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哈尔滨师范大学 学士学位论文

题 目 An Analysis of the Cop and the Anthem 学 生

指导教师

年 级 2006级

专 业 英语

系 别 英语系

学 院

学 士 学 位 论 文

题 目 An Analysis of the Cop and the Anthem 学 生

指导教师

年 级

专 业

系 别 英语系

学 院

20xx年5月

Contents

Abstract ..................................................................................................................................... 1

Key words .................................................................................................................................. 1

I Brief account of the author of the essay ............................................................................... 1

II Brief account of the essay ................................................................................................... 2

III Major theme of the essay ................................................................................................... 3

IV Linguistic presentation of the theme ................................................................................. 4

1 Lexical features and the according effects ...................................................................... 4

1.1 Nouns .................................................................................................................. 5

1.2 Adjectives ............................................................................................................ 5

1.3 Verbs .................................................................................................................... 6

1.4 Polysemy ............................................................................................................. 7

1.5 Big words ............................................................................................................. 9

2 Syntactic features and the according effects ................................................................... 9

2.1 Rhetorical questions ............................................................................................ 9

2.2 Parallelism ......................................................................................................... 10

2.3 Repetition .......................................................................................................... 10

2.4 Tense deviation .................................................................................................. 11

3 Phonological features and the according effects ........................................................... 12

3.1 Alliteration ......................................................................................................... 12

3.2 Vowels’ contrast ................................................................................................. 12

3.3 Vowels’ repetition .............................................................................................. 12

4 Semantic features/figures of speech and the according effects ..................................... 13

4.1 Simile ................................................................................................................. 13

4.2 Allusion .............................................................................................................. 13

4.3 Personification ................................................................................................... 13

4.4 Paradox .............................................................................................................. 14

4.5 Euphemism ........................................................................................................ 14

4.6 Hyperbole .......................................................................................................... 14

V Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 14

References.. ............................................................................................................................. 16

中文摘要 ................................................................................................................................. 17

An Analysis of the Cop and the Anthem

XXX

Abstract： O. Henry, one of the three most famous short-story writers in the world, enjoys equal status with Chekhov and Maupassant. Some critics called him “the founder of American stories.” This paper tries to appreciate O. Henry’s humorous, ironical and comedic writing style from linguistic perspective and to approach the critical theme of The Cop and the Anthem that the absurd society without humanity brings people spiritual agony . Linguistic presentation will be elaborated in the following 4 aspects: lexical features, syntactic features, phonological features, and semantic features. This approach further confirms that linguistic analysis can provide us with a new perspective to appreciate and evaluate literary works.

Key words: O. Henry ; the theme of the story ; linguistic presentation

I Brief account of the author of the essay

O. Henry, originally named William Sydney Porter, is a distinguished American storywriter. He wrote more than 300 short stories in his life. His stories are full of colorful characters most of whom are derived from his inclination to wander streets and parks, and to talk to people of every kind and condition. And all of his stories are ingeniously conceived, with the endings always contrary to readers' expectations. Though his stories' endings are always surprising, yet it is not beyond reason, for both ways conform well to the logic of life. He creates an original, typically American democratic form of short stories , at its best, a valuable critical awareness of life and society tellingly expressed through humor. Therefore, some critics call him "the founder of American stories". Being gifted with humor and a keen awareness of details, he objectively shows us what America looks like. As his experience shows, the majority people he met in his daily life are those lower class in society ---- clerks, policemen, and waitresses. All his stories putting together constitute a true panorama of American life, or as someone said, "The encyclopedia of American life". O. Henry's trademark is the surprising ending that each of his stories contains. He sets a story moving in one direction, and just when the reader is convinced of the general direction of the narrative, 1

