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Some Linguistic Aspects of the Heroic Couplet in the Poetry of Phillis Wheatley

This dissertation is an examination of the characteristics of Phillis Wheatley's couplet poems in the areas of meter, rhyme, and syntax. The metrical analysis employs Morris Halle and Samuel Jay Keyser's theory of iambic pentameter, the rhyme examination considers the various factors involved in rhyme selection and rhyme function, and the syntactic analysis is conducted within the theoretical framework of a generative grammar similar to that proposed in Noam Chomsky's "Aspects of the Theory of Syntax" (1965). The findings in these three areas are compared with the characteristics of a representative sample of the works of Alexander Pope, the poet who supposedly exerted a strong influence on Wheatley, a black eighteenth century American poet.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc164617
Date08 1900
CreatorsHolder, Kenneth R.
ContributorsGriggs, Silas, Rich, Carroll Y., Rulon, Curt M.
PublisherNorth Texas State University
Source SetsUniversity of North Texas
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis or Dissertation
Format3, iv, 288 leaves, Text
RightsPublic, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved., Holder, Kenneth R.

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