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Four Kinds of Meaning I A Richards
Four Kinds of Meaning I A Richards
Feeling is only a stat of the mind. It does not imply an object. But intention has an
object. Intention is the writers aim which may be conscious or unconscious. It refers to the
effect one tries to produce. This purpose modifies the expression. It controls the emphasis
shapes the arrangement to draws attention to something of importance
According to Richards Originally language may have been almost pure emotion that
is to say
1. A means of expression feelings about situation.
2. A means of expressing impersonal attitudes
3. A means of bringing about concerted action.
The context
Words also acquire a rich associative value through their use by different poets in
different contexts. The context in which a word has been used is all important. "Words have
different meanings in different contexts. Words are symbols or signs and they deliver their
full meaning only in a particular context. They work in association and within a particular
context. He writes: "A context is a set of entities (things or events) related in a certain way;
these entities have each a character;
Meaning is dependent on context, but the context may not always be apparent and
easily perceptible. Literary compositions are characterized by rich complexity in which
certain links are suppressed for concentration or effective and forceful expression. Frequent
mention is therefore made of the 'missing context' and 'ambiguity.' In ordinary blemishes in
writing, but in poetry or even in artistic prose they are a source of embellishment and a means
of effective communication of meaning. The literary critic is expected to understand and
expand the context so that the poem may become intelligible and its full value may be
grasped.
1. First, it may arise from the meaning and be governed by it. The feeling is the result of
grasping the meaning
2. Secondly, the meaning arises from the feeling evoked. Thus the word 'gorgeous' first
generates a feeling from its sound.
3. Thirdly, sense and feeling may be related because of the context. A complete poem
can influence a single word or phrase contained in it either through the feelings or
through the sense. The feelings already occupying the mind limit the possibilities of
the new words. This is because words are ambiguous in themselves and they acquire
new meanings when they are charged with feelings.
Hence Richards argues that we need one careful reading to find the meaning and another to
grasp the feeling.