the story will be completely reversed. And if we look back to the total story, the ending seems logical and plausible. As a “plot-maker”, and designer of incident, he is an amazing genius. No one can do better than him to holds the reader in “suspense”. More than that, the reader scarcely knows that he is suspended until the very close of the story. Just as turns on the lights and the whole tale is revealed in its entirety. He uses this device of dramatic and humorous effect in the short story collection The Four Million which including “The Ransom of Red Chief ”, “The Gift of the Magi ”, and “The Cop and the Anthem”, “The Service of Love”, “The last Leaf.” At the same time he uses irony and satire to disclose the essence of American society: the weak are the prey of the strong, which is regarded as the law of the jungle universally. In addition, right and wrong are confused, good and evil are disordered. Take his works as examples, “Mammon and the Archer”, “The Furnished Room” and “A Double-Dyed Deceiver”.

O. Henry, perhaps more than Maupassant, put the short story on the map. His brand of goods tapped a world market. And today you will still find him held in affection, as much as esteem, by a great many people who will not hear a word against his method and its results. For this reason I must not overlook a certain quality of lovableness about O. Henry--a quality well seen, I think, in a story such as "The Cop and the Anthem." But that quality alone could not, and does not, account for O. Henry's popularity .

II Brief account of the essay

In “The Cop and the Anthem”, a tramp named Soapy tries to get arrested so that he can spend the winter in jail, only to find that is not as easy as it used to be.

Soapy did various evil things in order to enter the prison: he ever set foot inside a café for a free meal but he failed; he ever dashed a stone into a glass but the policeman refused to accept Soapy as a clue; then Soapy successfully had a big meal in a restaurant yet he was just beaten instead of being sent to prison ; he ever lured a woman in order to be captured by the policeman but the woman was a prostitute and he failed to be captured by the policeman again; 2

then Soapy began to yell drunken gibberish ,however, the policeman disregarded him as a Yale student and pardoned him; in a cigar store he took a man’ umbrella in public yet that man was not the true owner of it, too ,thus Soapy failed again.

However, when Soapy was greatly moved by the anthem from the church and determined to start a new life, a policeman captured him for being idleness. He was tried 3 months captivity.

From these simple plots concerning Soapy, readers can sense the strong sarcastic atmosphere. The prison became a good place while the hell turned to be a heaven. Evil conducts were given lenient treatment while the good and honest were penalized. Such were the so-called democracy freedom and happiness.

III Major theme of the essay

The short story “The Cop and the Anthem” can serve as a mirror of the early 20th century social reality—a materially rich land yet a spiritually waste land. It is also the theme of appearance versus reality: things are not as they seem, nor do they turn out as expected, even under the most deceptively convincing manifestations. Irony is here the tool enabling O. Henry to switch from pathos within a single story and throughout a series of such stories; and each is designed to entertain his Sunday morning readers with the oddities he found or could imagine to exist among the lowly. Through the description of Soapy’s desperate state as to seek shelter from the cold in a prison, O. Henry depicted a picture of the misery life of the poor in a sarcastic tone. And people that belonged to the upper class, nevertheless, led a luxurious and dissipated life, forming a sharp contrast. O. Henry bitterly satirized the injustice in the capitalistic world.

IV Linguistic presentation of the theme

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Attached below is a starting passage extracted from the Cop and the Anthem, a masterpiece of O. Henry. It is devoted to the background of the story: that winter came and homeless Soapy found that he couldn’t resist the cold; therefore, he determined to violate the law purposefully so that he could end up in jail where he would live through the winter. By means of setting the background, a touch of sarcasm and sympathy run through the whole text.

