Discourse Manifestations of Power in Helon Habila’s Measuring Time

This research examines the concept of power in discourse and its manifestations in Helon Habila’s Measuring Time, engaging Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as a theoretical framework. The research findings reveal that power in discourse in the novel is manifested linguistically as grammatical, syntactical, and lexical properties such as metaphor, repetitions, rhetorical questions, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs that indicate attitude in asymmetric relationships. Hence, these linguistic markers of power reflect the sub-themes of power as manipulation, imposition, exploitation, impoliteness, and the derogatory labeling of disabled characters by the able-bodied ones. The study demonstrates that pragmatic concepts are pivotal in the literary explorations of prose works and contribute meaningfully to a story’s plot, characterization, and thematic analysis of a text.