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Prafitri dan Suhatmady, Semantic Deviation on William Blake`s Selected Poems 105

SEMANTIC DEVIATION ON WILLIAM BLAKE’S SELECTED POEMS

Wilma Prafitri Universitas Mulawarman Bibit Suhatmady Universitas Mulawarman

Abstract: In this study, we analyzed the existence and the contribution of the semantic deviations in the eight selected poems of William Blake. We tried to answer two problems : what were the semantic deviation found on William Blake's selected poems and how those deviations contributed to the meaning of the poems. Eight poems were selected from the songs of innocence and songs of experience. Furthermore, we used the qualitative content analysis which involved series of activities in analyzing document and described them based on the related theories of research. After analysing the data, we revealed the following findings: (1) the semantic deviation found on William Blake's selected poems was formed by three tropes. There were semantic oddity, transference of meaning and honest deception. (2) those deviations contributed to help the poet transmit his point of view about social condition, religious value, love and human to human relationship. They were also used to make the poems more aesthetical and dense in meaning. Keywords: semantic, deviations, poems, William Blake

Abstrak: Dalam studi ini, kami menganalisis keberadaan dan kontribusi deviasi semantik dalam delapan puisi yang dipilih dari karya William Blake. Kami mencoba untuk menjawab dua masalah: deviasi semantik apa saja yang ditemukan dalam puisi terpilih karya William Blake dan bagaimana mereka memberikan kontribusi terhadap penyimpangan arti dari puisi-puisi tersebut. Delapan puisi dipilih dari kumpulan puisi the songs of innocence and songs of experience. Selanjutnya, kami menggunakan metode penelitian qualitative content analysis yang melibatkan serangkaian kegiatan dalam menganalisis dokumen dan menggambarkan mereka didasarkan pada teori-teori yang terkait dengan penelitian ini. Setelah menganalisis data, kami mengungkapkan temuan berikut: (1) deviasi semantik ditemukan pada puisi William Blake dipilih dibentuk oleh tiga kiasan. Ada keanehan semantik, pemindahan makna dan penipuan yang jujur. (2) deviasi tersebut berkontribusi untuk membantu penyair mengirimkan pandangannya tentang kondisi sosial, nilai agama, cinta dan manusia untuk hubungan manusia. Mereka juga digunakan untuk membuat puisi yang lebih estetis dan padat makna. Kata kunci: semantik, deviasi, puisi, William Blake 106 BASTRA, Vol. 1, No. 2, Desember 2014

INTRODUCTION Shakespeare’s selected sonnets. We used The focus of this study was similar theory and the steps in conducting semantic deviation as one of linguistic this study. Concerning to the differences, deviations which occurred in the poems. we analyzed William Blake’s selected Semantic Deviation is the unconventional poems. Furthermore, we focused on combination of word phrase which can semantic deviation and find out how transmit the mind and the feeling of semantic deviations contributed to the William Blake depending on his life and meaning of poems itself. cultural background. Semantic deviations The first previous study was done consisted of semantic oddity which by Meliana Sri Rahayu Widodo (2004). It means absurdity of expression, dealt with stylistics devices in songs, transference of meaning which means the especially the songs in Psalm, whose conversion from literal meaning to forms were the same with poetry. By figurative meaning, and honest deception conducting this research, Widodo (2004) which means a sense of mispresenting the tried to find out stylistic devices and truth. Words which are indicated having syntactic deviation that occurred in the semantic deviation should be seen not songs of Psalm. Finally, through this only through the literal meaning that can research, she also wanted to find out the be found in dictionary, but by tone and theme in the selected articles of understanding the mind of William Blake Psalm. She analyzed the psalm by using such as his spiritual views, social view some theories. She used stylistic theory and educational background. Eight poems because she intended to find out the were selected from William Blake’s stylistics devices that were used in Psalm. Classic Poetry series in order to make this She also analyzed the syntactic deviation research manageable. Those poems were and lexical selection, she uses the theory The Chimney Sweeper, The Tyger, A of diction and syntax. little Boy lost, A little Girl lost, The Clod The third study conducted by and the Pebble, A Poison Tree, The Muhammad Saleem (2009). It dealt with Schoolboy and The Lamb. Those poems the form and functions of the semantic were considered as the most famous deviations existent in the language of poems of William Blake. Besides, those T.S. Eliot's celebrated poem Ash- poems were often used in teaching Wednesday. It is central to Eliot's literature. Two research questions such as artistic disposition to richly make use “What were semantic deviations found on of linguistic absurdities that ultimately William Blake’s selected poems?” and leads to the pragmatic and imaginative “How did semantic deviations contribute interpretation of the discourse which to the meaning of the poems?” will be is dubbed as the intended sense of also discussed in this study. the author. This study would explain the mechanism of the