From “The Cop and the Anthem” :

On his bench in Madison Square Soapy moved uneasily.(1) When wild geese honk high of nights, and when women without sealskin coats grow kind to their husbands, and when Soapy moves uneasily on his bench in the park, you may know that winter is near at hand. (2)

A dead leaf fell in Soapy’s lap. (3) That was Jack Frost’s card. (4) Jack is kind to the regular denizens of Madison Square, and gives fair warning of his annual call.（5）At the corners of four streets he hands his pasteboard to the North Wind, footman of the mansion of All Outdoors, so that the inhabitants thereof may make ready. (6)

Soapy’s mind became cognizant of the fact that the time had come for him to resolve himself into a singular Committee of Ways and Means to provide against the coming rigour.(7) And therefore he moved uneasily on his bench.(8)

The hibernatorial ambitions of Soapy were not of the highest.(9) In them were no considerations of Mediterranean cruises, of soporific Southern skies or drifting in the Vesuvian Bay. (10) Three months on the Island was what his soul craved. (11) Three months of assured board and bed and congenial company, safe from Boreas and bluecoats, seemed to Soapy the essence of things desirable. (12)

For years the hospitable Blackwell’s had been his winter quarters. (13) Just as his more fortunate fellow New Yorkers had bought their tickets to Palm Beach and the Riviera each winter, so Soapy had made his humble arrangements for his annual hegira to the Island. (14) And now the time was come. (15) On the previous night three Sabbath newspapers, distributed beneath his coat, about his ankles and over his lap, had failed to repulse the cold as 4

he slept on his bench near the spurting fountain in the ancient square. (16) So the Island loomed large and timely in Soapy’s mind. (17) He scorned the provisions made in the name of charity for the city’s dependents. (18) In Soapy’s opinion the Law was more benign than Philanthropy. (19) There was an endless round of institutions, municipal and eleemosynary, on which he might set out and receive lodging and food accordant with the simple life. (20) But to one of Soapy’s proud spirit the gifts of charity are encumbered. (21) If not in coin you must pay in humiliation of spirit for every benefit received at the hands of philanthropy. (22) As Cesar had his Brutus, every bed of charity must have its toll of a bath, every loaf of bread its compensation of a private and personal inquisition. (23) Wherefore it is better to be a guest of the law, which though conducted by rules, does not meddle unduly with a gentleman’s private affairs. (24)

1 Lexical features and the according effects

1.1 Nouns

To a large extent, the nouns employed in the text are concrete nouns, for instance, “wild geese” (2), “a dead leaf” (3), “quarters” (13), “palm beach” (14), “the Riviera” (14), etc. However, abstract nouns are also widely used here, like “rigour” (7), “hegira” (14) and “philanthropy” (22) which refer to events, “ambitions” (9), “humiliation” (22) that refers to perceptions, “arrangements” (14) for process, etc. The collective noun in the text is “committee” (8) “dependents” (18). However, concrete nouns take up a larger part of the text.

1.2 Adjectives

About 30 adjectives that appear in the text involve wide categories, as shown by the list below:

Auditory: high (2)

Stative: dead (3), endless (20), safe (12),etc

Dynamic: hibernatorial (9), assured (12), etc

Psychological: desirable (12), congenial (12), etc

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Referential: the previous night (16), etc

Evaluative: hospitable (12), humble (14), fair (5), fortunate (14), benign (19), proud (21), etc

Physical: eleemosynary (20), encumbered (21), spurting (16), etc

Intensifying: a private and personal inquisition (23), etc

Gradable: highest (9), better (24), etc

According to the data, evaluative adjectives are employed more than others. However, other kinds of adjectives are also in use, including stative adjectives, dynamic adjectives, physical adjectives and so on. From the perspective of Soapy, readers are able to see his judgment of the world.

1.3 Verbs

Dynamic: moved (1), etc

Refer to movements: fell (3), “gives” (5), “hands” (6), loomed (17), “meddle”(24), etc Refer to sound: “honk” (2), etc

Refer to psychological activities: know (2), resolve (7), craved (11), etc

Physical action: made (14), distributed (16), etc

Speech acts: scorned (18), etc

The author used many verbs to describe the heroes’ actions clearly and vividly,enhancing the sarcastic atmosphere and revealing an absurd society.

