Literary Malay Language Course What is Repetisi,Anafora,Epifora and Responsi?
Dear En En,
You began your Malay language course with me since you were a little girl. You used to bring along a furry bunny toy for lessons and these days you bring an ipod. Yes, you are a big girl now and you are asking questions that require deep answers.
I have been meditating a long time on one of your questions: " Why do I have to study different gaya bahasa? They bore me stiff!" Have patience, my dear...you are at the threshold of the adults' world.
Repetition - To Get the Desired Response
When you wanted an ipod it is not enough to tell your daddy: " Dad, I would like to have an ipod." Being a busy business man, there is a lot of things on his mind so he is forgetful sometimes. You need to wait another time when he is in a good mood to remind him: " Dad,I would like to have an ipod." That's how you get your ipod, isn't it?
Adults get more than ipods. How does your daddy earn millions of ringgit yearly? Lots of repetition pertaining to his product, of course. A classic example is Tunku Abdul Rahman's " Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!" which earns him the title " Father of Malaysia".
This does not mean you repeat as a parrot does because that will be rather annoying. If you need to repeat many times, it is more effective to say it in slightly different ways: " Daddy, will you buy me an ipod?" or, " I think ipod is cool, daddy."
*Repetition= repetisi, pengulangan
That brings us to the finer art of repetition where I shall show you some creative ways in this part of Malay language course.
Anaphora - Repetition at the Beginning
"Yesterday, the Japanese government also launched an attack against Malaya. Last night, Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong. Last night, Japanese forces attacked Guam. Last night, Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands. Last night, the Japanese attacked Wake Island. And this morning, the Japanese attacked Midway Island."
-- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Pearl Harbor Address
"To raise a happy, healthy, and hopeful child, it takes a family; it takes teachers; it takes clergy; it takes business people; it takes community leaders; it takes those who protect our health and safety. It takes all of us."
-- Hillary Clinton, 1996 Democratic National Convention Address
Roosevelt was an esteemed President of the U.S.A and Hillary is an influential politician whom many say has high chances of becoming the next President. Feel the force of their speeches by listening to the audio files from
www.americanrhetoric.com
Epiphora - Repetition at the End
P.s. Epiphora also refers to an irritated eye which produces excessive tears. So if you would like to check out this term in relation to your Malay language course in reference books, it is better to know its other synonym - epistrophe.
"...and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth."
-- Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address (here delivered by Jeff Daniels)
"The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divides [sic] us has come."( Letters in bold, mine )
-- Nelson Mandela, Inaugural Address
Again, you should listen to the audio files from
www.americanrhetoric.com as well :)
Responsi - Repetition in the Middle
P.s. "Responsi" is a peculiar word in the Malaysian Malay language course as I cannot find in Kamus Bahasa Malaysia and Indonesia. Kamus Dewan gives its English equivalent as "reponsie" which I believe does not exist in English or any Latin languages that I know of...grrr!
"Puncak dunia telah kautawan, Lautan luas telah kauredah..."
-- The patriotic song Jalur Gemilang
"Anda sopan kami segan, Anda biadab kami hindar."
--A slogan I saw on a mini bus and I gave the second line ha ha
Application
Ahem! To make sure that you have been paying attention throughout this Malay language course, let me ask you to match the sentences below with their respective categories:
| "Mom, we need another wireless mouse. we need another wireless mouse." "Ibu, kami perlukan satu lagi tetikus tanpa wayar. Kami perlukan satu lagi tetikus tanpa wayar." | epifora | | "Mom, sister is hiding the wireless mouse again. It's difficult for us to share the wireless mouse with her." "Ibu, kakak menyembunyikan tetikus tanpa wayar lagi. Susahlah kami berkongsi tetikus tanpa wayar dengannya." | anafora | | "Mom, the wireless mouse is missing again. The wireless mouse must be with sister, I bet." "Ibu, tetikus tanpa wayar hilang lagi. Tetikus tanpa wayar mesti ada pada kakak, saya pasti." | repetisi | | "Mom, we are always fighting with sister over the wireless mouse. Don't you think it's high time we should get another wireless mouse?" "Ibu, kami selalu bergaduh dengan kakak kerana tetikus tanpa wayar. Tidakkah kamu setuju bahawa kita harus beli satu lagi tetikus tanpa wayar?" | responsi |
Answers
Conclusion
Many people will jump to see the kind of exercise I have given you. That's why I name this Malay language course "Sastera Karut" as majority will deem this as not halal in the eyes of our education authorities. However, I think it is more important for you to grasp the big picture of why you should strive to acquire these higher level of human communication skills and see their practical aspects.
Okay...I know you are wondering why I quoted some examples from "orang putih" sources for a Malay language course. First of all, repetisi, anafora and epifora are obviously borrowed from English. I must say majority of orang putihs are more skillful than us in the art of repetiton. No harm learning from the best...today you learn at least four different ways of reminding your mom about the urgency of a new wireless mouse. As you venture into the world of the adults, you will be able to remind future clients of your dad's wonderful product without annoying them unnecessarily, remind dad it's time to get you a car and if you were as ambitious as Hilary Clinton...the sky's the limit for you.
All the best to you,
Your Malay language course coordinator,
Miss Wan
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