Title: Henry James and the Pursuit of Consciousness: A Psychostylistic Study of the Beast in the Jungle
Abstract:The present study is an attempt to investigate the nature of stylistic choices that markedly appear in the literary discourse of Henry James in order to exemplify the desired aims of the author embedd...The present study is an attempt to investigate the nature of stylistic choices that markedly appear in the literary discourse of Henry James in order to exemplify the desired aims of the author embedded within these choices along with the impressions these stylistic choices create on the mind of the reader in a comprehensive framework of Psychostylistics. The surfacing of interest to enquire James in the background of Psychostylistics stems largely from Postmodernist focus on the author’s consciousness that encompasses all mental activity. Since James is such an hypnotic icon in modern American fiction whose narratives do not propose any incontestable and overtly precise interpretation, thus not only entail universal appeal but the process of construing the language structure in terms of style positing a challenge for the critic or the researcher. This literary orientation is essentially the crucial one to which the argument of this oeuvre has been directed. The formal design of the study is based on Roger Fowler’s theory of ‘mind style’. Practical analysis has been done by applying the properties of Bocketing (1994)’s model of Psychostylistics eclectically and homogeneously, which draws upon the theoretical underpinnings and critical insights provided by the theory of mind style. A three-fold perspective resulting from characteristic stylistic choices and narrative tripartite position in terms of the narrator, the narrated and the narratee has been followed to make the research more practical and applicable. From Psychostylistic perspective, The Beast in the Jungle is thoroughly an exhilarating tale of unspeakable misery and uncanny hollowness, which predominantly embodies the deep insights emerging from the vestiges of the modern world experiences encountered by the consciousness of James. The atypical setting, the chaos and the flux is the characteristic of James’ artistic world, which authorizes him to be more experimental with the conventional narrative structure in The Beast in the Jungle in relation not only to the love and loss of love but also the realization of that loss. Therefore, as an experience, James’ narrative reflects to “be the product of a highly self-conscious mind” (Ravichandran, 2005, p. 14). Moreover, it can best be defined as an exceptionally stylisticRead More
Publication Year: 2011
Publication Date: 2011-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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