First, most verbs involving Soapy’s material process are transitive verbs. That means, for the most part, what Soapy did had a clear goal. These target goals can be classified into two classes:

Others’ possessions: cobblestone, table, beefsteak, flapjacks, doughnuts and pie, umbrella. These target objects show that Soapy was quite peeved and eager to be put in prison so he tried to irritate others on end.

His own possessions: the lady missionary’s ready-made tie, his striking cuffs, eyes, his hat, his thin coat, foot. Soapy did all these only in the hope of insult his own image. It seems that there was no better place than a prison to spend the winter. Readers can further sense the 6

essence of the so-called capitalist democracy.

However, the verbs describing Soapy’s gestures and movements are mainly intransitive verbs: turned, halted, sat, walked, stood… These intransitive verbs manifest that constant failure could not stop Soapy. On the contrary, he kept on to find new victims .

Some other intransitive verbs involve Soapy’s performance, eg. yell, danced, howled, raved. These verbs all reflects Soapy’s deliberately irritated the people and the policeman so that he could be captured.

In summary, either the transitive verbs or the intransitive verbs in relation to Soapy transfer the information to the reader that whatever Soapy did aimed at being arrested eagerly, which further reveals an absurd capitalist society, strengthening the ironic effect.

Second, the verbs in relation to the policeman involve the mental process: saw, looking, looked at… It seems that the policeman was always a looker-on. He seemed to be not only neglect of duty but also a full fool. He turned a blind eye to the real troublemaker, though he lounged everywhere and saw the evil things that Soapy did. Nevertheless, he was not hesitating to capture an innocent person. From the image of this policeman readers can see through the essence of the policeman who is said to maintain the civilization of the society as well as the essence of the so-called democracy in the capitalist society. This further reveals the society was an absurd human world without human nature.

1.4 Polysemy

“Hand” occurs six times in the story, but with different semantic meanings and in different parts of speech. By comprehending the polysemy word “hand”, readers can sense the strong sarcastic atmosphere as well as appreciate O. Henry’s ironical writing style.

(2)…and when Soapy moves uneasily on his bench in the park, you may know that winter is near at hand.

(6)At the corners of four streets he hands his pasteboard to the North Wind, …

(22)If not in coin you must pay in humiliation of spirit for every benefit received at the hands of philanthropy.

(25)The pleasantest was to dine luxuriously at some expensive restaurant; and then, after 7

declaring insolvency, be handed over quietly and without uproar to a policeman.

(26)Would never a policeman lay hands on him?

(27) Soapy felt a hand laid on his arm.

In Sentence (2), the author uses the collocation “at hand” to describe winter’s coming as if Soapy can reach the cold by hand at any moment, creating a sense of urgency. In Sentence 6, “hand” is used as a verb, meaning “pass”. In Sentence (22), “hand” carries the meaning itself as a noun. The phrase “at the hands of sb.” tells readers that the poor could receive the gift from the charity for free. However Soapy did not accept the government’s donation. As a result, on the one hand, Soapy’s characteristic is foregrounded. It seems Soapy was proud and scorned the provisions for the reason that he chose to spend the winter in jail instead of accepting the benefit from charity even though he was a tramp with nothing and the chilly winter was just around the corner. On the other hand, it implies that the conditions for the poor to receive any benefit from charity were very cruel and strict, and the applicant’s human right was invaded. Thus it is understandable for Soapy to refuse the gifts of charity and directly reflects the loss of humanity of the so-called capitalist democratic society. In Sentence (25), a set phrase “hand sb. over to” is used in a passive voice to describe Soapy’s state of mind explicitly. It seems that he was in a passive position without any alternative choice, eager to be arrested by the policeman so that he could spend the winter in jail. The prison seemed to be a good place. Contrary to Sentence (25), in Sentence (26), the phrase “lay hands on sb.” is used in an active voice which further manifests Soapy’s desire to be put into prison, enhancing Soapy’s passive position and the ironic effect. Nevertheless, at the end of the story, when he decided to be a new man, “Soapy felt a hand laid on his arm”. In this sentence, the past participle “laid” collocated with “hand” even further implies Soapy was in a passive position without alternative choice. When Soapy wanted to be arrested, no policeman did so. It seemed a dream far away for him to be sent to prison. Yet just when he was moved by an anthem and determined to start a new life he was captured by a policeman and tried for three months captivity in prison. By comprehending these words, readers can strongly sense the ironic atmosphere and an absurd society appears in front of the readers vividly.

