Stylistic Characteristics of Total Reduplication in Suvašun and buf-e kur

Introduction Reduplication, a morphological process in which the root or stem of a word (or part of it) is repeated (Inkelas, 2006:417), is divided into two types: a) total reduplication and b) partial reduplication. This research attempts to explore total reduplication in Persian. The question is that to what extent reduplication can be used as a criterion to specify the literary style of an author. To this end, two masterpieces of contemporary Iranian literature were selected: Buf-e kur by Sadegh Hedayat and Savushun by Simin Danshvar. Reduplication type and their frequency were specified and compared in these two masterpieces.
Theoretical Background "Sabk" (style) is an Arabic word meaning smelting and forming of gold and silver, and in literature, it refers to the special use of language in poetry and prose (Iranzadeh, 2011:2). In fact, style is a way to reflect the author’s inner feelings, ideas, and thoughts (Parandoji, et al, 2014:36). Shamisa (1993) emphasizes the artistic value of repetition; He maintains that the sound of rain is relaxing and soft because of its alternate repetition, while irregular sound with no music is boring.
Leech (1981) believes that “style is a way to use language in a certain context by a certain person for a certain goal”. He introduces four criteria to specify the linguistic style of a literary work: lexical classification, syntactic classification, verbal array, cohesion, and context. Regarding all of them, he raises questions including: Are the words used by the author formal or informal? Has the author used special words? Are nouns concrete or abstract? What is the semantic function of adverbs? Which literary tools have been used by the author to transfer meaning to the audience? Is there a logical relationship between the elements of the work?
Elements involved in analyzing the style of literary works are: a) word choice, b) morphological and grammatical features, c) frequency, d) semantic features, e) repetition, f) verbal context, h)congruence of letters and other sound patterns, i)allusions and metaphors, j) mode of expression and special view and the way of applying language features, k) deviation from the norm, etc. (Iranzadeh, 2011:12-15).
Data analysisTotal reduplication is of two types: a) total proper reduplication and b) total improper reduplication (Shaghaghi, 2012:99). In total improper reduplication, the base is repeated completely. This process involves adverbs, nouns, adjectives, pseudo-sentences, onomatopoeic words, numbers, adverbial clauses, and sentences.
Reduplicating adverb has been used by both Danshvar and Hedayat. Both of them, especially Danshvar, have used total improper reduplication in their stories. Danshvar has extensively used reduplication of onomatopoeia in her novel (Savushun). Onomatopoeia words represent a natural relation between sound and meaning. They are tangible and perceptible and authors can express their feeling by using them (Vahidian Kamyar, 1996:10, 38). Being tangible and perceptible is one of the features of realistic novels including the realistic novel of Danshvar. She expressed and showed her feelings using onomatopoeia. Since Hedayat’s style and language is different from those of Danshvar, just one onomatopoeia word has been used in his work. Hedayat’s language in Buf-e kur is descriptive, he has used abstract concepts, and these features make his novel Surrealistic. Danshvar has more frequently used reduplication of adverbs and onomatopoeia than adjectives, nouns, pseudo-sentences, numbers, and adverbial phrases. In Hedayat’s novel, reduplication of adverbs has a high frequency while other categories are either rarely used or never used.
In total proper reduplication, in addition to the repetition of the base, there is a grammatical morpheme that occurs between the two bases or after the second base. In total reduplication with middle attachment, prepositions such as »be, ta, dar, tu, bar« (to, until, in, on), the enclitic /o/, the interfix /â/, and /vâ/ (and) are used (Shaghaghi, 2012:99-100). Total reduplication with middle attachment is diverse in Savushun and Buf-e kur. The preposition »be (to) « is the most commonly used, whereas others are rarely used. Samples of Buf-e kur such as "ruz be ruz" (day-by-day), "saat be saat" (hour-by-hour), and "daghigheh be daghigheh" (minute-by-minute) suggest that this pattern is mainly used in the cases in which the concept of time is involved. The narrator uses the notions of minute and hour for the continuation of his story. In fact, Hedayat's travel back and forth between the inside and the outside has resulted in the use of reduplicated adverbs of time, so that he can persuade his reader and help her/him to understand time by narrating the story minute-by minute.
In total reduplication with final attachment, suffixes including "ân, ak, aki, u, i, e" attach to the second base (Shaghaghi, 2000, 526-527). This type of reduplication is less frequently used compared with others. The most significant stylistic feature of Savushun is using reduplications such as: "holholaki" (with haste), rastrastaki (in truth), and so on. These kinds of adverbs are mostly used in informal and colloquial Persian.
In these two masterpieces, a total of 99 cases of reduplication were found; 71 cases in Savushun and 28 items in Buf-e kur. In Savushun, 42 items showed total improper reduplication and 29 items were total proper reduplication. In the latter pattern, 18 items were total reduplication with middle attachment and 11 items were total reduplication with final attachment. In Buf-e kur, 16 types of total improper reduplication and 12 types of proper reduplication were seen, out of which 9 had an interfix and 3 had final attachment. The analysis of data shows that in both works the frequency of total improper reduplication was higher than total proper reduplication. In Savushun, the number of reduplicated words comprised 71% of the total, but in Buf-e kur, it is 28%. We can, therefore conclude that the author of Savushun has used this linguistic tool more frequently; so it is considered as a stylistic feature.
Conclusion In this research, the use and frequency of total reduplication were investigated in Savushun and Buf-e kur. The results show that total improper reduplication of adverbs in both novels has the highest frequency though Danshvar has used this linguistic tool more than Hedayat. Reduplication can, therefore, be regarded as a reliable criterion to specify the literary style of an author. The style of Danshvar’s writing is realistic, so her language is informal and colloquial without any complexity, while the style of Hedayat’s writing in Buf-e kur is surrealistic. This difference in these two novels, therefore, has a significant effect on the use of this linguistic tool.