| dc.description.abstract | This study presents the results of a linguistic research on the use of stylistic aspects
as manifested in John Ruganda’s text the Shreds of Tenderness. The results
revealed that Ruganda’s use of these stylistic aspects enhanced his work a lot in
terms of presentation of the problem, building of the conflict and shaping of other
stylistic features in the text.
In the study, we have looked at some of the stylistic features used by John
Ruganda in shreds of Tenderness and established their effectiveness in literary
communication. The study seeks to establish the figurative tropes used in the text
and examine their roles. Moreover, the roles played by ambiguity, lexical choice,
repetition and allusion are also examined.
The research has been done through intensive reading of the text Shreds of
Tenderness. Various words, phrases, clauses, sentences and parts of the text
containing the stylistic aspects have been picked and each independently studied
using stylistics theory. After studying them, then comments are made on how these
elements are appropriately used to enhance the understanding of the text. It is
observed that the use of these stylistic features is of the essence. They help us
analyze the characters used and also get us to know the reasons why they engage
in serious conflicts. We learn of the context and the setting of the play. We are also
able to relate the episodes in the text with those in other texts, historical contexts
and also other fields in the contemporary world.
During the research, a lot of work by other researchers was reviewed. Much of it
was to do with stylistic features. Leech’s approach from A linguistic Guide to
English Poetry (1969) played a significant role in the analysis of the stylistic
features. Apart from allusion which is not dealt with in Leech’s approach, all the
other stylistic elements draw a background from Leech’s work. Allusion drew its
background from other texts.
This research was largely library based. Most of the data was drawn using
purposive sampling.
The study hypothesized that Ruganda has succeeded in the use of figures of speech
in Shreds of Tenderness. It is acknowledged that ambiguity, lexical choice,
repetition and allusion play major roles in communication in the text Shreds of
Tenderness. | en |
