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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 materialize 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 underlines 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 preponderance 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 systematically accompanied by poetic reflections of different goals. In some cases, we see code-switching as supporting the regaining of lost memories and traditions. 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 « 43 +
