BASIC TECHNIQUES OF PORTRAYING IN FICTION (A CASE STUDY OF J. STEINBECK “OF MICE AND MEN”)

Abstract

Introduction. The philological analysis of verbal and artistic descriptions of the characters’ emotional state can help profoundly identify those qualities that contribute to the characterization of the literary character and the main idea of the work as a whole.

Purpose. The research aims to shed some light on the linguistic and stylistic means that will contribute to creating the psychological portrait of the main character in the literary text. To accomplish the task we need to figure out the most powerful techniques the author uses and thoroughly explain the intentions of the author while creating the psychological portrait of the personage.

Methods. The list of methods used in the research is diverse. Amongst the most efficient are the method of induction and the method of synthesis. The contextual analysis of linguistic units is viewed yet as one of paramount importance. This study is important in terms of its practical and theoretical value. The research can be practically used to deal with linguostylistic analysis of the literature.

Results. Skillfully written psychological portraits have been used to focus on deep psychological meaning of the novel “Of Mice and Men”. The main idea of the novel is the motive of friendship, on which the description of characters is based. Meanwhile, creating the personages’ characteristics, the author used the means of identifying the description of the environment and emotions of characters. Thus, the psychological portraits of the images of George and Lenny were created with the help of linguo-stylistic means and poetic devices. Regarding the latter, they included a discrete group portrait and a description of nature to emphasize the similarity of the characters of the heroes, as well as to show a striking contrast in their appearance. The most commonly used linguo-stylistic means are: comparison, personification, epithets, metaphors, and zoomorphic comparison.

Conclusions. Linguistic and stylistic means play an important role in creating a psychological portrait of a literary character. Linguistic expressiveness and brightness of utterances are achieved not only due to expressive stylistic and evaluative-stylistic components, but also due to the fact that words and phrases can acquire figurative meanings, be part of stylistic figures that provoke the creation of figurative meaning. To create a psychological portrait, various linguistic and stylistic means are used, such as epithet, metaphor, metonymy, oxymoron and others, which help to reveal the essence of the characters, recognize their inner world and the way they think and act.