A Stylistic Exploration of Headlines in Ghanaian Newspaper Editorials

Abstract

Considering the role of newspaper editorials in shaping the opinions of the public on matters of national interest, the present study was carried out to explore how newspaper editorial headlines are constructed and packaged. A bottom-up stylistics approach was employed to ascertain some stylistic strategies or features in the headlines. It was revealed that Ghanaian editors employ several linguistic forms to trigger presuppositions and also use language devices or figures in order to affect the opinions of their readers, shape their understanding, and increase their interest to read the main text. The paper concludes that newspaper editorial headlines are not written arbitrarily but are carefully constructed to pack the greatest number of meanings in a small space. This study contributes to the existing knowledge in media discourse and stylistics in general. It presents headlines as independent text types which can be used as case studies in language classrooms to help students appreciate the application of language or literary concepts. Keywords: Newspaper, editorial, headline, style and stylistics.