additional meanings in BASIC THEORY the poem using the theory of Geoffrey N. Study about linguistic deviations Leech in the book A Linguistic Guide to has ever been conducted by Famala Eka English Poetry (1969). Sanhadi Rahayu (2012). She investigated about Linguistic Deviation on RESEARCH METHODS Shakespeare’s Selected Sonnets. She To analyze the data, we used focused on finding the lexical deviation content analysis which is used to and syntactical deviation in characterize the content of popular books, Prafitri dan Suhatmady, Semantic Deviation on William Blake`s Selected Poems 107 work, art, and document as the subject. transference of meaning, there were some First, we prepared the data. Then we phenomena of synecdoche, metaphors, define the unit of analysis. The unit of metonymy and simile. Specifically, there analysis referred to the basic unit of text were three cases of synecdoche, two to be classified during content analysis. cases containing metonymy, eighteen After that, we develop categories and a phenomena of metaphors, and for coding scheme. Categories and a coding instance, there were two cases of simile. scheme were derived from three sources; In the third trope, honest deception, this the data, previous related studies and has been categorized into hyperbole, theories. Next, we tests the coding litotes and irony. There was one semantic scheme on a sample of text. After deviation related to hyperbole, one sufficient consistency had been achieved, phenomena of litotes and four the coding rules could be applied to the phenomena of irony. However, the entire corpus of text. After coding the finding were undergone triangulation entire set, we needed to recheck the processes and some of the data were consistency of her coding. For instance omitted because they did not fulfill the we draws conclusions from the code data requirement which the meanings are too and reports the findings. For the study to simple to be called as semantic deviation be replicable, we needed to monitor and (Plett: 2010). reported the analytical procedures and processes as completely and truthfully as Semantic Oddity possible. Semantic oddity meant absurdity or bizarreness of expression. Semantic FINDINGS oddity consisted of pleonasm, tautology, After following the procedures of oxymoron, paradox and periphrasis. data collection, we found some semantic Pleonasm and tautology divide naturally deviations from eight selected poems of into 'inanities' which convey no William Blake. In this stage, we Information in the cognitive sense and described the term of semantic deviations 'absurdities' which convey self- and the description are directed to answer conflicting information. It had to be the research question “What were emphasized that any kind of absurdity, semantic deviations found in William whether logical or factual, can rule out a Blake’s selected poems?“ and “How did particular literal interpretation, and cause semantic deviation contribute to the the reader to search for a figurative one. meaning of the poems ?” In her earlier findings, we found Pleonasm some phenomena of semantic oddity Pleonasm is an expression which is which has been classified into pleonasm, semantically redundant in that it merely tautology, periphrasis, oxymoron and repeats the meaning contained elsewhere paradox. From eight selected poems by in what precedes or follows it. Pleonasm William Blake, there were two can bee seen in the following quotation : phenomena of pleonasm, three Excerpt. phenomena of periphrasis, one line Tyger ! Tyger ! Burning Bright containing tautology, three lines (The Tyger, Line 1) containing oxymoron and three The phrase The phrase ‘Burning phenomena of paradox. Moreover, in the Bright’ contained pleonasm , since it second trope which was called as gave too much description. Burning had 108 BASTRA, Vol. 1, No. 2, Desember 2014 already stated the image. That’s why And builds a Heaven in Hell’s bright was redundant. The word 'burning' despair contained semantic feature (+ light) (The Clod and The Pebble,Line 4) (+fire). Similar with 'bright' which means Oxymoron played decisive role in full of light or shining. this line. Oxymoron disclosed contradiction between human existences. Periphrasis According to the Bible, Heaven and Hell Periphrasis is an expression which impinge on human experience. The is of unnecessary length, in that the words Heaven and hell contrasted the meaning it conveys could have been positive and negative features. In this expressed more briefly. line, Blake conveyed the message that Excerpt. even though in miserable situation as has Dare its deadly terror clasp been through by the clod, he still believed (The Tyger, Line 16) that love should be given to others. At In this line, it can be found the use of this point, the clod can make his own periphrasis. Deadly means something happiness even though in miserable filled with hate which can caused death. condition. William Blake contrasted Terror also has negative meaning. It heaven and hell to represent the refers to fear. At this point, ‘deadly happiness and misery. terror’ is periphrasis because it could be expressed more briefly. ‘Deadly terror Paradox clasp’ is used to elaborate the image of Paradox is a statement which is something big and scary. absurd because of self- evidently false. The distinction of paradox and oxymoron Tautology can be perceived from syntactical view Tautology is a statement which is and