Format: MS WORD | Chapter: 1-5 | Pages: 65-80 | .
GRAPHOLOGICAL FOREGROUNDING IN CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE’S PURPLE HIBISCUS
Abstract
There is a symbiotic relationship between language structure and language function, which is particularly
exploited by literary artists to relate language forms deployed in their texts to their intended messages and visions. This is possible because of the inherent elasticity or malleability of language as a communicative tool
which can be shaped or conditioned by the social or discourse situation. With M.A.K Halliday’s Systemic
Functional Grammar as the analytical template, this study, therefore, discusses the paralinguistic devices such as
length of the text, paragraph structure, punctuation marks, topography, etc, utilized by Chimamanda Adichie to
complement verbal signifiers and foreground critical and strategic aspects of meaning in relation to context of
situation and textual function in her Purple Hibiscus. The study adumbrates the fact that paralinguistic resources
of language have pragmatic force, in the sense that they help writers to capture contextual or stylistic meaning,
enhance textual appeal, and also aid scholars/readers to conveniently comprehend and interpret the ideological contents or propositions contained in their texts. It, therefore, concludes that any explication of the meaning of
literary texts without due and careful recourse to the subtle nuances of graphological patterning, is less than
adequate.
Keywords: Graphological foregrounding, Purple Hibiscus, Systemic functional grammar, Stylistic meaning,
Social context
Introduction
Essentially, writers deploy diverse ways not only to encode and disseminate their artistic vision and message, but
also to achieve formal beauty in their texts. This is because the hallmark of a good writer, that is, what makes him to stand out from the crowd, is contingent both on the ideological content and propositions of his work as much as
his stylistic peculiarities or distinctions and the extent to which both aspects (i.e content and container) relate.
This thesis explains why writers take advantage of the elasticity of language in sundry ways in their discourses, in
the sense that “language implies the availability of an internal structure which makes it possible for the writer or
speaker to construct texts that are not only coherent but also situationally appropriate” (Adeyanju, 2008:87). In
addition, the thesis also explains why writers employ various paralinguistic devices to complement linguistic
choices, make meaning more precise and graphical, as well as enhance the aesthetic texture and appeal of their
texts.
Amongst the latter set of stylistic resources highlighted above (i.e paralinguistic devices), are graphological
elements or patterns which are of the visual dimension of language use, such as italicization, capitalization, punctuation, indentation, etc. These paralinguistic resources help writers to capture particular pragmatic senses in
texts and aid the readability, comprehension and interpretation of linguistic forms in given situational or textual
contexts. According to Adegoju (2008:160), Graphology concerns such matters as spelling, capitalization,
hyphenation, a text’s layout, lists, font choices, underlining, italicization, paragraphing, colour, etc which can all
create different kinds of impact, some of which will cause the reader to react differently.
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Ngara (1982:17) echoes a similar viewpoint when he observed that graphology covers such areas as the layout of
the text, colour, shape of the printed marks, punctuation, paragraphing and spacing, etc. Short (1996:54-57) adds
that splitting of a word to separate letters, writing all words together without orthographical spaces, etc, are also
graphological patterns or symbols. Etymologically, the term has Greek roots-‘grapho’ meaning writing and
‘logos’ meaning word and, in its more known sense, it focuses on or deals primarily with handwriting. The term
has, however, become very crucial and strategic in linguistic circles, particularly in descriptive stylistics and its
use has extended to the study of all subtly meaningful symbols and signs, including pictorial devices, which help
authors and writers to communicate messages. It is apparently most effective and applicable to an ideophonic language like English whose writing system largely depends on a set of symbols and signs.
According to Alo (1998:5), the descriptive study of style rests on the analysis of language resources which can be
found at the various levels of language description including the following:
i. Phonology (sounds/sound effects)
ii. Lexis (word usage and diction)
iii. Grammar (word and sentence structure)
iv. Semantics (units of meaning)
v. Graphology (orthography or writing system)
vi. Pragmatics (language for action or getting things done).
Graphology is, thus, a level of linguistic analysis which focuses on the layout of texts, the size or shape of words
and any other feature that is graphical or orthographical. It is a fundamental and crucial way of paying close
attention to the visual images and diagrams in a text which help to encode, extend or modify its signification. In
other words, it is a paralinguistic approach to the explication of textual meaning, since it focuses essentially on
non-verbal aspects of texts, such as form and visual appearance which carry pragmatic force, that is, which yield
their meaning by distinctive situational use within a particular social framework.
