The Importance of Being Earnest: Plot, Characters, and Themes
The Importance of Being Earnest: Plot Summary
Act 1: London Deceptions
The story begins in London, at Algernon Moncrieff’s house. Jack Worthing visits Algernon, but Algernon calls him ‘Ernest.’ Jack explains that in the countryside, he is known as Jack, but when he comes to London, he pretends to be his imaginary brother, Ernest. This way, he can enjoy city life without damaging his reputation. Gwendolen Fairfax, Algernon’s cousin, arrives with her mother, Lady Bracknell. Jack proposes to Gwendolen,
Read MoreUnderstanding Textual Cohesion and Lyric Poetry Genres
Cohesion is revealed in the relationships between different segments of the text. His absence could lead to misinterpretation, and even that is incomprehensible. It is equivalent to the textual syntax. Mechanisms that facilitate textual cohesion:
- Textual reference: It is in the text when an item refers to something already stated in the same (anaphora) or appears (cataphora).
- Ellipsis: Occurs when the text deletes linguistic elements that can be understood.
- Deixis: It has a signaling function. The
Child Language Development Stages & Brain Areas
Language Development
Phonological Development
The child passes through different stages until age 6.
Prelinguistic Stage (Birth to First Words, 0-12 Months)
The child makes sounds involuntarily, such as sneezing and burping, and then emits gurgling cries and guttural sounds. From 3-4 months, the child emits sounds like voluntary babbling, developing simple, reduplicated, and finally variegated babbling, which is not quite yet close to the first words.
Language Phase (12 Months – 7 Years)
The babbling
Read MoreUnderstanding Politeness in Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis
Politeness: A Pragmatic Phenomenon because it deals with the speaker’s intention. Lakoff: Be clear (Grice’s maxims of conversation), be polite (don’t impose: less cost by indirect form), give opinions (hedges relax conditions), and make the addressee feel good (appropriate formality). Leech: Theory of effective use of language (interpersonal rhetoric). TACT/GENEROSITY (cost/benefit), APPROBATION/MODESTY (praise/dispraise), agreement (disagreement and agreement), sympathy/antipathy, sympathy.
Read MoreKey Literary Devices and Figures of Speech Defined
Synecdoche
A figure of speech using a specific name, appellation, or nickname for the person or thing itself. E.g., ‘the Apostle’ for St. Paul; ‘a Nero’ for a cruel man.
Allegory
A narrative or description in which characters, places, and events represent abstract qualities or ideas. Example: The blindfold and wings of Cupid are allegorical.
Hyperbole
A figure of speech involving exaggeration for emphasis or effect, increasing or decreasing what is spoken of.
Irony
A rhetorical figure expressing the opposite
Read MoreMastering Textual Properties for Effective Communication
Linguistic Fitness in Communication
Linguistic diversity signifies that language is neither uniform nor homogenous; it possesses variations depending on many factors such as geography, history, social group, etc. (e.g., ‘bus’ vs. ‘coach’). Furthermore, within the same dialect, language offers distinct registers: formal, colloquial, specialized, and so on. For example, consider ‘work’ (colloquial), ‘do’, ‘perform’, or ‘produce’. While potentially synonymous in certain contexts, they carry different
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