44SEMANTIC AND STYLISTIC ASPECTS OF LITERARY
DIALOGUE
Gulhayo Abdug'affar qizi Abdug'affarova
Uzbekistan State University of World Languages agulxae@mail.ru
ABSTRACT
In this article, peculiarities of literary dialogue are revealed from the position of semantics and stylistics. For this, literary dialogues were extracted from the works of the well-known English and American writers. According to the analysis, various psychological emotions and feelings are through the semantic and stylistic analysis of the fictional dialogue. The examples are about personages who have difficult life, who have foolish mistakes, who is ready to sacrifice and others.
Keywords: literary dialogue, semantic, stylistic, personages, direct speech, emotiveness, inner dialogue.
INTRODUCTION
The role of dialogue in the literary text is of great importance since it reflects and characterizes the linguistic personality of the character. As the theme of the dissertation is connected with literary dialogue, it is expedient to mention the peculiar features of the dialogue itself. The word dialogue is derived from Greek word dialogos that means "through speech". A dialogue is a conversational exchange between two or more people either in a spoken or a written form. In fictional texts, dialogue is a written exchange of talk between two characters or among a group of personages. There are two types of dialogue of literary text, inner and outer dialogue. Inner dialogue is the conversation between the personages. By this way, they demonstrate and reveal their personalities. Outer dialogue is the dialogue between the author and the reader it is used nearly in all literary texts.
LITERATURE REVIEW AND METHODOLOGY
The notion of dialogue is defined differently by some scholars. To illustrate, famous scientist David Bohm describes this notion as "a stream of meaning flowing among and through us and between us". The next definition of dialogue was provided by D. N. Walton. The author defines the dialogue as a speech act exchange between two speech partners in the sequence of turn-taking with a cooperative ambition. The
dialogue is considered to be coherent because the partners' speech acts fit together in order to reach their goal.
It is essential to mention that all types of dialogue serve for general purpose, that to exchange and provide interlocutor with some information. As the topic of the article is related to literary dialogue, the main distinguishing features of everyday dialogue and literary dialogue should be outlined. Firstly, everyday dialogue is a spontaneous one whereas the literary dialogue is constructed by the narrator deliberately. Everyday dialogue is characterized by peculiar features of oral type of speech. It means the usage of colloquial words and expressions, simple structures, one-member sentences, unfinished sentences, interjections and others.
As for literary dialogues, they are more organized and logically connected, and fulfill different pragmatic functions. It should be mentioned also that everyday dialogues are based on the principles of co-operation worked out by G. Grice. However, literary dialogues though on the whole follow the principles of cooperation, nevertheless, very often violate these principles. To illustrate, the postulate of quantity this in the literary dialogue is not strictly observed. It is clear that literary dialogue is characterized by different forms of redundancy such as repetitions, synonyms, convergence of stylistic device.
On the other side, an important semantic segment of the literary text is that the personages speak to each other: the dialogues simulated by the author enable the reader to get acquainted with events, the way of thinking of the personages and relationships between them.
Direct speech is considered as a peculiar norm of the representation of dialogues in the fictional text, highlighting its dramatic character and characterizing personages in an axiological light. According to I.A. Kudryashev, literary dialogue performs the following functions in the text:
1. interrupts the flow of the general narrative, slows down the development of the plot, and concentrates the reader's attention on a certain event, the estimated attitude of the characters to these events;
2. reveals personages' traits in accordance with their speech behavior, provides the reader with an opportunity to judge the personalities of the characters based on what other characters tell about them and how they react to what has been said about them;
3. creates a pragmatic background for the formation of readers' impressions of the historical situation, actualized in the narrative: information revealed in dialogical
relationships sheds light on the moods and problems, material and spiritual values of society, whose life is reflected in the text.
4. contributes to the development of the plot: what the characters say to each other can be regarded as an important part of the unfolding of the storyline of the narrative, since the plot is realized not only in the narrative segments of the text, but also in the dialogue of the characters.
With regard to the last function of direct speech, even though the literary dialogue contributes to the development of the plot, its main semantic function is regarded as presenting the psychological characteristics of the characters' personalities.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The role of dialogue in the literary text is of great importance since it reflects and characterizes the linguistic personality of the character. In fictional texts, dialogue is a written exchange of talk between two characters or among a group of personages. There are two types of dialogue of literary text, inner and outer dialogue. Inner dialogue is the conversation between the personages. By this way, they demonstrate and reveal their personalities. Outer dialogue is the dialogue between the author and the reader it is used nearly in all literary texts.
