The poetic function in the school language program

Patey, Calvin (1982) The poetic function in the school language program. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The major purpose of this paper has been to examine the poetic function of language, and to assess its role in an individual’s language development. -- Writing identified as “transactional” has been seen as that which is used to get something done. In the context of a school language program, such writing is viewed as that used primarily to assess what an individual knows about a specific area of content. Such an emphasis has been regarded as being a major reason for the absence of poetic language in a school language program. -- "Poetic" language offers an individual the means to reconstitute the reality that he is constructing in language. Such a language usage allows an individual to function in situations outside his immediate experience - in essence, to function in situations that he constructs in language, and, in doing so, to search for meaning in his existence. -- A school language program that is not characterized by an individual's use of poetic language has been seen as being deficient, and, as such, may not only impair an individual's language development, but also his development as an individual.

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