A STYLISTIC STUDY OF AMMA DARKO'S FACELESS

This study offers a stylistic analysis of Faceless, a novel by the Ghanaian writer Amma Darko, with the aim of uncovering how linguistic choices contribute to thematic and narrative development of the text. Drawing on theories of literary and linguistic stylistic, the research examines how features such as deviation, foregrounding, thematization, and narrative perspective function within the novel. The study explores the contextual and social-cultural underpinning of language use in the text, especially as they pertain to issues of streetism, gender inequality, and social neglect. Employing a qualitative, text-based analysis, the research identifies stylistic patterns-such as the use of Ghanaian Pidgin English, repetition, metaphor, and alternating narrative voices- as tool through which Darko amplifies the experience of marginalized individuals. The finding reveals that Amma Darko’s style is not merely aesthetic but instrumental in shaping reader empathy, critiquing systemic injustices, and portraying urban Ghanaian life. The study contributes to scholarship by demonstrating how literature beyond thematic interpretation. It also fills a gap in existing literature, where Faceless has been widely studied for its content but rarely for its form. This research thus affirms the value of stylistic analysis in understanding literary texts as complex linguistic artifacts.