LINGUISTIC-STYLISTIC STUDY OF HELON HABILA’S WAITING FOR AN ANGEL AND MEASURING TIME

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Department of Arts

This study is a linguistic stylistic analysis of Helon Habila‟s Waiting for an Angel (WFA) and Measuring Time (MT). The research investigates the linguistic and stylistic features in both texts and the stylistic significance of Habila‟s choice of style. The research sets out, to identify the commonalities of linguistic features recurrent in the novels. The work reviews literature on variation in language use, language of literature, style in the fields of stylistics and related works on Habila‟s novels. The framework adopted for this study is the functional perspective of language as developed by Michael Halliday (1985) with particular reference to the metafunctions off language such as ideational, interpersonal and textual. The textual metafunction is considered more appropriate for this study because it centres on language analysis in a text. For analyses of excerpts from the texts for this study the linguistic method adopted was guided by a checklist of linguistic categories adopted from Leech and Short (1981:74-90). The primary data analysed in the study consist of excerpts randomly extracted from the fictional works selected for this study. The study reveals that Habila is consistent in his style of writing as shown in the similar choice of linguistic feature and stylistic device examined in WFA and MT, excepts in a few instances. The implication is that a consistent use of linguistic forms brings about linguistic proficiency which eventually results in competence. Thus, language users who consistently employ the linguistic forms of any given language become proficient in it. This applies to speakers and learners of a language. Habila‟s styles conform to the concept of style as a choice and as a deviation. This study has been able to establish that the style of the text is manifest in the linguistic features of the text as shown in its repeated occurrence in each of the selected novels. This research reveals that Habila has been consistent in his style since there are more recurrent linguistic features in both texts than there are diversities. The concept of style as a choice is justified in Habila‟s writing in terms of consistency of occurrence of those forms since consistency is arguably a manifestation of choice. On the other hand, style as deviation is justified in Habila‟s writing in terms of non-conformity with standard usage of the language. Since language and its use is dynamic, sticking to a given form is arguably a deviation from the norm. This study confirms that linguistic-stylistics is a useful tool in the interpretation of literacy texts and by extension needs to be understood by authors as a requirement in the composition of original texts. This research in itself is not completely exhaustive, it can be improved upon and the researcher recommends that a stylo-linguistic stylistic study of the texts could be carried out and Halliday‟s model of transitivity could be considered as possible areas of academic investigation on Habila‟s novels