Animating Absence: Exploring Ekphrasis and Prosopopoeia in Thomas Hardy’s “The Voice”
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21928/juhd.v9n4y2023.pp124-127Keywords:
ekphrasis, prosopopoeia, semiotics, Thomas Hardy, voiceAbstract
Thomas Hardy's "The Voice" (1914) is written in quatrains and employs a monologue structure. Conventionally, it is interpreted as a reflection of the poet’s personal experiences, notably his sense of an absent voice and the apparition of his wife, Emma. This study deviates from biographical interpretations, instead, it sheds light on a detailed analysis of the verse’s rhetorical elements. Through semiotic reading, I will investigate the process of animating the image of the absent female figure in the work by exploring ekphrasis and prosopopoeia. Therefore, the primary goal of this paper is to examine the poem's inherent aesthetic qualities by decoding the signs and symbols within expressions in the language. This essay shows the essence of the literary devices as the speaker depicts the face of the missing woman, and also, it reveals the paradox related to the timespan which operates dynamically, shifting back and forth between the characters.
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