Presentation of Speech and Thought: A Stylistic Analysis of Oscar Wilde’s The Sphinx without a Secret

Abstract

The present paper intends to examine the significant role of the modes of Speech and Thought Presentation in Oscar Wilde’s The Sphinx without a Secret. The researchers have rigorously examined both of the modes of speech and thought presentation, and highlighted the qualities and shortcomings. The study further explores justifications for the conceivable results and methodically answer the questions: how characters’ speech and thought are presented in the story? How these modes impact readers’ perception towards the characters in the text. Microsoft Excel 2016 has been used as a data analysis tool for the investigation of the modes of presentation, alongside the conscientious survey of the structure of the text. The findings suggest that not only the writer has dramatized things but also provided more significance to the words of the characters who speak and act for themselves. It also influences the events, the characters, and the spatiotemporal setting of the story. The paper uses the theoretical framework of the two influential American stylisticians Geoffrey Leech and Mick Short.