Foregrounding, on the other hand, refers to any attention-catching device in a text, including lexical or structural
repetition, coupling, collocation etc, which makes parts of a text to stand out in specific contexts. The term
traverses the entire gamut of discourses and presupposes any deliberate device, linguistic or paralinguistic, which
authors and writers deploy to emphasize or make prominent a particular aspect of a text. It is a major component
of arts criticism, helping arts scholars to distinguish between the background and foreground of paintings.
According to the Online Wikipedia, the term was first associated with Paul Garvin in the 1960s, who used it as a
translation of the Czech word ‘aktualizace’, a concept that was introduced by the Prague School structuralists of
the 1930s. Instructively, the latter see it as the major distinguishing element between poetic language and nonpoetic
language, in the sense that it makes a text to be unique and catchy. According to Leech (1969),
foregrounding manifests in linguistic parallelism and linguistic deviation and can be studied from lexical,
grammatical, phonological, semantic and graphological angles. Leech and Short (2007) are of the view that there
are essentially two kinds of foregrounding viz: quantitative foregrounding, which deals with frequency of
occurrence of a particular textual feature; and breaking the language code or rule. Yankson (1987:3) alludes to the
latter kind of foregrounding (i.e violation of language codes) when he defined the concept as “… the aesthetically
intentional distortion of the linguistic components of a text.” According to this scholar (Ibid), “the normal
language code is the background. Any deviation from the norm-the code- is the foreground, because it brings the
message to the forecourt of the reader’s attention”. In the same vein, Halliday (1973:98) describes the term as
“motivated prominence” given to a particular textual feature, in the sense that it covers all the linguistic and
paralinguistic strategies used by literary artists or other authors to make parts of a text prominent which contribute
substantially to their cumulative meaning, and attract the attention or close scrutiny of scholars and readers alike.
According to this scholar (Ibid), there are two main types of foregrounding: parallelism can be described as
unexpected regularity while deviation can be seen as unexpected irregularity. As the definition of foregrounding
indicates, something can only be unexpectedly regular or irregular within a particular context. This context can be relatively narrow, such as the immediate textual surroundings (referred to as a ‘secondary norm’).
No doubt, foregrounding is a relevant, even indispensable, strand of textual texture, particularly of literary texts,
by its very nature and function, as outlined above. Babajide (2000:131) highlights the relevance of foregrounding
in graphological analysis inter alia: Foregrounding is a major device in the graphological aspect of a text. This
simply means bringing a certain item to the fore. Foregrounding manifests in different forms such as
capitalization, italicization, asterism, underscoring and all sorts of signs and symbols used to demand attention.
International Journal of Language and Linguistics ISSN 2374-8850 (Print), 2374-8869 (Online) Vol. 1, No. 2; December 2014
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Specifically, therefore, the present study focuses on graphological elements which have been deliberately
deployed by Chimamanda Adichie to draw attention to critical and strategic aspects of meaning in her Purple
Hibiscus. The idea or rationale, as we have highlighted above, is to demonstrate the fact that there is an “intrinsic
connection between visual appeals and meaning interpretation” in texts and that, The appropriation and
interpretation of meaning in discourse are not entirely dependent on the use of formal linguistic elements.
Graphological elements also serve as visual aids to the encoding and decoding of the meaning of linguistic units.
(Adegoju, 2008:157).
In other words, the present study discusses the graphetic patterns deployed in Adichie’s text to show their
communicative or stylistic value as elements of foregrounding, in the sense that there is a semantic link or bond
between linguistic elements and the visual or graphological elements used in the text, as both complement each
other.
Theoretical Foundations
Over the years, the linguistic style of writers has been a subject of intense enquiry by scholars. The Russian
formalists and Prague school of the 1920s, for instance, saw style in literature as linguistic foregrounding i.e. they
placed a high premium on the language of literary texts (Hawkes, 1977; Bennet, 1979; Lemon and Reis, 1965).
