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Jigneshbharati Posted 6 years ago
Grammar

WAG-WAG

WHIZZZ! went the crocodile and Sampson. WHIZZZ! went Katy. WHIZZZ! went Mr Whisker. WAG-WAG went Black Dog. WAG-WAG went Spotted Dog.

https://ibb.co/Wpjw2xH
Please explain the use of "WAG-WAG" in the above. Why have they capitalised "WAG-WAG" and "WHIZZZ"? Please explain the use of the small dash between "WAG-WAG" and so many exclamations in the above quoted lines.

  

Top answer

The writer has taken what we call poetic license. In creative writing such as poetry and prose fiction, writers can violate whatever rules they like if they think it will produce the desired effect. I can't say I think that this writer did it very well, but she did nothing technically wrong.

— Anonymous

  • The writer has taken what we call poetic license.
  • In creative writing such as poetry and prose fiction, writers can violate whatever rules they like if they think it will produce the desired effect.
  • I can't say I think that this writer did it very well, but she did nothing technically wrong.
  • The capital letters are supposed to denote loudness, I guess, but a dog's tail does not wag loudly, so I am as mystified as you are about that, unlesss she meant that the wagging was vigorous.
  • The hyphen in "WAG-WAG" is a common phenomenon in English, which employs reduplication quite a lot.
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2 Answers
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The writer has taken what we call poetic license. In creative writing such as poetry and prose fiction, writers can violate whatever rules they like if they think it will produce the desired effect. I can't say I think that this writer did it very well, but she did nothing technically wrong. The capital letters are supposed to denote loudness, I guess, but a dog's tail does not wag loudly, so

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This is a children's story meant to be read aloud to a very young child. The capital letters are words that are read in a loud voice. WHizzz is more of a noise than a word.

Wag-Wag is meant to imitate a happy dog wagging its tail back and forth.

You got the same answers here:

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