Гальперин И. Р. Стилистика английского языка

Chr. Brother, said Christian, what shall we do? The life that we now live is miserable. For my part, I know not whether it is best to live thus, or die out of hand. My soul chooseth strangling rather than life, and the grave is more easy for me than this dungeon! Shall we be ruled by the giant?
Hope. Indeed our present condition is dreadful, ...
Well, towards the evening the giant goes down into the dungeon again, to see if his prisoners had taken his counsel; ..."
In this excerpt the main peculiarities of the style of emotive prose of the puritan trend stand out clearly. Simplicity in choice of words and in syntax is the predominant feature of the language of this type of emotive prose. The speech of the characters is mainly shaped in the form of indirect discourse. When direct speech appears, it is arranged as in a play, that is, the speaker is indicated by giving his full name or its contracted form at the beginning of a line. The name is not syntactically connected with the character's utterance. It is interesting to note in passing that the yet unestablished norms of emotive prose are reflected in a combination of the syntactical arrangement of a play and that of emotive prose, as, for example, in this passage where the name of the speaker precedes the utterance as in plays, and the same name is mentioned within the direct speech as if it were introduced by the writer.
So there is a kind of mixture of two substyles, emotive prose and drama. However, when incursions of direct speech are short, they are given within the author's narrative, for example,
"...their only way would be forthwith to make an end of themselves, either with knife, halter, or poison: for why, said he, should you choose life, seeing it is attended with so much bitterness? But they desired him to let them go ..."
Another peculiarity of the prose of this period is a rather poorly developed system of connectives. The connectives and, so that, then
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are used abundantly and often in a way that does not comply with their generally accepted functions.

Bunyan's works have played a considerable role in establishing the most characteristic features of emotive prose.
Imagery, so characteristic of the belles-lettres language style in general, begins to colour emotive prose differently from the way it is used in poetry and plays of the non-puritan trend. The imagery in the "Pilgrim's Progress" is based on allegory. Allegory is akin to metaphor, but it differs from the latter by having a detinite symbolic mеаning. Allеgory in its most common form is a variety of antonomasia. Words denoting abstract notions are used as proper names. So, in the passage quoted above the name of the giant is 'Despair', his wife's name – 'Diffidence', the name of the Castle is 'Doubting Castle', the names of the pilgrims are 'Christian' and 'Hopeful.'
This type of imagery has considerable tenacity in emotive prose and particularly in plays.
The puritan influence on the language of emotive prose at this time displays what may be called an anti-renaissance spirit. This is shown in the disparagement of mythological imagery and any embellishment of language whatever. Bunyan's abstract way of treating ordinary everyday-life events and conflicts led to an abstract manner in depicting his characters. They are, as a rule, devoid of individuality. There is no typification of a character's speech, and therefore there is practically no difference between the language of the author and that of the heroes. A tendency to simplify the literary language, resulting from the derogatory attitude of the puritans to classical learning, is apparent in seventeenth century emotive prose, at least among some writers.
However, the language of emotive prose at this period, as at preceding and subsequent periods, did not progress along one line. The classical tradition and the over-use of embellishments were also alive, and can be seen at any period in the development of the English literary language, and of emotive prose in particular, in a greater or lesser degree right until the beginning of the 20th century.
The struggle between the two opposing tendencies in rendering ideas in the style of emotive prose reflects the political and religious strife between the Puritans and the Cavaliers, the name given to those who were on the side of Charles I against the Puritan Party during the Civil War of 1642 – 1652.
Among representatives of the "Cavalier" trend in literature we shall mention Jeremy Taylor, whose works, mainly sermons, are illustrative of this ornamental manner.
"... he strongly resembles Spenser in his prolific fancy and diction, in a certain musical arrangement and sweetness of expression, in prolonged description, and in delicious musings and reveries, suggested by some favourite image or metaphor, on which he dwells with the fondness and enthusiasm of a young poet. In these passages he is also apt to run into excess; epithet is heaped upon epithet, and figure upon figure; all the quaint
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conceits of his fancy, and the curious stores of his learning are dragged in, till both precision and propriety are sometimes lost," ¹
There was also a third trend in emotive prose which began to develop in the 17th century and which became more apparent in subsequent periods. Representative of this trend are Thomas Sprat and in particular John Dryden. This trend is responsible for the introduction into writing of common words and phrases known as colloquialisms. True, in 17th century emotive prose these elements were yet few. But this third trend, as it were, broke the ice and a trickle of colloquial words began to flow into emotive prose.
Thomas Sprat raised his voice against luxury and redundance of speech. He beheld "with indignation how many mists and uncertainties these specious tropes and figures have brought on our knowledge." He was all for a "close, naked, natural way of speaking, positive expressions, clear senses, a native easiness". He preferred "the language of artisans, countrymen and merchants before that of wits and scholars."²
The models of prose writing at Dryden's disposal were the colloquial manner of Bunyan and similar writers, on the one hand, and, on the other, the elaborate manner of Lyly, Sidney, Browne, Jeremy Taylor and others. Dryden retained the simple diction, and disciplined the loose everyday expressions of the former, he cut off the awkward Latinisms and long-winded elegance of the latter. The features of Dryden's prose are clarity, simplicity of sentence structure, lack of ornament, fluency and rhythm. The influence of Dryden on both emotive prose and publicists prose, which began to develop rapidly in the 18th century, was felt throughout the century. Dryden has been called the father of English literary criticism.
After the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 a new trend arose in literature which was also reflected in prose. The critical spirit was more and more taking the place of the imaginative. Emotive prose was becoming a weapon of satire and not simply a means of describing and interpreting the life of the day. This trend, materialized mainly in essays, was outstanding in the prose works of Dryden (his "Essay on Dramatic Poesy" in particular) and continued into the 18th century, where it became conspicuous.