About the Book

'This book provides a comprehensive, insightful and extremely readable introduction to all key aspects of contemporary stylistics, ranging from the core concepts to the most exciting new developments in the field. Simpson systematically covers each level of language, inviting readers to engage with a wealth of interesting examples and challenging them to put the theory to practical use. '
Catherine Emmott, University of Glasgow, UK

'This book is a great choice for anyone who wants a clear, well-organized, readable and entertaining introduction to this lively area of study. The possibility of following one topic through all four sections should allow students with a special interest in or previous knowledge about a topic to move forward more rapidly.This organization will help students to find areas in which they want to concentrate early enough to develop strong and well-informed written projects, addressing a problem I have often had when I have used other texts with a more traditional arrangement.'
David Hoover, New York University, USA

'Paul Simpson's book gives excellent coverage of all the main areas in contemporary stylistics and is structured so that the student can choose their own path through the book. A rich resource.'
Peter Crisp, City University of Hong Kong, China

Stylistics:

• provides a comprehensive overview of the methods and theories of stylistics: from metre to metaphor, dialogue to discourse
• enables students to uncover the layers, patterns and levels that constitute stylistic description
• helps the reader to develop a set of stylistic tools of their own, which can be applied to any text
• is written in a clear and entertaining style with lively examples from authors as diverse as Shakespeare and Irvine Welsh
• provides classic readings by key names in the field, such as Roger Fowler, Mick Short, Walter Nash and Mary Louise Pratt