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1.5 Big words

In Paragraph 3 and 4, the author used a number of big words deliberately to describe Soapy’s wish, forming a sharp contrast to Soapy’s humble and despaired situation. Hence O. Henry’s humorous, and ironical writing style was created. Meanwhile, readers’ sympathy for Soapy was evoked.

“Soapy's mind became cognizant of the fact that the time had come for him to resolve himself into a singular Committee of Ways and Means to provide against the coming rigour. And therefore he moved uneasily on his bench.

The hibernatorial ambitions of Soapy were not of the highest. In them there were no considerations of Mediterranean cruises, of soporific Southern skies drifting in the Vesuvian Bay. Three months on the Island was what his soul craved.”

“Big words, if used in ordinary conversation, would have a pretentious or jocular ring (Tang Ying & Qu Jing 2004:48). Soapy was a hopeless and tragic tramp. The big words are inconsistent with Soapy’s humble status. However, it is the discord register that creates the ironic effect filled between the sentences.

2 Syntactic features and the according effects

2.1 Rhetorical questions

(28) "Don't you figure out that I might have had something to do with it?"

(29) "Ah there, Bedelia! Don't you want to come and play in my yard?"

(30) "Well, why don't you call a policeman? I took it. Your umbrella! Why don't you call a cop? There stands one on the corner."

The above negative rhetorical questions express the definite meaning, reflecting Soapy’s strong desire to be arrested. However, the answers are unexpected to the questioners. In addition, Soapy used “policeman” and “cop” to refer to the same person. “Cop” is a negative word. With the policeman standing on the corner, Soapy turned to “call a cop” again in the hope of the policeman arresting him in jail. Soapy’s desire was again outstanding and further 9

reveals the fact that the prison became a good place while the hell turned to be a heaven in the capitalist society and thus enhanced the story’s ironic significance greatly.

2.2 Parallelism

When wild geese honk high of nights, and when women without sealskin coats grow kind to their husbands, and when Soapy moves uneasily on his bench in the park, you may know that winter is near at hand. (2)

Three parallel constructions are coordinated at the beginning of the story, enhancing the rhyme, as if winter was just around the corner. Thus, at the beginning of the story, the readers’ emotion, particularly the readers’ sympathy for Soapy was evoked, to pave the way for Soapy’s desire to find lodging in prison and so doing a series of evil things.

2.3 Repetition

(1) On his bench in Madison Square Soapy moved uneasily. (2) … ,and when Soapy moves uneasily on his bench in the park… (8) And therefore he moved uneasily on his bench. At the very beginning of the story, the author tells the reader that “On his bench in Madison Square Soapy moved uneasily”. Then, “moved uneasily” is repeated three times in the first and the third paragraphs to emphasis Soapy’s poor situation, evoking readers’ sympathy for Soapy.

“Move” is an ambiguous word, creating the space for imagination. We see that the bench in the park was Soapy’s unique home before winter; he could do whatever he wanted conveniently. Yet when winter came he felt uneasy on his bench. It is the ambiguity word “move” that describes Soapy’s situation of distress at “home” because of the cold weather’s coming. Therefore, he left his bench and tried to find a new “home”. This is a severe satire to the so-called happiness, freedom and democracy of the capitalized society. We may suppose if Soapy was not too poor to own a house he might not have tried to break the law to find prison as his home, which is an accusation of the society.

