The study of linguistic variation in fiction often concerns the use of dialect features as a tool for characterization; however, its use in situating the author in the construction of the text is less remarked upon. This paper considers both of these uses by examining Lemony Snicket’s usage of four sociolinguistic variables in A Series of Unfortunate Events . ASOUE is of particular interest because it is metafictional, yet as a work of children’s literature has a didactic role in teaching its audience the importance of being well-read. I show that depending on the variable, variation in the dialogue may involve reflection of the author’s language-internal constraints, adherence to a prescriptive norm, or style shifting to distinguish protagonists and antagonists from one another. I argue that these three patterns of variability help to position Snicket as a character within the metafictional series while demonstrating ‘correct’ language usage to readers.

中文翻译：

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A Series of Unfortunate Events 中虚构对话的变化


对小说中语言变化的研究通常涉及使用方言特征作为表征的工具;然而，它在文本构建中将作者置于位置上的使用较少受到关注。本文通过检查 Lemony Snicket 在 A Series of Unfortunate Events 中对四个社会语言变量的用法来考虑这两种用法。ASOUE 特别有趣，因为它是元小说，但作为一部儿童文学作品，它在教导观众博览群书的重要性方面具有说教作用。我表明，根据变量的不同，对话的变化可能涉及对作者语言内部限制的反映、对规定性规范的遵守或风格转变以区分主角和对手。我认为，这三种可变性模式有助于将 Snicket 定位为元小说系列中的一个角色，同时向读者展示“正确”的语言用法。