Salient socio-stylistic traits of English and Arabic junior songs

Abbas Lutfi Hussein; Zahraa Ali Dawood

doi:10.21744/ijllc.v4n4.270

Authors

Abbas Lutfi Hussein Department of English Language and Literature, College of Arts, Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, Iraq
Zahraa Ali Dawood Department of English Language and Literature, College of Arts, Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, Iraq

Keywords:

Junior Songs, Lexical Level, Socio-stylistics, Syntactic Level, Figurative Devices, Belonging and Othering

Abstract

Children songs exhibit various socio-stylistic features by which song authors manufacture special constructions to enroll the new consumers within grownups world. Practically, song authors exert their effort to be very close to juniors' minds, through the mediation of fun, imagination, education, and moral conventions. They utilize children register in transferring their messages, and functionalize different linguistic levels to achieve their aims. Thus, this paper aims to examine the socio-stylistic traits of 100 junior songs in both English and Arabic languages. Making use of Fergunson (1996) approach concerning the factors affecting children communication system (register predominance), interacting with two stylistic models; Leech and Short modal's 2007 of lexical and figurative devices prospects; and Thornborrow and Wareing modals (1998) of syntactic prospects, the lexical, syntactic and figurative devices in the chosen data express different outstanding traits such as belonging, dynamism, decontextualization, dedication, and imagination. The study concludes that socio-stylistic prospects applied to both languages result in converting an introduction to the new world conventions and unconsciously grafting childhood with friendly othering world. Junior songs can be considered the first invitation was given to children in their early phase to interact grownups worlds, besides their delightful, fun and deduction effects.

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