Title: A call for formal language in poetry: a rhetorical and linguistic comparative study of Tupac Shakur's poetry in comparison to Robert Graves's

Authors: Rabab Ahmed Amin Abdel-Fattah

Addresses: Department of English and Translation, College of Science and Arts in Al-Asyah, Qassim University, P.O. Box 6666, Buraidah 51452, Saudi Arabia; Department of English, Faculty of Al-Alsun, Minia University, Egypt

Abstract: Poetry has been considered the magisterial genre of literature for all the beauties of language it renders possible. However, with the interference of informal language, the educational and enlightenment roles of poetry are underestimated. The researcher compares selected poems of Robert Graves to selected poems of Tupac Shakur. Graves is particularly chosen for his unique indifference to fashion. This indifference has created the individuality he was well-known for. Adherence to poetical norms was never a flow for him, rather an indication that creativity knows no boundaries. On the other hand, Shakur's poetry represents a transformation of poetry into a form that is stuffed with informal elements of language. Even though, his poetry is amongst the most celebrated. The purpose of this research is a call for an awareness of using informal language in writing poetry for it is very likely to devalue that genre, and the pristine message it seeks at presenting.

Keywords: formal language; Robert Graves; Tupac Shakur; compositional semantics; nominalisation; lexis; syntax.

DOI: 10.1504/IJART.2020.109805

International Journal of Arts and Technology, 2020 Vol.12 No.3, pp.254 - 265

Received: 08 Nov 2019
Accepted: 08 Jun 2020
Published online: 24 Sep 2020 *

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