Pause and silence as linguistic and discursive elements in Ernest Hemingway's short stories

Abstract

This study explores the significance of silence in the selected short stories by Ernest Hemingway. The study attempts to reveal the web of relationships between silence (as represented through linguistic elements) and certain themes or ideology, and examines the interactive arrangement among them. Using the terminology of discourse analysis, this study deals with the functions and implications of silence, which has a value of signification and critical suggestion, manifests itself as "pause" in discourse. The impetus behind this study is therefore to investigate which linguistic elements produce the patterns of silence that indicate resistance, nothingness and ideology. In the first part of the discussion section, the thesis argues that, first; Hemingway portrays the psychological resistance of the fictional characters using silence. Second, silence is used as a thematic marker in Hemingway's stories implying nothingness. Lastly, silence contributes to ideological stance. Key Words: Ernest Hemingway, Iceberg Principle (Theory of Omission), Pause/Silence, Psychological Resistance, Nothingness (Nada), Ideology.