i n Second Language Acquisition
a . j . w o o d s , p. fletcher and a . h u g h e s Statistics in Language Studies
d . a . c r u s e Lexical Semantics
a . r a d f o r d Transformational Grammar
m. garman Psycholinguistics
g. g. corbett Gender
h. j. giegerich English Phonology
r . c a n n Formal Semantics
j. laver Principles of Phonetics
f. r. palmer Grammatical Roles and Relations
m. a. jones Foundations of French Syntax
a . r a d f o r d Syntactic Theory and the Structure of English: A Minimalist Approach
r . d . v a n v a l i n , jr , and r. j. lapolla Syntax: Structure, Meaning and Function
a . d u r a n t i Linguistic Anthropology
a. cruttenden Intonation Second edition
j. k. chambers and p . t r u d g i l l Dialectology Second edition
c. lyons Definiteness
r. kager Optimality Theory
j. a. holm An Introduction to Pidgins and Creoles
g. g. corbett Number
c. j. ewen and h . v a n d e r h u l s t The Phonological Structure of Words
f. r. palmer Mood and Modality Second edition
b. j. blake Case Second edition
e . g u s s m a n Phonology: Analysis and Theory
m . y i p Tone
w . c r o f t Typology and Universals Second edition
f . c o u l m a s Writing Systems: An Introduction to their Linguistic Analysis
p . j . h o p p e r and e. c. traugott Grammaticalization Second edition
l . w h i t e Second Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar
i . p l a g Word-Formation in English
w . c r o f t and a . c r u s e Cognitive Linguistics
a . s i e w i e r s k a Person
a . r a d f o r d Minimalist Syntax: Exploring the Structure of English
d . b ü r i n g Binding Theory
m. butt Theories of Case
n . h o r n s t e i n, j . n u ñ e s and k . g r o h m a n n Understanding Minimalism
b. c. lust Child Language: Acquisition and Growth
g. g. corbett Agreement
j. c. l. ingram Neurolinguistics: An Introduction to Spoken Language Processing and
its Disorders
j. clackson Indo-European Linguistics: An Introduction
m. ariel Pragmatics and Grammar
r . c a n n , r. kempson and e. gregoromichelaki Semantics: An Introduction
to Meaning in Language
y. matras Language Contact
d. biber and s . c o n r a d Register, Genre and Style
l. jeffries and d. mcintyre Stylistics

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Lesley Jeffries and Dan Mcintyre
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Stylistics

L E S LEY J EF F R IES A N D DA N M C I N T Y R E
University of Huddersfield

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It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of
education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence.

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Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521728690


C Lesley Jeffries and Dan McIntyre 2010

This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception

and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.

First published 2010

5th printing 2014

Printed in the United Kingdom by Clays, St Ives plc.

A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data

Jeffries, Lesley, 1956–
Stylistics / Lesley Jeffries and Dan McIntyre.
p. cm. – (Cambridge textbooks in linguistics)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-521-40564-5 (hardback)
1. English language – Style. 2. English language – Discourse analysis.
3. Style, Literary. I. McIntyre, Dan, 1975– II. Title. III. Series.
PE1421.J447 2010
808 – dc22 2010020577

ISBN 978-0-521-40564-5 Hardback

ISBN 978-0-521-72869-0 Paperback

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in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such
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To the memory of our friend and fellow stylistician,

Mary Ellen Ryder

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Lesley Jeffries and Dan Mcintyre
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Contents

Acknowledgements page xi
Preface xiii

1 Language and style 1

1.1 What is stylistics? 1
1.2 The need for stylistics 3
1.3 The scope of stylistics 9
1.4 Aims of stylistic analysis 12
1.5 Data in stylistics 14
1.6 Principles of stylistics 21
1.7 The structure of the book 26
Exercises 27
Further reading 28

2 Text and style 30

2.1 What is style? 30
2.2 Defamiliarisation: foregrounding by deviation and parallelism 31
2.3 Linguistic levels and stylistic analysis 34
2.4 Questions of style: literariness revisited 61
2.5 Summary and conclusions 65
Exercises 66
Further reading 67

3 Discourse and context I: Function 68

3.1 Texts as discourse 68
3.2 Functional categories and style 71
3.3 Summary and conclusions 95
Exercises 96
Further reading 98