The structuralists of the 1960s also emphasized the various linguistic devices used by writers to foreground
aspects of meaning. According to Fowler (1990), linguistic formalism promotes the view that there is a special
poetic language which is distinct from “Ordinary” or “scientific” language. Chomsky’s (1957) Transformational
Generative Grammar (TGG) also delineates the peculiarity of the style of writers in terms of deviation i.e. the
style of a writer or speaker is marked by constant violation of linguistic norms.
However, since this study focuses on a functional use of language, we shall adopt M. A. K Halliday’s systemic
functional grammar as the theoretical model for analysis. The interest of this grammar is not only in describing
the structure of language, but also in explaining the properties of discourse and its functions. It revolves around
the work of J.R. Firth in general and M.A.K. Halliday in particular. In Hallidayan (1971) perception, a formal
feature is stylistic if it has a particular meaning, effect or value. This notion emphasizes how language functions
in texts and the nexus between language and what it is used for, or to achieve. The critical point here is that,
whatever linguistic resource that is worth describing must be put to use, in the sense that the description and
interpretation are necessarily based on the situational variables that prompted its use. Hence Oha (1994:730)
posits that the approach recognizes the interdependency of style, meaning and context of situation and that the
latter should not be subjected to second fiddle position, or ignored, in the analysis of style.
In Systemic Functional Grammar, language structure is analyzed along semantic, phonological, lexical and
grammatical lines. Language function, on the other hand, is examined from three angles viz: ideational,
interpersonal and textual. These are referred to as the metafunctions of language. The ideational metafunction of
language is synonymous with the field of discourse i.e. the subject matter or propositional content of the text and
the context of language use i.e. is it a religious or socio-political subject? According to Adeyanju (2008:86), it “…
implies that language serves as an instrument for the encoder (speaker, writer) to express and articulate his idea
and experience internally”. The interpersonal or interactional function, at another level, refers to the tenor of
discourse i.e. the social relationship that exists among participants in a specific discourse situation, which can
influence or shape language use. According to Ogunsiji (2001:77), it “… helps to establish and sustain social
relations”. The textual aspect is particularly germane to the present study. It is concerned with the mode; the
internal organization and communicative nature of a text. Leech and Short (1985:209) see Halliday’s textual
functions of language as “… ways of using language to organize, understand and express information for effective
communication”. In Adeyanju’s (2008) view, it suggests “… the availability of an internal structure which makes
it possible for the writer or speaker to construct texts that are not only coherent but also situationally appropriate”
(p.87). The main point is that, the textual metafunction relates what is said in a text to ideas outside the discourse,
as we shall demonstrate in the present study.
Brief Biography of the Author
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born 15th September, 1977 in Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria and was educated at
the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) secondary school; her father was a Professor of Statistics and later
Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University.
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She was a student of Medicine and Pharmacy at UNN for a year and a half before leaving for Drexel University,
Philadephia, Eastern Connecticut State, University, and John Hopkins University, Baltimore.
Chimamanda Adichie is one of the most universally acclaimed and decorated African writers of her generation.
Her works include Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun, The Thing Around Your Neck and Americanah. Purple
Hibiscus won the Hurston Wright legacy award for best debut, fiction category (2004); Commonwealth Writer’s
Prize for best first book (Africa) 2005 and Commonwealth Writer’s Prize (Best first book, Overall) 2005. It was
also shortlisted for the Orange Prize for fiction (2004) and longlisted for the Booker Prize (2004), among others.
Synopsis of the Text
Purple Hibiscus is a story of Kambili, a fifteen year-old girl growing up in a stifling Catholic household in Enugu,
Nigeria. Her wealthy father, Eugene Achike, with strict Catholic doctrine, dictates to and oppresses Kambili, her
brother, Jaja and their mother Beatrice. While generous and politically active in the community, he is repressive
and fanatically religious at home. Eugene’s religious fanaticism, mercantile attitude and over-bearing nature end
up confining, incapacitating or stifling those whom he professes to love the most. He has even repudiated his own
father for refusing to convert to Catholicism and turns his grand children against him, allowing only fifteen
minutes a year with him at Christmas; but things change when Nigeria begins to fall apart under military coup.
Eugene sends his children to stay with his sister, Ifeoma, a University Professor. Here, Kambili and Jaja meet
their cousins, learns what it means to be free to speak their minds, laugh and argue. They discover a life and love
beyond the confines of their father’s authority. This new knowledge and awareness challenge their values and lift
the silence and shadow from their world and in time, give rise to devotion and defiance.
