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Proper names and plot progression in Jack London’s play Theft

A corpus linguistics approach

ORCiD logo with link | American University of Beirut
Published online: 20 November 2025
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https://doi.org/10.1075/etc.23010.sfe
Abstract
This article adopts a corpus linguistics approach to investigate proper names of characters in an American modern play, Jack London’s Theft: A Play in Four Acts (London, Jack. 1910. Theft: A play in four acts. [URL]). The analysis of proper names in drama has tended to link character names to characterization. As a result, the relationship between proper names and plot progression has been largely overlooked. The paper focuses on patterns and shifts in how the two main characters in Theft are addressed and referred to using their proper names. The findings suggest that proper names can be linked to plot progression in plays and, to a lesser extent, might reveal aspects about the relationship between authors, and their readers and audiences. The study provides a new understanding of how proper names can be linked to plot progression, and how they contribute to the construction of meaning in drama.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Proper names and plot progression in fiction and plays
    • 2.1Non-corpus-oriented approaches to proper names
    • 2.2Corpus linguistics and proper names
  • 3.Methods and models
  • 4.Analysis
    • 4.1Main characters’ proper names in dialogue and stage directions: A focus on frequency and distribution
    • 4.2Proper names in dialogue: Insights into plot progression in Theft
      • 4.2.1Margaret’s proper names in dialogue
        • 4.2.1.1Madge as a form of address and reference
        • 4.2.1.2Margaret as a form of address and reference
        • 4.2.1.3Mrs. Chalmers as a form of address and reference
      • 4.2.2Knox’s proper names in dialogue
        • 4.2.2.1Knox as a form of address and reference
        • 4.2.2.2Ali Baba as a form of address and reference
        • 4.2.2.3Mr. Knox as a form of address and reference
        • 4.2.2.4Howard Knox as a form of reference
        • 4.2.2.5Howard as a form of address
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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