Besides, at the last part of the story, “he would…” was repeated 8 times. Based on the concordance of the repetition, readers may sense Soapy’ strong determination to make a man 10

of himself. This conversely strengthens the ironic implication of the story, especially on the last repetition “he would…” which shows that Soapy was captured while lost in thought without doing anything evil. Hence, an absurd society without human nature significantly appears in front of readers. Meanwhile, we can not deny O. Henry was a master of surprise endings.

2.4 Tense deviation

This story is about a past story. As is expected, the author should use the past simple tense to tell the story. In fact, the author did so in most part of the story. However, at the beginning of the story, tense was changed to the present simple tense from the past simple tense:

When wild geese honk high of nights, and when women without sealskin coats grow kind to their husbands, and when Soapy moves uneasily on his bench in the park, you may know that winter is near at hand.

Jack is kind to the regular denizens of Madison Square, and gives fair warning of his annual call. At the corners of four streets he hands his pasteboard to the North Wind, footman of the mansion of All Outdoors, so that the inhabitants thereof may make ready.

The present simple tense used here implies that such kind of situation will never be changed and that the poor will suffer forever. Therefore, it mocks the so-called democracy freedom and happiness.

But to one of Soapy's proud spirit the gifts of charity are encumbered. If not in coin you must pay in humiliation of spirit for every benefit received at the hands of philanthropy. As Caesar had his Brutus, every bed of charity must have its toll of a bath, every loaf of bread its compensation of a private and personal inquisition. Wherefore it is better to be a guest of the law, which though conducted by rules, does not meddle unduly with a gentleman's private affairs.

Here the present simple tense brings the readers to the world of Soapy, creating the impression that they were living in the same society with Soapy. Consequently, readers feel sympathy for Soapy and resentment against the so-called capitalist society.

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3 Phonological features and the according effects

3.1 Alliteration

In the first paragraph, the author uses a number of alliteration [w]. These repeated use of alliterations corresponded with each other, closely combined and forming a consonant sound chain. It seems as if readers can feel the chilly winter. The constant occurrences of the sound

[w] seem to be connected with readers’ sense of hearing. It seems that readers can hear the sounds of the wind and the footsteps of winter were getting nearer and nearer.

3.2 Vowels’ contrast

(2) …and when Soapy moves uneasily on his bench in the park (31)Women in furs and men in great coat moved gaily in the wintry air.

Sentence (2) contrasts sharply with Sentence (31), particularly when “uneasily” and “gaily” carry the same rhyme “-ly” but with nearly opposite meanings. Although quite a distance exists between the two sentences, they interact with each other. Owing to the repetition of “uneasily” in the first three paragraphs, the reader has been impressed by Soapy’s homeless situation. Therefore, when the reader reads through “gaily” ,he will think of “uneasily” naturally. The vowels in “uneasily” are all monophthongs which do not sound loud prominently, while in “gaily”, the vowel [ei] sounds loud and long, attracting readers’ attention. With a comparison between the salient different sounds, the author reveals the society’s significant inequality between the poor and the rich.

3.3 Vowels’ repetition

The moon was above, lustrous and serene; vehicles and pedestrians were few; sparrows twittered sleepily in the eaves--for a little while the scene might have been a country churchyard.

There are many words carrying vowels [u:] or [i:] in the above sentence. The repetition of the sounds is in stark contrast to the quiet moon night and soft anthem, implying that the anthem had purified the soul of Soapy, bringing a sudden and wonderful change in his soul, 12

and eased the tempo of the plot, serving as a foil to the unexpected final ending.

4 Semantic features/figures of speech and the according effects

4.1 Simile

(32) It seemed that his route to the coveted island was not to be an epicurean one. (33) Arrest seemed but a rosy dream. The Island seemed very far away. (34) He seemed doomed to liberty. (35) A sudden fear seized Soapy that some dreadful enchantment had rendered him immune to arrest.