If we speak about semantic and stylistic levels of a dialogue, it is expedient to say that this aspect reveals the inner psychological state of personages, their feelings and emotions. Let us turn to the analysis of the following example taken from The Broken Boot by John Galsworthy. The story is about an infamous actor who is suffered from unemployment and poverty several years:
He was alone. Alone with his heart, his boot, his life to come... "And what have you been in lately, Mr Caister? " "Nothing very much lately. Of course I've played almost everything." "Quite so. Perhaps you'll leave your address; can't say anything definite, I'm afraid." "I—I should—er—be willing to rehearse on approval; or—if I could the part?" "Thank you, afraid we haven't got as far as that." "No? Quite! Well, I shall hear from you, perhaps." And Caister could see his own eyes looking at the manager. God! What a look!... A topping life! A dog's life! Cadging— cadging—cadging for work! A life of draughty waiting, of concealed beggary, of terrible depressions, of want offood! (J.Galsworthy, "The broken boot").
This dialogue expresses emotional state of the personage's loneliness, tiredness and unluckiness that he had difficult and harsh life. High emotiveness is provided by exclamatory sentences (No? Quite!, God!, What a look!, A topping life!), metaphor (A dog's life!), repetition (Cadging—cadging—cadging) emotional words (terrible
depressions, beggary, ). In addition, inner dialogue is also expressed here. The character's words (topping life, cadging for work, draughty waiting, want of food) demonstrate the character's psychological state of despair and depression of the personage.
The next example, illustrated by "The Happy Man" by W. S. Maugham, also depicts that the character is not satisfied with his life. The story is about the man, who got bored from routine life and decides to go to Spain leaving all his permanent job. The dialogue is as follows:
"I hope you won't think it very odd for a perfect stranger to talk to you like this." He gave an apologetic laugh, " I am not going to tell you the story of my
life.......I was brought up by two old aunts. I have never been anywhere. I have
never done anything. I have been married for six years. I have no children. I am a medical officer at the Camberwell Infirmary. I can't stick it anymore. " (W. S. Maugham, "The Happy Man")
As we understand from the dialogue, the personage is dissatisfied with the life and the tediousness of his life makes him search for a new adventure. He used to live routine life. His speech conveys emotiveness expressed by full of stylistic devices like repetition (I), parallel construction and gradation (I have never been anywhere. I have never done anything.). The usage of gradation reveals the character's dissatisfaction, nervousness and irritation as the emotions grow.
And the next illustration taken from "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen, describes the character's personality. The novel is about the young lady who loved the man, but they do not wish to admit their love because of pride. Look at this example that how Elizabeth realizes her arrogance:
"How despicably I have acted! I, who have prided myself on my discernment! I, who have valued myself on my abilities! I who have often disdained the generous candor of my sister, and gratified my vanity in uselessness or blamable mistrust! How humiliating is this discovery! Had I been in love, I could not have been more wretchedly blind! But vanity, not love, has been my folly. Pleased with the preference of one, and offended by the neglect of the other, on the very beginning of our acquaintance, I have courted prepossession and ignorance, and driven reason away, where either were concerned. Till this moment I never knew myself." (J. Austen, "Pride and prejudice")
In this dialogue, it can be known that Elizabeth's attitude and actions toward Mr. Darcy are not appropriate because of her pride and prejudice. She realizes she was wrong by not believing Mr. Darcy, by irritating from him, by considering him a
bad person. At the end she comprehends how foolish she was. Her speech is remarkably very emotive. She uses repetitions (I, who have valued myself on my abilities! I, who have), exclamatory sentences (How despicably I have acted!, Had I been in love, I could not have been more wretchedly blind ), inversion (Had I been in love, I could not have been more wretchedly blind! But vanity, not love, has been my folly)and full of emotionally coloured words (despicably, discernment, candor, humiliating, wretchedly, ignorance).
Another case taken from O. Wilde's "The Nightingale and the Rose", which is about love and the bird which sacrifices for love. This dialogue reveals remarkable traits of the personages:
"If you want a red rose," said the Tree, "you must build it out ofmusic by moonlight, and stain it with your own heart's blood. You must sing to me with your breast against a thorn. All night you must sing to me, and the thorn must pierce your heart and life-blood must flow into my veins, and become mine."
