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UNIT 2
THE COMPOSITION, NARRATIVITY
AND FUNCTION OF VARIOUS
LITERARY CODE-SWITCHING TYPES
——o—
PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS
Code-switching has been used by writers, for instance, to deal with encounters
with individuals possessing different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. In
Gardner-Chloros’s words, code-switching “affects practically everyone who is
in contact with more than one language or dialect, to a greater or lesser extent”
(2009, 4). Not to mention that a different linguistic background could material¬
ize even in apparent monolingual backgrounds - it is enough for a character to
study a foreign language at university, such as in the Slovene classic Cvetje v
jeseni (Flowers in Autumn, 1917) by Ivan Tavéar, in which Elvira talks to her
mother in French, one of the languages she has learnt during her studies.
Code-switching is manifested by the intrinsic characteristic of using literary
language, and it simultaneously pushes the linguistic identity of literary actors
of all narrative levels to foreground. It also increases the aestheticism of the
literary text while operating on multiple semantic, syntactic, pragmatic and
semiotic levels. This unit will employ concepts from linguistics (code-switching)
and literary theory (narratology, stylistics) in order to contribute to the mapping
of multilingualism in Finnish literature, as well as to enhance the methodology
of literary CS. By employing our analytical framework in the chosen literary
fields, we can gain further proof of how strongly literary code-switching under¬
lines the materiality of language, alphabets, and grammar, thus making us gain
new insights into the connections between the verbal, the poetic, and the world
around us.
CODE-SWITCHING IN CONTEMPORARY ARTS
Contemporary literary fields are distinguished not only by their specific prepon¬
derance of code-switching strategies, but also by the fact that deliberate and/or
programmatic code-switching can be used in various ways, just as it can be sys¬
tematically accompanied by poetic reflections of different goals. In some cases,
we see code-switching as supporting the regaining of lost memories and tradi¬
tions. In other cases, literary code-switching helps to raise the multicultural
awareness of a literary landscape as well as to come to terms with migration and
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