Jouissance: Uncovering the Ideological Positions in the Selected Poems of Contemporary Filipino Women Poets Through M.A.K. Halliday’s Transitivity Analysis

Francis S. Calubayan, Concepcion Y. Raymundo

Abstract


This paper explores how stylistics link literature and linguistics to uncover the ideological positions in the poems of contemporary Filipino women poets. Claims about women in the past have been crucial because of existing feminist ideologies. The interest in gender and empowerment is an issue today as some women poets and women in modern times have been empowered in dealing with men, in particular. Through stylistics, specifically Halliday’s transitivity analysis, an interpretation of women’s consciousness and experiences became accessible. Directing at how contemporary women poets portray their women-personae, this paper investigated these personae through thematic and critical analysis, alongside Halliday’s transitivity analysis of the poems “Fear”, by Sarah Gambito, “Father and I”, by Maningning Miclat, and “Tribeswoman”, by Marra PL. Lanot. The results revealed that the active actors in the poems are women as persona. Out of the identified processes, 12 are categorized as material processes, three processes each for mental, behavioral, and verbalization, and nine are relational processes. Also, it is uncovered that women in the contemporary period are bound by their shared experiences (jouissance); are awakened; demonstrate character strength; fight back against patriarchy’s oppressive dominance; speak their own language; construct their own society; and create their new identity. Using the transitivity framework as a tool for interpreting literary texts can benefit literature readers not only in uncovering the underlying ideologies in literary texts, but also in making literature reading practical and pleasurable (cf Dulce et Utile).

https://doi.org/10.26803/ijhss.14.1.1


Keywords


stylistics; feminist ideology; jouissance; transitivity

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References


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