Dissimilar discourses: the realism of Amis's conversations in Lucky Jim

Abstract

This paper attempts an objective analysis of some lexico-grammatical features in conversations between Jim Dixon and the principal characters of Lucky Jim. The aim is to show that these relate closely in several respects to Bernstein's codes. The method of analysis is empirical, verifiable and replicable, and can claim some scientific rigour. On the measures adopted, academics and friends in the novel are found to have consistently different profiles. Social class, code and tenor appear to have interacting rather than causal relationships, suggesting a more complex language system than Halliday proposed.