4 Discourse and context II: Interaction 100

4.1 Stylistics and pragmatics 100
4.2 Interaction in discourse 101
4.3 An extended analysis of an extract from a dramatic text 118
4.4 Summary and conclusions 122
Exercises 123
Further reading 125

ix

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x Contents

5 Text and cognition I: Text comprehension 126

5.1 Cognitive stylistics 126
5.2 Schema theory 127
5.3 Figure and ground 133
5.4 Cognitive metaphor theory 138
5.5 Summary and conclusions 148
Exercises 149
Further reading 151

6 Text and cognition II: Text processing 152

6.1 The reading process 152
6.2 Text world theory 152
6.3 Deictic shift theory 157
6.4 Contextual frame theory 162
6.5 Summary and conclusions 166
Exercises 167
Further reading 169

7 Methods and issues in stylistic analysis 170

7.1 Methodological considerations 170
7.2 Stylistic studies 175
7.3 Summary and conclusions 188
Exercises 188
Further reading 189

8 Conclusions and future directions 191

8.1 Stylistics: an interdiscipline 191
8.2 New directions in stylistic analysis 193
8.3 The future of stylistics 196
Further reading 197

Answers to exercises 198

Notes to the text 207
References 210
Index 224

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Acknowledgements

‘Tailpiece’ (‘italic’) by Roger McGough from Gig (C Roger McGough 1973) is

printed by permission of United Agents (www.unitedagents.co.uk) on behalf of

Roger McGough.
‘Vinegar’ by Roger McGough from The Mersey Sound ( C Roger McGough

1967) is printed by permission of United Agents (www.unitedagents.co.uk) on

behalf of Roger McGough.
‘A Small Slaughter’, from The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde by Audre
Lorde. Copyright 1997 by The Audre Lorde Estate. Used by permission of W.W.
Norton & Company, Inc.
‘Up on the Moors with Keeper’, ‘Foreign Correspondent’, and ‘Dancing
at Oakmead Road’ by Maura Dooley from Sound Barrier: Poems 1982–2002
(Bloodaxe Books, 2002). Used by permission of Bloodaxe Books.
‘Privacy of Rain’, by Helen Dunmore, from Out of the Blue: Poems 1975–2001
(Bloodaxe Books, 2001). Used by permission of Bloodaxe Books.
‘Doorsteps’ by Pamela Gillilan from Sixty Women Poets (ed. Linda
France) (Bloodaxe Books, 1993). Courtesy of Pamela Gillilan’s estate
(www.pamelagillilan.co.uk).
‘Ironing’ from The Handless Maiden by Vicki Feaver, published by Jonathan
Cape. Used by permission of The Random House Group Ltd.
‘Favela’ from In a Rare Time of Rain by Milner Place, published by Jonathan
Cape. Used by permission of The Random House Group Ltd.
‘The Front Bedroom’ by Allan E. Baker published in Smiths Knoll issue
No. 30 (C Allan E. Baker 2003). Used by permission of the author.

‘Pain Tells You What to Wear’ by Medbh McGuckian by kind permission of

the author and The Gallery Press, Loughcrew, Oldcastle, Ireland from Selected
Poems (1997).
The extract from ‘true lovers in each happening of their hearts’ is reprinted
from Complete Poems 1904–62, by E. E. Cummings, edited by George J. Firmage,
by permission of W.W. Norton & Company. Copyright  C 1991 by the Trustees

for the E. E. Cummings Trust and George James Firmage.

‘Thoughts After Ruskin’ by Elma Mitchell first appearing in The Poor Man
in the Flesh (Peterloo, 1976), now appearing in People Etcetera: Poems New
& Selected (Peterloo, 1987). Used by permission of Harry Chambers, Literary
Executor.