Contextualizing the Text
Purple Hibiscus captures the complex political and religious struggles occurring in Nigeria. It highlights the
country’s history and cultural experiences from her independence times. Nigeria attained her independence in
1960. This was followed by instability and series of coups which caused a great turmoil. The turmoil in the
country resulted in corruption which caused further instability and successive coups. Political unrest, chaos and
violence rage as military coups unfurl subjecting the society to tyranny. This is highlighted in the text under
“leader, Big Oga” which echoes the atmosphere of the time, symbolized by the reign of General Sani Abacha,
who took over Nigeria in 1993. During this time, there were incessant arrests and jails of critics and activists and
foremost intellectuals and educators fled the country to avoid rising autocratic rule, intimidation and deteriorating
social services. It was at this time that a celebrated writer, Ken Saro Wiwa was executed with other human rights
activists and Nigeria was suspended from the commonwealth of Nations. This is the backdrop or context against
which the story of “Ogechi Nwankiti” in the text is crafted. Abacha died in 1998 and was succeeded by General
Abdul Salam Abubakar, who attempted to restore democracy. A former General, Olusegun Obasanjo became the
elected President of Nigeria and was inaugurated in 29th May, 1999.
Adichie also touches on the rich diversity of her people and their traditions, the variety of their religious beliefs
and philosophy. She explores Western versus African cultures by contrasting the legacy of colonization – its
religions, language and customs with traditional cultural values. Devout Africans (traditionalists) who are
unfamiliar with the peculiar religious practices of others (especially |Christians) tend to be seen from a detached,
ironic point of view in Nigeria. The contemporary Nigeria has a variety of religious beliefs – christians, muslims
and practitioners of traditional religion. These are the relevant contextual situations which inform linguistic
patterning in the text.
Textual Analysis
We have already established that, in its broadest sense, graphology refers to the visual medium of language. It
describes the general resources of the written system of language, including punctuation, spelling, typography,
alphabet, paragraph structure, etc. Apart from this, as we have earlier mentioned, it can also be extended to
incorporate any significant pictorial and symbolic devices which supplement the written system. Specifically, the
present study investigates the length of the text, paragraph structure, punctuation, and typography as a result of
their strategic stylistic value as elements of signification, aesthetics and foregrounding in the text.
International Journal of Language and Linguistics ISSN 2374-8850 (Print), 2374-8869 (Online) Vol. 1, No. 2; December 2014
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Length of the Text
In Adichie’s text, the consecutive sequence of four parts is three hundred and seven pages. The first part,
“BREAKING GODS: Palm Sunday,” and the last part, “A DIFFERENT SILENCE: The Present” are the smallest
parts of the four sections, and both have equal pages of sixteen each. The second part, “SPEAKING WITH OUR
SPIRITS: Before Palm Sunday” is the largest part of the text with two hundred and thirty seven pages; and the
third part, “THE PIECES OF GOD: After Palm Sunday” has thirty eight pages. What immediately attracts
attention in this graphological device is the manner in which Adichie uses key synonymous phrases i.e. “breaking
God’s …” and “ the pieces of God…” and the antonymous words and concepts: “speaking” and “silence” in the
heading as the backdrop against which actions are delineated in the novel. The obvious fact is that this mode of
graphological patterning depicts the kernel of meaning and the contradiction or conflict that pervades the entire
text, a contradiction that borders on repression, hypocrisy and freedom. The aim of this justaposition of
antonymous lexemes is clearly to foreground the battlefield of social-cultural and socio-political values and
events in the text which is rife with abuse and despair, for as Mullany and Stockwell (2010:46) put it,
“foregrounding can be analysed stylistically as a feature of textual organization”.
Paragraph Structure
Adichie’s text also overtly uses paragraph structure and development for stylistic effect. The best or most visible
creative use of this device lies in her deformation of standard paragraphing. Adichie, in the opening paragraph of
the text, begins with the indenting of the first two lines; where the indenting of the first line of a paragraph is the
norm. Subsequently, all of her topic sentences begin with the indenting of the first two lines of the paragraph.
This device clearly reflects what has been referred to as a deliberate distortion of language or textual conventions
or codes (see Leech, 1969; Yankson, 1987; Leech and Short, 2007). The following excerpts from the beginning of