EN
TR
A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS
Abstract
This study aims to examine the use of figurative language in Akıl Hastalarının Yazdıkları Şiirler: İnilti (1964), a collection of poems written by patients with mental illness, from a stylistic perspective. Using Leech and Short’s (2007) stylistics checklist, the analysis focuses on tropes of comparison (metaphor, simile, personification, apostrophe), association (metonymy, synecdoche, symbol, allegory), and contrast (paradox, hyperbole, litotes, irony). The qualitative analysis of 112 poems shows dense, and at times unconventional, figurative patterns: metaphors and similes translate inner unrest into concrete images, personification and apostrophe blur the boundary between self and world, and associative or contrastive tropes reorganize fragmented experiences into symbolic forms. The findings suggest that figurative language shapes how patients express their inner lives, consistent with Pennebaker et al.’s (2003) view that unconscious states surface in language and with Bakare’s (2009) observation that poetic expression can disclose aspects of mental life not easily conveyed directly.
Keywords
References
- Adamczyk, P., Biczak, J., Kotlarska, K., Daren, A., & Cichocki, Ł. (2023). On the specificity of figurative language comprehension impairment in schizophrenia and its relation to cognitive skills but not psychopathological symptoms: Study on metaphor, humor and irony. Schizophrenia Research: Cognition, 34, 100294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scog.2023.100294
- Al-Janabi, M. K. H. (2015). A stylistic analysis of two selected, English and Arabic, war poems. Journal of the College of Languages (JCL), 31, 202-225. https://jcl.uomustansiriyah.edu.iq/index.php/JCLUM/article/view/143
- Alkan, H. (2023). A stylistic approach to Thomas Campion’s There Is a Garden in Her Face. Folklor/Edebiyat, 29(115), 901-912. https://doi.org/10.22559/folklor.2402
- Al-Qudsy, W. B. (2016). A stylistic analysis of figures of speech in The Jakarta Post headlines under the issue of KPK vs. POLRI (Published MA Thesis). Yogyakarta State University. http://eprints.uny.ac.id/37913/
- Amare, A. (2002). Some selected poems in English by Ethiopian poets: A stylistic analysis (Master’s thesis). Addis Ababa University. http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/2220
- Bakare, M. O. (2009). Morbid and insight poetry: A glimpse at schizophrenia through the window of poetry. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 4(3), 217-224. https://doi.org/10.1080/15401380903192671
- Bethlehem, L. S. (1996). Simile and figurative language. Poetics Today, 17(2), 203-240. https://doi.org/10.2307/1773211
- Bezar, L., Iqbal, M., & Hussain, S. (2023). Stylistic analysis of humour in Pakistani English fiction: Linguistic deviation as a comic strategy. Journal of Language and Literary Studies, 14(2), 45-63. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/jlls.2023.002
Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
Linguistics (Other), Literary Studies (Other), New Turkish Language (Turkish of Old Anatolia, Ottoman, Turkiye)
Journal Section
Research Article
Publication Date
September 15, 2026
Submission Date
September 27, 2025
Acceptance Date
December 21, 2025
Published in Issue
Year 2026 Volume: 15 Number: 3
APA
Güçlü, R., & Küçüksakarya, E. (2026). A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS. Uluslararası Türkçe Edebiyat Kültür Eğitim (TEKE) Dergisi, 15(3), 769-793. https://doi.org/10.7884/teke.1792171
AMA
1.Güçlü R, Küçüksakarya E. A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS. TEKE. 2026;15(3):769-793. doi:10.7884/teke.1792171
Chicago
Güçlü, Ruhan, and Esra Küçüksakarya. 2026. “A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS”. Uluslararası Türkçe Edebiyat Kültür Eğitim (TEKE) Dergisi 15 (3): 769-93. https://doi.org/10.7884/teke.1792171.
EndNote
Güçlü R, Küçüksakarya E (September 1, 2026) A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS. Uluslararası Türkçe Edebiyat Kültür Eğitim (TEKE) Dergisi 15 3 769–793.
IEEE
[1]R. Güçlü and E. Küçüksakarya, “A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS”, TEKE, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 769–793, Sept. 2026, doi: 10.7884/teke.1792171.
ISNAD
Güçlü, Ruhan - Küçüksakarya, Esra. “A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS”. Uluslararası Türkçe Edebiyat Kültür Eğitim (TEKE) Dergisi 15/3 (September 1, 2026): 769-793. https://doi.org/10.7884/teke.1792171.
JAMA
1.Güçlü R, Küçüksakarya E. A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS. TEKE. 2026;15:769–793.
MLA
Güçlü, Ruhan, and Esra Küçüksakarya. “A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS”. Uluslararası Türkçe Edebiyat Kültür Eğitim (TEKE) Dergisi, vol. 15, no. 3, Sept. 2026, pp. 769-93, doi:10.7884/teke.1792171.
Vancouver
1.Ruhan Güçlü, Esra Küçüksakarya. A STYLISTIC INVESTIGATION INTO THE POEMS OF THE MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS. TEKE. 2026 Sep. 1;15(3):769-93. doi:10.7884/teke.1792171