An appraisal of attitude in Shasha’s poem Zihlabana nje ziyalamba (They stab each other while starving)
Keywords:
Appraisal theory, attitude subsystems, metafunctions, evaluative meaning, Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL)Abstract
This article investigates how evaluative language operates in the poem Zihlabana nje ziyalamba, written by Shasha (1992) in isiXhosa. The main objective of this article is to explore and discuss the emotional, ethical, and environmental judgements constructed through linguistic choices in the poem. The study employs the Attitude subsystem (Affect, Judgment, and Appreciation) of Appraisal Theory, within the systemic functional linguistics (SFL) framework. This study examines these Attitude categories (Affect, Judgment, and Appreciation), expressed in the poem as evaluative attitudes that provide attitudinal resources for its evaluative meanings. A mixed-methods approach is used, combining qualitative textual analysis with quantitative frequency analysis of evaluative expressions across the poem’s 28 lines. The results show that there are 320 evaluative instances. The evaluative instances are categorised into 135 instances of Judgment (89 negative and 46 positive), 97 instances of Affect (64 negative and 33 positive), and 88 instances of Appreciation (52 negative and 36 positive). The findings illustrate that the high frequency of negative evaluative instances in this poem has led to Judgment becoming the dominant attitudinal resource that establishes the poet’s moral stance towards the structural inequality and personal struggle inherent in the poem. This study examined how evaluative language establishes metaphors, repetitions, and symbols that convey the poem’s evaluative meanings and determine how the poem’s attitudes prompt the audience’s emotions and values regarding social injustices. This study, therefore, demonstrates that Appraisal Theory offers a systematic framework for analysing evaluative stance in isiXhosa poetry and advances African literary linguistics and evaluative stylistics.
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Data Availability Statement
The data analysed in this study consists of publicly available published Shasha's poem, which is cited in the article.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Thulani Simayile (Author)
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