The Unsaid in the Proverbs of Al-Harafish Novel: A Pragma-Rhetorical Approach
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31185/wjfh.Vol22.Iss4/Pt1.2118Keywords:
Proverbs, Pragmatics, Speech Act Classification, Rhetoric, Rhetorical DevicesAbstract
Proverbs are important elements of any language which are frequently used in every day interaction in different situations. The problem of the current study rests on the different illocutionary acts proverbs perform. Moreover, proverbs may encompass rhetorical devices which give texts their rhetorical flavors. This study aims at disclosing the most frequently used speech act type in the proverbs under focus, figuring out the most frequently utilized rhetorical devices in the proverbs and revealing the functions performed by the proverbs. The study adapts an eclectic model, namely: Searle’s model (1979) and Leech and Short’s model (2007). The conclusions arrived at are: firstly, the most repeatedly utilized speech act category in the proverbs under study is assertives. Regarding rhetorical devices, the most frequently used device in the proverbs is metaphor. Thirdly, the study also concludes different illocutionary functions used by proverbs in literary works.
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