"Death is a great price to pay for a red rose," cried the Nightingale, "and life is very dear to all. It is pleasant to sit in the green wood, and to watch the Sun in his chariot of gold, and the Moon in her chariot of pearl. Sweet is the scent of the hawthorn and sweet are the bluebells that hide in the valley, and the heather that blows on the hill. Yet Love is better than Life, and what is the heart of a bird compared to the heart of the man?" (O. Wilde, "The Nightingale and the Rose")
In this dialogue, the characters are the rose tree and the nightingale. The tree wants to make the bird sacrifice her life for just only one rose. The nightingale should sacrifice her life with blood. The speech of the rose tree is full of emotions and cruelty of the tree is described by the following words: heart's blood, breast against a thorn, all night you must sing, life-blood must flow veins. And according to the speech of the nightingale, we may feel that the bird is very brave and kind. She is ready to give her life for love. It is evident that the nightingale really appreciates and aggrandizes the notion of Love. Highly imagery and emotiveness of the bird's speech is achieved by several stylistic devices like antithesis (Death and Life, heart of a man and heart of a bird), metaphor (chariot of gold, chariot ofpear, bluebells hide in the valley) and inversion (Sweet is the scent of the hawthorn ant sweet are the bluebells that hide in the valley, and the heather that blows on the hill.).
The next illustration is taken from The Picture of Dorian Gray, which is about the young man who is extremely pride with his beauty and as a result, he becomes criminalist. This dialogue demonstrates how personages are of opinion about the notion of beauty and how different their attitude toward life.
"Yes, Mr. Gray, the gods have been good to you. But what the gods give they quickly take away. You have only a few years in which really to live. When your youth goes, your beauty will go with it, and then you will suddenly discover that there are no triumphs left for you, or have to content yourself with those mean triumphs that the memory of your past will make more bitter than defeats. Every month as it wanes brings you nearer to something dreadful. Time is jealous of you, and wars against your lilies and your roses. You will become sallow, and hollowcheeked, and dull-eyed. You will suffer horribly. Realize your youth while you have it. Don't squander the gold of your days, listening to the tedious, trying to improve the hopeless failure, or giving away your life to the ignorant, the common, and the vulgar, which are the aims, the false ideals, of our age. Live! Live the wonderful life that is in you! Let nothing be lost upon you. Be always searching for new sensations. Be afraid of nothing. "(O. Wilde, "The Picture of Dorian Gray")
In this example, the speech is taken from the dialogue held between Lord Henry and Dorian Gray. It is apparent from the dialogue that Lord Henry is witty, frankly and ready for saying didactic and edifying phrases about life (what the gods give they quickly take away. You have only a few years in which really to live. When your youth goes, your beauty will go with it). According to his view, beauty is not eternal and forever, and youth also is lost when time passes. One day everybody will get older because nothing is forever in this life (Time is jealous of you, and wars against your lilies and your roses). The emotiveness of his speech is realized by exclamatory sentences (Live! Live the wonderful life that is in you! Be always searching for new sensations, Be afraid of nothing), metonomy (wars against your lilies and your roses) and metaphor (the gold of your days) and others.
The next sample is taken from The Painted Veil of S. Maugham, which is about the woman who cheated her husband with his boss, but later loves her husband because of his generosity and care. The dialogue demonstrates how a man loves Kitty despite her shortcoming and mistakes.
"Do you know why I married you ? "
"Because you wanted to be married before your sister Doris." It was true, but it gave her a funny little turn to realize that he knew it. Oddly enough, even in that moment of fear and danger, it excited her compassion. He faintly smiled.
"I had no illusions about you," he said. "I knew you were silly and frivolous and empty-headed. But I loved you. I knew that your aims and ideals were vulgar and commonplace. But I loved you. I knew that you were second-rate. But I loved you. It's comic when I think how hard I tried to be amused by the things that amused
you and how anxious I was to hide from you that I wasn't ignorant and vulgar and scandalmongering and stupid. I knew how frightened you were of intelligence and I
did everything......I was enraptured when now and then I thought you were pleased
with me or when I noticed in your eyes a gleam of good-humoured affection. I tried not to bore you with my love; I knew I couldn't afford to do that and I was always on the lookout for the first sign that you were impatient with my affection. What most husbands expect as a right I was prepared to receive as a favour."
This dialogue is so emotive that Walter speaks honestly all to his wife. His speech is full of repetitions (several times of But I loved you, I knew that,), metaphor (gleam of good-humoured affection,), irony (aims and ideals were vulgar and commonplace.), and others. It is evident from the dialogue that Walter adored her despite her failings, and he did not expect a lot from her (I knew I couldn't afford to do that and I was always on the lookout for the first sign that you were impatient with my affection). To live with her was just enough for him. However, Kitty did not have pure love to husband.
CONCLUSION
In abovementioned examples, different psychological emotions and feelings are investigated through the semantic and stylistic analysis of the fictional dialogue. The examples are of various personages who have challenging life, who have foolish faults, who are ready to sacrifice. From this perspective, it is expedient to say that this aspect reveals the inner psychological state of personages, their feelings and emotions in semantic and stylistic levels of a dialogue.
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