Analysing Sign Language Poetry

Hardcover, xvi + 265 pages, NOT ex-library. Book is clean and bright with unmarked text, free of inscriptions and stamps, firmly bound. Untorn dust jacket shows gentle handling wear. -- This seminal academic study provides a formal framework for understanding the linguistic and aesthetic structures of British Sign Language (BSL) poetry. The book treats sign language poetry as a sophisticated literary form, moving beyond simple translation to examine its unique visual and spatial properties. Linguistic Creative Devices: Sutton-Spence identifies specific "poetic" uses of BSL, such as metaphor, neologisms, and the creative manipulation of classifiers. Anthropomorphism and Metonymy: It explores how signers use their bodies to represent inanimate objects or multiple characters simultaneously through "role shift" and spatial placement. Visual Rhyme and Rhythm: The author proposes that "rhyme" in sign language is achieved through the repetition of handshapes, locations, or movement patterns, creating a visual harmony equivalent to auditory meter. Performance as Text: A key argument is that the "text" of a sign poem is inseparable from its performance; the book analyses how speed, tension, and facial expression function as essential prosodic elements. The work is considered a cornerstone of Deaf Studies and Applied Linguistics. Pioneering Framework: Critics in the Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education praised the book for providing the first comprehensive "grammar" for sign poetry, allowing for rigorous comparison with spoken-word traditions. It is a core text for BSL lecturers and researchers, often cited for its ability to bridge the gap between literary theory and sign language linguistics. …