(36) In his fancy the Island seemed an unattainable Arcadia This group of sentences forms a sentence pattern: simile, creating a strong irony effect that it seems to be a good dream far away for Soapy to be sent to prison. This conversely mocks the absurd society.

4.2 Allusion

（37）Soapy had confidence in himself from the lowest button of his vest upward. （38）Soapy stood still, with his hands in his pockets, and smiled at the sight of brass buttons.

In Sentence （37）, “button” and “vest” are concrete nouns. However, in Sentence （38）, “brass button” refers to the policeman. By using the buttons of the policeman’s uniform to refer to a person, the author creates the atmosphere of irony and humor.

4.3 Personification

The text also employs personification, which gives human form or feelings to animals, inanimate objects or ideas and abstractions. In this case, the usage of “Jack Frost” (4) and “Boreas” (12) make the text more humane and live. Furthermore, “dead” is applied to denote the leaf in Sentence (3), announcing its death of the leaf that should be lifeless. In a way, O. Henry vitalized the leaf and make preparation for the bleak atmosphere of the scene. 13

4.4 Paradox

A rather seemingly self-contradictory expression, which is a figure of speech called paradox, shows itself in Sentence (23): “A singular Committee of Ways and Means”. At the first sight, you may be puzzled, but after second thought, you might be able to acquire a different view. “Singular” refers to his being alone, and the supposition that if he went to jail, he would get company there accounts for “committee”. Here in the text, the employment of paradox gives prominence to sarcasm.

4.5 Euphemism

“A guest of the law” in Sentence (24) is an authentic application of Euphemism, a rhetorical device which is a roundabout expression for a direct one. In fact, it refers to someone who violates the law for which he is thrown into prison. But judging from the whole story, Soapy was just too willing to be put into jail. Though it may seem funny, we can still easily appreciate the irony from the euphemism employed here.

4.6 Hyperbole

Hyperbole, the deliberate use of overstatement or exaggeration to achieve emphasis, shows its appearance in Sentence (14): “his annual hegira to the Island.” Tainted with religion, the word “hegira” refers to a journey by a large group to escape from a hostile environment, which, obviously, is an exaggerated expression to emphasize his situation. Though the poverty left no choice for the man and his situation is so pathetic, O. Henry wrote it in this way that the ironic effect is achieved.

V Conclusion

This paper tries to appreciate literary work from linguistic perspective. After the study of the short story “The Cop and the Anthem”, not only can we appreciate the author’s writing techniques from linguistic perspective, but we are also provided with a motivation for reading and raising language awareness and enhancing linguistic and stylistic and literary competence. Furthermore, we can use literature as a way of increasing our knowledge of English as well as to enjoy 14

literature as to enjoy literature in English in its own right.”(Tribble/Jones 1990:78, cited in Yang Jianmei)

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[2] Leech. G . N. :Style in Fiction [M]. New York: Longman ,2003. [3]Marvin K. L. Ching, Michael C. Haley, Ronald F. Lunsford :Linguistic perspectives on literature. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data ,1980

[4] 秦秀白：英语文体和文体要略，[M]，上海，上海外语教育出版社，2002。

[5] 唐颖,曲晶：英语修辞学 [M]，吉林，吉林大学出版社, 2004。

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中文摘要

浅析《警察与赞美诗》

摘要: 欧·亨利是与契诃夫和莫泊桑齐名的世界著名的三大短篇小说家之一。一些评论家称他为“美国短篇小说的创始人”。本文将尝试从语言学角度来赏析欧·亨利幽默，讽刺，喜剧化的写作风格并进一步了解《警察与赞美诗》中所体现的那个荒诞的无人性的社会给人们带来精神痛苦的批判性主题。语言展示包括词汇特征，语法特点，语音功能和语义特征四个方面。这种方法进一步证实了语言的分析为我们欣赏和评价文学作品提供我们一个新的视角。

关键字：欧·亨利 小说的主题 语言展示

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