Stylistics: Russian Formalism & Structuralism

Russian Formalism and Structuralism were two influential literary theories that emerged in the early 20th century. Both theories had an impact on the development of stylistics, which is the study of the stylistic features of a piece of literature and how they contribute to its meaning and effect.

Russian Formalism, which emerged in the 1910s and 1920s, focused on the form and structure of literary texts and emphasized the importance of close reading and analysis. It had a significant impact on stylistics by highlighting the importance of examining the language and style of a text in order to understand its meaning and effects.

Structuralism, which emerged in the 1950s and 1960s, also had an impact on stylistics. Structuralists believed that literary texts are not simply a representation of reality, but rather they are a system of signs and symbols that create meaning. Structuralism emphasizes the importance of understanding the underlying structures and patterns in a text, and it influenced stylistics by emphasizing the importance of examining the language and style of a text in order to understand its underlying structures and patterns.

In summary, stylistics draws on many of the insights and methodologies of both Russian Formalism and Structuralism, and both theories had a significant impact on the development of stylistics by emphasizing the importance of close reading and analysis, and the understanding of underlying structures and patterns in literary texts.