NARRATIVE AS SOCIALLY SITUATED: A LABOVIAN STUDY OF CLASS AND EVALUATION IN PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Abstract

The paper investigates selected episodes from Pride and Prejudice, using the sociolinguistic narrative model proposed by William Labov, to explore how the structure of narratives can be a socially situated means of making sense of class relations, evaluative discourse and ideological significance. The study is conducted in a qualitative descriptive-analytical manner, which, based on the study key, can be divided into four episodes in the novel, namely: orientation, complicating action, evaluation, resolution, and coda. The results show the presence of the elements of the Labovian framework throughout the story, as well as the inclusion of social judgment, class consciousness, and moral evaluation in the development of the story. The most important element is evaluation, which is presented in a tone of irony, discussion and affective reaction, resulting in the construction of themes of class stratification, gender stereotypes, and interpersonal conflict. The research also demonstrates that in the novel, the narrative is not just a formal narrative, but it is a sociocultural system which is critical to the social structures and to the ideological conflicts. Expectations of social closure, not emotional closure, are likely to be evident in the resolution and coda, confirming the influence of socially motivated closure. The study finds that Labov's model is very suitable for literary analysis, and literary form in Pride and Prejudice is closely related to the creation of class, morality, and social value.