Semantic fields, as we have discussed before, are groups of words which all link into a particular topic, so that immediately they call up certain ideas or associations. So, for instance, if I say 'playground, chalk, blackboard, class, teach' it is fairly clear that I am talking about school. If I say 'in the playground that is the House of Commons, we need to chalk up on the blackboard of experience what class can teach us about politics' I am implying--without actually saying it--an educational context for my critique of parliament.
Authors often use this for humour--or to create a rich web of meaning--think of Simon Armitage with 'I'm making a will'; using the semantic fields of food and machinery to describe his body, and consider the effect it has.
This kind of use of semantic fields couldn't have the impact it has without the multivalent nature of language--it has been suggested that that all language is metaphorical in one way or another--what do you think?
In harmony with this theme, today's new word--a gift for your weekend--is going to be 'polysemous'. What that means is that a word has more than one meaning, or many different shades of meaning, all of which might be discussed when you are analysing the work of literature concerned. For your HOMEWORK, I would like you to find some examples of polysemy in the anthology.
Sadly, 'polysemous' is not itself polysemous.
This is called a paradox, children. But a great word, all the same.
I like the image :)
ReplyDeleteThere are lots of different semantic fields in Tichborne's Elegy, using words like 'fallen' which at one level are talking about fruit and everyday things, and at another level could be talking about life, and heroes falling in battle - perhaps suggesting Tichborne thought of his death as one death in a long battle between the Catholics and Protestants... very deep!
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