Types of Stylistics

• BS (English)
• Dept of English
• University of Sargodha

Hartman and Stork describe stylistics as “the application of linguistic knowledge to the study of style”.

• Hartman and Stork describe stylistics as “the application of linguistic knowledge to the study of style”.
• Geoffrey N. Leech describes stylistics simply as “the study of literary style, or… the style of the use of language in literature”.
• Mick Short asks the question, “Who is stylistics?” and describes “her” as a friend of his. He says “she” is an approach to the analysis of literary texts using linguistic description”.

stylistics could be linguistic or non-linguistic

• stylistics could be linguistic or non-linguistic
• stylistics is simply the employment of linguistic tools in the analysis and interpretation of linguistic events, including religious, sports, legal and literary discourses.
• In rather strict sense stylistics is used to denote the linguistic study of literary texts.
• Stylistics refers to the employment of the elements, approaches and procedures of linguistics to the analysis and interpretation of literary texts or events.

Katie Wales observes that stylistics, as the study of style, has the goal “not simply to describe the formal features of texts for their own sake, but in order to show their functional significance for the interpretation of the text; or in order to relate literary effects to linguistic causes where these are felt to be relevant”.

• Katie Wales observes that stylistics, as the study of style, has the goal “not simply to describe the formal features of texts for their own sake, but in order to show their functional significance for the interpretation of the text; or in order to relate literary effects to linguistic causes where these are felt to be relevant”.
• It is from these varied but interrelated notions and goals of stylistics that different types of stylistics emerge.