semantical view. In stylistics (for vacuous, because self-evidently true. A example in Leech :1969) the tacit tautology can also be interpreted as a assumption cases involved a syntactically syntactic variant of pleonasm. "relaxed" form of oxymoron. The Excerpt. structure A (Adj) + Not A (N) to an In what distant deeps or skies oxymoron and the structure A (N) is Not- (The Tyger, Line 5) A (Adj) or A (V) and Not A (V) to a In ‘distant deeps’ the tautology is paradox. From semantical view, paradox “distant” because it is pointless . It has more comprehensive significance. Its describes something far away. ‘Deeps’ potential force develops especially in refers to something below and ‘skies’ rhetoric of argumentative and stylistic refers to something above. By omitting inversion that deconstructs established ‘distant’ it wouldn’t change the meaning habits of thought and speech (Plett, 2010) . Excerpt. Oxymoron A little black thing among the Based on Plett (2010) Oxymoron snow disclose the contradiction in human (The Chimney Sweeper, Line 1) existence. It especially exposed the This line worked paradoxically. In discrepancy between reality and which the poet showed the contrast using appearance. a phrase describing the color or visual Excerpt. pattern. We know that snow is white, but then the poet made the reader notice Prafitri dan Suhatmady, Semantic Deviation on William Blake`s Selected Poems 109 about the little black thing. It would child who worked as a chimney sweeper. cause an initial interpretation among the The poet used the word ‘black’ because readers about this poem. at that time, all of the chimney sweeper’s body almost covered by dust from the Transference of Meaning chimney. In poetry, Transference of meaning is the process whereby literal absurdity Metaphor leads the mind to comprehension on a Metaphor happens when two figurative plane. The relation between different things were brought together figurative and literal sense can be according to the relation of meaning represented by the formula Figurative = between literal and figurative senses. Literal. According to Leech's There are several types of metaphor. The classification transference of meaning is first kind of metaphor is Humanizing classified into four types of figurative Metaphor. This sort of metaphor is language such as Synecdoche, known more familiarly as personification Metonymy, Metaphor and Simile. which ‘attributes humanity to what is not human. The opposite of humanizing Synecdoche metaphor is dehumanizing metaphor. Synecdoche is identified with a rule This metaphor ‘ascribe animal or which applies the term for the part to the inanimate property to human being’. The whole. Furthermore, synecdoche can also third is concretive metaphor. This be used for the general term which concretive metaphor makes abstraction represented the particular. concrete and physical. In addition, there Excerpt. is a synaesthetic metaphor. This What immortal hand or eye? metaphor transfers meaning from one (The Tyger ,Line 3) domain of sensory perception to another. In this case, the words “hand or Excerpt. eye” are parts of body which represented Tyger! Tyger! Burning bright the creator of Tyger. Blake used (The Tyger, Line 1) synecdoche to emphasize parts of body In this case, William Blake used a which can stand for the whole. metaphor ‘burning bright’ to describe the power and appearance of the tiger. Metonymy Commonly, we knew tiger doesn’t burn, Metonymy is a figure of speech that but in this line, the poet tried to create an consisted in using the name of one thing image of powerful and dangerous for that of something else with which it is creation associated. Metonymy can be regarded as kind of ellipsis where its obvious Simile advantage in poetry is its conciseness. In metaphor, two things are brought Excerpt. together and asserted to be one. In simile, A little black thing among the snow there are also two things brought together (The Chimney Sweeper, Line 1) but the connection is made clear to the There was a use of metonymy in reader by the use of the words ‘like’ or which the poet used the name of one ‘as’. A simile is generally more explicit thing for that of something else with than metaphor. which it is associated. In this case, ‘a Excerpt. little black thing’ was used to describe a 110 BASTRA, Vol. 1, No. 2, Desember 2014

I love you like the little bird That discrepancy between what is anticipated picks up crumbs around the door to be true and what is actually true. (A Little Boy lost, Line 7-8) Excerpt. At this point, the poet made explicit And I watered it in fears comparison using simile. It has been Night and morning with my tears indicated by the use of ‘like ‘.in this And I sunned it with smiles poem, when the boy say ‘ I love you like And with soft deceitful wiles the little bird that picks up crumb around And it grew both day and night the door’ , it could be interpreted that his Till it bore an apple bright love was identical with little bird that And my foe beheld it shine pick up crumb around the door. He could And he knew that it was mine not love beyond his natural capacity for (A Poison Tree, Line 5-12) love, just like a little bird which only has There were situational irony in the capacity to eat crumbs, not huge these lines. The poet treated his wrath as slices of bread. a growing plant. A growing plant is usually a good, positive thing, it is Honest Deception a symbol of life. It