Thematic Implications of Using Compound Words in Toni Cade Bambara's “The Lesson”: A Sociolinguistic Perspective

Abstract

    The study is concerned with exploring the impact of using compound words in Toni Cade Bambara's “The Lesson” (1972). It is an attempt to examine the way in which they contribute to referring to some important issues like social disparity and economic inequality. Based on theories from Morphology and Sociolinguistics (Labov,1972; Halliday, 1978; Bauer,2003), the study reveals that Bambara's utilization of compounds suggests the real ingenuity of the African American Vernacular English and the social awareness of its native speakers. The findings indicate that compound words in “The Lesson” are not only used as one of the author's stylistic devices but also as sociolinguistic markers, implying class variation, identity negotiation, and the narrator's increasing recognition of social and economic inequality.