Riasat Ali

Student Id: MA-191411

Md. Nuruzzaman

Associate Professor

English Discipline

Khulna University

Eng 5201: Discourse Analysis

24 March 2019

Discourse Analysis of “The Wild Swans at Coole”

Discourse:

The trees are in their autumn beauty, ………………1

The woodland paths are dry, ………………2

Under the October twilight the water ………………3

Mirrors a still sky; ………………4

Upon the brimming water among the stones ………………5

Are nine-and-fifty swans. ……………....6

The nineteenth autumn has come upon me ……………..7

Since I first made my count; ……………..8

I saw, before I had well finished, ……………..9

All suddenly mount ……………10

And scatter wheeling in great broken rings …………….11

Upon their clamorous wings. …………….12

I have looked upon those brilliant creatures, ……………...13

And now my heart is sore. ………………14

All's changed since I, hearing at twilight, ………………15

The first time on this shore, ………………16

The bell-beat of their wings above my head, ……………….17

Trod with a lighter tread. ……………….18

Unwearied still, lover by lover, ………………..19

They paddle in the cold ………………..20

Companionable streams or climb the air; ………………..21

Their hearts have not grown old; ………………..22

Passion or conquest, wander where they will, ………………..23

Attend upon them still. ………………..24

But now they drift on the still water, ………………..25

Mysterious, beautiful; ………………..26

Among what rushes will they build, ………………..27

By what lake's edge or pool ………………..28

Delight men's eyes when I awake some day ………………..29

To find they have flown away? ………………..30

Type of Discourse: The structure of this selected discourse suggests that it is an extract of a
poem. is written in a very regular stanza form: five six-line stanzas, each written in a roughly
iambic meter, with the first and third lines in tetrameter, the second, fourth, and sixth lines in
trimeter, and the fifth line in pentameter, so that the pattern of stressed syllables in each stanza is
434353. The rhyme scheme in each stanza is ABCBDD. For example:

The trees are in their autumn beauty, (a)

The woodland paths are dry, (b)

Under the October twilight the water (c)

Mirrors a still sky; (b)

Upon the brimming water among the stones (d)

Are nine-and-fifty swans. (d)

Every stanza maintains this rhyme scheme. So, it can be called a scientific discourse.

Linguistic Context:

Deixis:

Time Expression:

i) Line 3: October twilight

ii) Line 7: nineteenth autumn
iii) Line 8: since
iv) Line 14: now
v) Line 15: since
vi) Line 16: first time
vii) Line 25: now
viii) Line 29: when

Place Expression:

i) Line 23: where

Person Expression:
 i) Line 7: me
ii) Line 8, 9, 13, 15, 29: I
iii) Line 8, 14, 17: my
iv) Line 20, 23, 25, 27, 30: they
v) Line 1, 12, 17, 22: their
vi) Line 24: them
vii) Line 27, 28: what

Co-text: There is no co-text in this discourse.

Collocation:

Situational Context:

Field: In this discourse, the speaker is enjoying the beauty of nature sitting before a lake
or a water reservoir where fifty-nine swans are swimming and in which the reflection of clear
sky is visible. The trees look beautiful in the autumn season as well as the woodland paths are
dry. So, it is really an enjoyable environment for the speaker of this discourse. The speaker is
being amused seeing those swans at the same time he becomes nostalgic as he first saw these
swans nineteen years ago since then he becomes old but the swans are still same. The action of
this discourse is described in all the three tenses. The speaker is enjoying, enjoyed long nineteen
years ago and he thinks that he will die one day but these swans will survive in the future.

Tenor: The speaker has a liking of this place. He visited the place long nineteen years
ago. He did not forget this place. After a long time, he makes a visit again. It can be said that he
is in love with this place. He is not only fond of this place but also with the swans swimming in
the lake. His main concentration is on the swans. He can remember that long nineteen years ago,
he counted the fifty-nine swans. He “looked upon those brilliant creatures” and now his “heart is
sore” because through the passage of time he becomes old and the swans’ “hearts have not
grown old, they can “wander where they will”. The speaker observes closely the swans as he is
observing his love. So, it can be said that there is love relationship between the speaker and the
swans, specifically the nature.
 Mood: At the beginning of the discourse, the speaker is in pleasing and joyous mood.
First stanza reveals the happiness of the speaker. He describes the beauty of nature as “the trees
are in their autumn beauty”, “the woodland paths are dry”, “the water mirrors a still sky” under
the October twilight. There, fifty-nine swans are swimming in the lake water. Soon the joyous
mood becomes melancholic as the speaker counts the swans as fifty-nine that means one swan is
alone from the others like the speaker himself. The melancholic mood becomes acuter with the
passage of time. The speaker becomes nostalgic as he remembers his last visit to this place long
nineteen years ago since then he becomes old unlike the swans. The speaker says that the swans
“paddle in the cold companionable streams or climb the air” lover by lover. It indicates that the
speaker is alone and becomes sad seeing the love making of the swans. He also tells that these
swans will please other people after his death. So, obviously the speaker is in melancholic mood
towards the end unlike the beginning of this discourse.

Meaning:

Locutionary Meaning/Act: The speaker describes seeing fifty-nine swans swimming at

twilight on a gorgeous October evening. Apparently, he has been watching these swans for quite
a while—years, even. While he is watching, they all take flight in a big flurry-hurry. As it turns
out, this kind of incident breaks the speaker’s heart. That is because his life has changed so much
since the first time, he saw these swans. The swans on the other hand, haven't changed much at
all. They have not grown old and they still go where they desire. But in his heart, the speaker
knows these swans will not be around forever, and he wonders where exactly they will be
hanging when he wakes up to find that they are pleasing others.

Illocutionary Meaning/Act:

Perlocutionary Act:

Classification: