ENG 4020 Spring 2022 Barajas

This course examines the idea of style and its impact on forms of expression and interpretation. The course initially views matters of style from a familiar perspective—that of broad socio-communicative practice (e.g., appearance, behavior, speech)—but it then moves toward a specialized consideration of style in terms of the written word. The course will involve discussions of diction, sentence structure, paragraphing, the use of punctuation, and figurative language to develop a sense of the dynamics involved in the written word. Students will acquire a vocabulary that enables the analysis of the manifestations of style in particular texts. Students will reach an understanding of style as a rhetorical tool that can be considered in terms of its practical applications and as an indicator of how discourse ensures the maintenance or transformation of culture. Students are advised to take ENG/ENC 3021 before signing up for ENG 4020.