Uhakiki Wa Mtindo Katika Tamthilia Za Arege

Abstract

Stylistic studies as a field of study is not only bound to describing literary works but also to offer the most significant function of interpreting them. This in turn enables scholars to decode the meaning or meanings conveyed in the texts. Though not the only way of rendering literary works more meaningful, style contributes greatly to their appreciation and relevance. As much as this is the fact, literature review has revealed that few researches do recognise style as the determinant of interpreting meaning in literary works. As such, this research aimed at analyzing style in Arege’s three plays with an aim of enhancing their appreciation. The study was guided by three research questions namely: i) What are the salient stylistic features employed by Arege in the three plays? ii) What is the significance of the stylistic features on the themes in the plays? iii) How do the figures of speech impact on the message conveyed in the three plays. The literary works of Arege used in this study are his three plays namely: Chamchela, Mstahiki Meya and Kijiba cha Moyo. The study employed purposeful sampling in selecting the three plays to represent Arege’s literary world. The study relied on the stylistic theory advanced by Leech (1969) and its tenets enabled the researcher to answer the three research questions effectively. Basically, this theory aims at exploring the way language is used to bring up aesthetic value in literary texts. The study was library based where close reading of texts and other resourceful materials was done based on the research questions to obtain data for analysis. Data collected was based on two levels of style: the syntactical and the semantic. Content analysis technique was used in analyzing data collected and research findings were presented descriptively in accordance with the research questions. Data analysis reveals that style impacts heavily on the message conveyed by the author. It was discovered that Arege relies heavily on irony in explaining the plight of African people under neo-colonialism. Arege uses irony to rebuke African leaders with the intention of awakening them from their ignorance which is the greatest undoing in the development yearned for, in African states. The study is of great significance to scholars who have interest in Kiswahili literature and more so to those with special interest on stylistics for they will be able to understand and appreciate the plays in context. It will also be an inspiration to new researchers to embark on studying style in other literary works with an aim of understanding them. The study is also an inspiration to the upcoming writers since it will enable them understand the various stylistic devices they can use to weave their works and hence come up with better works in the literary world.