An Analysis of Stylistic Trends in Published Kiswahili Short Story Genre

Abstract

Writers express themselves in varied styles regardless of the genre they use as their vehicle of expression. Writing styles can also vary depending on the genre in focus. In this regard, therefore, stylistic issues can be focused upon from a two prong approach; that is from a writer’s centered focus and secondly from a genre-based focus. Kiswahili Short story manifests generic features that are unique to the short story genre only. On the other hand, different writers have used a variety of styles to weave their stories. Some of these styles at times seem to be unique to specific writers. This paper uses stylistic approaches to analyse Kiswahili short stories and exemplifies how stylistic features are applied to the short stories. The paper concludes that Kiswahili short story genre has come of age and indeed continues to grow. As a result, as the paper shows, Kiswahili short story is weaved using a variety of styles that make it more interesting, informative and educative. Most of these styles give Kiswahili short story a unique African rendition that is born out of interweaving both exotic and native African styles.

Key Words: Genre, Kiswahili, short story, stylistic approaches