xi

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xii Acknowledgements

‘If It Happens’ by Philip A. Nicholson (C Philip A. Nicholson 1990) from

How To Be Well-Versed in Poetry (ed. E. O. Parrott). Used by permission of

Campbell Thomson and McLaughlin Ltd on behalf of Philip A. Nicholson.
‘Song of the Non-existent’ by Carol Rumens from Best China Sky (Bloodaxe,
1995), reprinted in Poems, 1968–2004 (Bloodaxe, 2004) by kind permission of
the author.
‘Spring Sunshine’ by Louis MacNeice from Selected Poems of Louis MacNeice
(ed. W. H. Auden) (Faber and Faber, 1964). Used by permission of David Higham
Associates Ltd.
‘Long Distance’ by Tony Harrison from Selected Poems (Penguin, 1984) and
Collected Poems (Penguin, 2007). Used by permission of Gordon Dickerson,
literary agent, on behalf of Tony Harrison.
‘The Queen’s English’ by Tony Harrison from Selected Poems (Penguin, 1984)
and Collected Poems (Penguin, 2007). Used by permission of Gordon Dickerson,
literary agent, on behalf of Tony Harrison.
‘Prayer’ is taken from Mean Time by Carol Ann Duffy (Anvil Press Poetry,
1993).
‘Robbing Myself’ by Ted Hughes from Birthday Letters (Faber and Faber,
1998). Used by permission of Faber and Faber Ltd.
‘Poem’ by Simon Armitage from Kid (Faber and Faber, 1999). Used by per-
mission of Faber and Faber Ltd.
‘Home is so Sad’ and ‘The Importance of Elsewhere’ by Philip Larkin from
Whitsun Weddings (Faber and Faber, 1964). Used by permission of Faber and
Faber Ltd.
‘Harvest Bow’ by Seamus Heaney from Field Work (Faber and Faber, 1979).
Used by permission of Faber and Faber Ltd.
‘The Kaleidoscope’ by Douglas Dunn from Elegies (Faber and Faber, 1985).
Used by permission of Faber and Faber Ltd.
While every effort has been made, it has not always been possible to identify
the sources of all material used, or to trace all copyright holders. If any omis-
sions are brought to our notice, we will be happy to include the appropriate
acknowledgements on reprinting.

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Preface

This book, in the ‘red’ series, is one that we are very proud to have been given the
opportunity to write. We have both been teaching stylistics courses at different
levels of University education for a number of years, and have found that the
sheer variety and diversity of practice that it encompasses causes problems in
introducing the field to students for the first time. Equally, this diversity is part of
its attraction as a discipline which can interest students from all areas of English
Studies, from English Language through Literature to Creative Writing, as well
as those coming to text analysis from a Linguistics background.
There are very many excellent books on stylistics already in existence of
course, and we pay tribute to these in the pages of this book. Many of these books
have been written by significant figures in the Poetics and Linguistics Association
(PALA), which has been an extremely important player in the development of
the field. Most of these books are the product of a particular personal view
(of the author) or represent a particular stage in the development of the field, and
for this reason, we felt there was room for another, more eclectic book, which
would try to sum up the state of the art as it reaches approximately its centenary.
In planning the book, we felt that it was important to engage readers early,
but that this could not come before we had set out some of the principles of
the field as we see them. We therefore open with a chapter which approaches
theoretical questions about the nature and scope of the subject via some of the
questions that we thought new researchers might ask. Equally, though we knew
it was important to introduce readers to some of the methodological issues in the
practice of stylistics, we saw that it was difficult to introduce these until readers
had some sense of the subject through seeing it in practice. We therefore return
to these more practical questions in Chapter 7, by which time we anticipate that
readers will be in a better position to apply the advice to their work.
Between these two extremes, Chapters 2–6 are concerned with the range of
activity that we felt currently represents the field of stylistics. There are many
ways in which we could have sub-divided the field, but in the end we judged
that a reader who is new to this type of work would benefit most from learning
about the origins of stylistics, and then reading about how it has branched out and
developed from these beginnings. This is not a strict history of the subject, since
many of the early forms of stylistics still co-exist with more recent approaches.
However, in terms of the ways in which stylistics has exploited the insights,

xiii

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xiv Preface

theories and models of linguistics and other related disciplines, there is a broadly
developmental structure to this book.
One of the most significant developments in the field is probably the move
from being concerned solely with literary texts to seeing all text as having
the potential for stylistic (if not aesthetic) effect. Many stylisticians through-
out the world are still motivated largely by wanting to explain how literary effects
are achieved linguistically, but there is a large and growing number who do not
have this motivation as their sole focus and whose interest has increasingly been
on the process of reading, the interaction of text and reader to produce meaning,
and the effects of this process, whatever they may be. Such effects will differ
according to text, context and reader, so that they may include literary effect, but
can also include other more practical and/or ideological effects.
Finally, we hope that this book will work on a number of levels. It ought to work
as an introductory text book, and the extent to which it is used straightforwardly
in this way will depend on the tutor, the students and the context. In addition, we
hope that it will serve as a statement of a field reaching maturity in the early part
of the twenty-first century, and that this will not be a limiting, but an enabling
statement which will encourage future researchers to continue developing a rich
field which has come so far since the Russian formalist school of early last
century.

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