seemed ironic that a Honest deception is a sense of growing plant was being compared to a mispresenting the truth. It consisted of growing anger three tropes such as hyperbole, litotes and Excerpt. irony. Hyperbole distorts by saying too In the morning glad I see much,. Understatement by saying too My foe outstretched beneath the little, and irony often takes the form of tree saying or implying the opposite of what (A Poison Tree, Line 13-14) one feels to be the case. There was a situational irony which was clearly stated in these lines. In line Hyperbole 13, the poet felt glad or happy when he Hyperbole is an exaggeration saw his enemy’s dead body beneath the statement which is often incredible tree. It was ironic because at the same because at variance with known fact. time, a condition could be perceived as a Excerpt. good time for the poet but on the other What the hand dare seize the fire? hand it was a bad time for the enemy. (The Tyger, Line 8) Excerpt. William Blake used hyperbole in A little black thing among the snow this rhetorical question because simple Crying “weep! Weep!” in notes of words did not justice his curiosity of the woe creator of the Tyger. ‘the hand dare seize “Where are thy father and mother? the fire’ meant something which is very Say?” brave and powerful, because ordinary “They are both gone up to the hand would not dare to do that kind of church to pray” thing. In simple word, William Blake (The Chimney Sweeper, Line 1-4) tried to express that the creator of the These lines worked ironically if we Tyger is beyond normal human. read it meticulously. In the first and second line, the poet told about a little Irony black thing who cried among the snow. Irony involved a contrast between On the other hand, his parents go to the appearance and actual reality. It is a church to pray. This situation related to Prafitri dan Suhatmady, Semantic Deviation on William Blake`s Selected Poems 111 the child labor during the French The intention of the poet using revolution in which there were many Litotes in this line was to leave the reader children have been sold to work as with the question whether the chimney chimney sweepers. Many of them died sweeper was harmed or not. The word’ because the lack of food and bad working no injury’ had positive meaning such as condition. It was ironic that the parents, health or wealth. In this line the poet used who were mostly loyal catholic and very negative expression because it was more religious, do that kind of thing to their interesting rather than to use short and children. direct positive expression. Excerpt. Moreover, based on the excerpts And because I am happy and dance above, we tried to give a view that and sing William Blake was likely to use They think they have done me no unconventional word combinations to injury, transmit his idea and express his feeling. And are gone to praise God and his It could be seen from the numerous priest and King frequencies of using metaphor and other Who make up heaven of our misery literary devices. The spread of semantic (The Chimney Sweeper, Line 9-12) deviation in William Blake’s poems had These lines were ironic. From the been showed in appendices. voice of the child who worked as Semantic deviations made the chimney sweeper, his parents were poems were more aesthetical and dense clearly hypocrites for mistreating him so in meaning. By using semantic badly whilst still being able to regard deviation, the poet could tell more than themselves, as church-goers, as being the capacity of ordinary words. William moral and up-standing citizens. The poet Blake used semantic deviation to help suggested that it was 'because I am happy him transmit his ideology and suggestion and dance and sing' that they 'think they without making him too frontal which have done me no injury'. They may not were not allowed in his era. For instance, be malicious: simply misguided, or semantic deviation gave significant perhaps self-deceiving. No shred of an contribution to the meaning of the poems. excuse, however, was offered for the church to which they have gone. The CONCLUSIONS sweeper clearly implied that 'God and his We investigated the semantic priest and king' are to blame, because deviation in the eight selected poems of they 'make up a heaven of our misery'. William Blake. From the investigation, we concluded that there were two Litotes conclusions as follows. First, there were Litotes is particular kind of twelve kinds of semantic deviations understatement in which the speaker used occurred in the eight selected poems of a negative expression where a positive William Blake. They were pleonasm, one would have been more forceful and periphrasis, tautology, oxymoron, direct. paradox, synecdoche, metonymy, Excerpt. metaphor, simile, hyperbole, irony and They think they have done me no litotes. There were two phenomena of injury pleonasm, one case of tautology and for (The Chimney Sweeper, Line 10) each periphrasis, oxymoron and paradox, there were three phenomena. Moreover, 112 BASTRA, Vol. 1, No. 2, Desember 2014 there were three phenomena of synecdoche, and two phenomena for each Birch,David. 2005. The Language, metonymy and simile. For each Literature and Critical Practice: hyperbole and Litotes there was only one Ways of Analyzing Text. London : case. There were four phenomena of Routledge. hyperbole and eighteen phenomena of metaphor. 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