Андрєєва Катерина Миколаївна

студентка 451 групи

факультету української й іноземної

філології та журналістики

Херсонського державного університету

Спеціальності 014.02 Середня освіта

(англійська мова і література)

Спеціалізація: польська мова.

Доповідь зі стилістики англійської мови

The puns and zeugmas

The pun in the stories of O. Henry

Consider the English pun in O. Henry's story "Pimento Pancakes". Characters,

many funny remarks and situations are not accidental, but motivated: they are
entirely built on a play on words, on the revitalization of metaphors, on a literal
interpretation of components, phraseological units and puns.

O. Henry built a pun on the name of one of the main characters (Jackson Bird)
and his place of residence (Mired Mule Canada).

Another hero of the story, Jude, drawing an analogy between the name (Bird) and
the main meaning of this word (bird), calls Jackson nothing other than a bird (bird,
Birdie), a siskin (Willie), a tit (tomtit); and everything that concerns birds transfers
to Jackson: “but I’ll let you fly away this time”; “Don’t ever want any nest made
out of sheep’s wool by a tomtit of the Jacksonian branch of ornithology”; “And
then if I catches Birdie off of Mired Mule again, I’ll make him hop the twig”.

In the words of Jude, O. Henry plays up Jackson's first and last name: Jackson Bird
- Birdstone Jack. Here we can also note the play of words at the phonetic level -
son and stone.
First, the author introduces this description of Jackson: the sheep man from over at
Mired Mule Canada

Jude plays up and it turns out: the hired mule from Sheep Man's Canada.

In this example, a play on words is traced at the phonetic level: mired / hired.

In "The Apple of the Sphinx" O. Henry notes the play on words introduced by the
characters themselves, namely - not hearing the girl's surname, each of the heroes
calls her as he pleases (to be Garlanded and MacFarlanded and Solomoned) - there
is a play on words of the heroes of the story on phonetic level.

Further in the story, we are talking about apples, and Judge Menefi, wanting to
show off his knowledge and impress the lady, talks about ancient stories with
apples, about their value in aesthetic terms. His interlocutor, the miller,
understands the ‘value’ literally:

“I need not call your attention to the most tremendous and significant instance of
the apple’s prestige when its consumption by our first parents occasioned the fall
of man from his state of goodness and perfection”

"Apples like them are worth $ 3.50 a barrel in the Chicago market"

The pun can be traced when the judge mentions Paris, the hero of mythology, and
the miller thinks that he is talking about Paris:

“Paris awarded the golden apple to the most beautiful”.

“I was at the Exposition (he meant in Paris) but I never heard of it”

Zeugma.
O.Henry. «Between Rounds»

«The parks were green with new leaves and buyers for the Western and Souther
n trade.»
«Flowers and summer resort agents were blowing; the air and answers to
Lawson were growing milder; hand-organs, fountains and pinochle were
playing everywhere.»

O.Henry . «The Rathskeller and the Rose»

«And when we come to consider Miss Carrington she is in the heydey of flattery,
fame and fizz; and that astute manager…»

«He amassed the facts and the local color of Cranberry Corners.»

«At 11.45 A.M. on the next day Highsmith, handsome, dressed in the latest mode,
confident, with a fuchsia in his button-bole, sent up his card to Miss Carrington
in her select apartment hotel.»