Can stylistic analysis help the EFL learner to read literature?

Stylisticians frequently claim that their academic activity is of use to the foreign learner struggling with literature. This article characterizes the spirit of this activity and suggests that it is alien to the spirit in which we read. The writer acknowledges that learners need help with the language but argues, by way of a suggested classroom activity, that stylistic analysis, instead of aiding their reading, actually impedes it.