Background
In this assignment you are expected to discuss and use the concepts we have covered in the module
so far (i.e., literal/figurative meanings, word senses, sense relations, etc.,) by using the provided below.
Please read through this text and answer the questions provided below.
Americanah
By: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
On Lekki Expressway, the traffic moved swiftly in the waning rain and soon Gabriel was pressing the
horn in front of the high black gates of his home. Mohammed, the gateman, wiry in his dirty white
caftan, flung open the gates and raised a hand in greeting. Obinze looked at the tan colonnaded house.
Inside was his furniture imported from Italy, his wife, his two-year-old daughter, Buchie, the nanny
Christiana, his wife’s sister Chioma, who was on a forced holiday because university lecturers were on
strike yet again, and the new house girl, Marie, who had been brought from Benin Republic after his
wife decided that Nigerian house girls were unsuitable. The rooms would all be cool, air conditioner
vents swaying quietly, and the kitchen would be fragrant with curry and thyme, and CNN would be on
downstairs, while the television upstairs would be turned to Cartoon Network, and pervading it all
would be the undisturbed air of well-being. He climbed out of his car. His gait was stiff, his legs difficult
to lift. He had begun, in the past months, to feel bloated from all he had acquired – the family, the
houses, the cars, the bank accounts – and would, from time to time, be overcome by the urge to prick
everything with a pin to deflate it all, to be free. He was no longer sure, he had in fact never been sure,
whether he liked his life because he really did or whether he liked it because he was supposed to.
1. Identify two metaphors used in the text and explain their meaning.
(6)
2. Using a componential analysis table, show the people described in the text above are related
to Obinze (do not include Obinze in the table). You should not use more than six distinctive
features. Once you have completed the table answer the following question:
a. What two challenges or issues are typically encountered when doing a componential
analysis?
(12)
3. Identify one “change of state verb” and one “surface contact verb” in the text, and use one of
the verb class tests to support your answer. Use a different test for each verb.
(4)
4. In your own words, describe the concept of lexical ambiguity and distinguish it from
indeterminacy. Provide one example of each concept in your response.
(8)
5. Replace the bolded words in the sentence below with their synonyms, and give a brief
explanation of why you think the new sentence works or does not work and how it affects the
meaning, if at all.
“He had begun, in the past months, to feel bloated from all he had acquired – the family, the
houses, the cars, the bank accounts – and would, from time to time, be overcome by the
urge to prick everything with a pin to deflate it all, to be free.”
(6)
6. What type of modality is expressed in the phrase “and the kitchen would be fragrant with
curry and thyme” and give a reason for your answer?
(4
1. Two metaphors used in the text are:
- "Pressed the horn in front of the high black gates of his home": This metaphor compares Gabriel honking the horn to physically pressing something, emphasizing the urgency or impatience of the action.
- "To prick everything with a pin to deflate it all, to be free": This metaphor compares the act of deflating everything with a pin to the feeling of release or freedom that Obinze desires.
2.
| Person | Distinctive Features |
|--------------|---------------------------------------|
| His wife | Mother of Buchie, sister of Chioma |
| Daughter | Two years old, name is Buchie |
| Nanny | Named Christiana |
| Sister-in-law| Forced holiday, university lecturer |
| House girl | From Benin Republic |
Two challenges/issues typically encountered when doing a componential analysis are determining which features to include as distinctive and ensuring that the features are mutually exclusive.
3. Change of state verb: "had begun"
- Test: The verb class test for change of state verbs involves asking if the action brings about a change in the state of the entity. In this case, "had begun" indicates a change in Obinze's feelings over time.
Surface contact verb: "climbed"
- Test: The contact verb test involves determining if the verb involves contact between a body part and a surface. In this case, "climbed" indicates the action of Obinze's body part (legs) coming into contact with a surface (out of his car).
4. Lexical ambiguity refers to a situation where a word or phrase has multiple meanings, while indeterminacy refers to the lack of clarity or precision in the meaning of a word or phrase. An example of lexical ambiguity is the word "bank" which can refer to a financial institution or the side of a river. An example of indeterminacy is the word "table" which could mean a piece of furniture or an action of formally presenting something for discussion.
5. "He had started, in the past months, to feel bloated from all he had acquired – the family, the houses, the cars, the bank accounts – and would, occasionally, be overcome by the urge to poke everything with a pin to deflate it all, to be free."
- The new sentence works reasonably well as it maintains the overall meaning, despite some slight differences in the connotations of the synonyms used.
6. The modality expressed in the phrase "and the kitchen would be fragrant with curry and thyme" is epistemic modality. This is because it conveys a sense of likelihood or possibility regarding the fragrant smell of the kitchen based on the situation or context.