Utilizing computer technology to study and analyze poetic language as a stylistic element in poetry

Abstract

Stylistic study of a poem involves a detailed analysis of its linguistic characteristics, aimed at comprehending how these characteristics influence the poem’s meaning, aesthetic appeal, and emotional depth. For centuries, the stylistic study of poetry, particularly the analysis of figures of speech, has been a domain of literary scholars relying on close reading and interpretative skills. However, the advent of computer technology has offered students a powerful, complementary approach to the study of figures of speech. Since today’s students are digital natives, it is researchers’ responsibility to provide them with innovative learning methods rather than traditional approaches in order to significantly enhance their enthusiasm for poetry learning and analysis. Therefore, the researchers of this study developed a computational tool, called ‘A Digital Booster for Stylistic Study of Poetry’, in order to master the figures of speech within poetic contexts. The study, which was qualitative and descriptive, involved twenty first-year language students from Eastern University, Sri Lanka (EUSL). The data for the study were collected from a variety of English poems. To gauge the effectiveness of the tool, two tests were conducted. First, a traditional pretest assessed the students’ initial understanding of figures of speech, followed by a post-test utilizing the developed tool as a learning and testing platform for poetic language. The results indicated a significant improvement in participants’ performance on the post-test compared to the pre-test. Thus, the findings suggest that students can achieve a remarkable progress in their understanding of figures of speech through the use of computer technology-integrated tools.