Feature Writing and Stylistics as Media for Local Branding: A Structural Hermeneutic Analysis

Feature writing is a typical journalistic product that contains a combination of news and opinion, with a storytelling style containing human interest and beautiful language. The art of feature writing is more widely understood in the context of entertaining and inspirational reading products rather than as a medium for promotion. The purpose of this study is to make a theoretical analysis to understand the art of feature writing by looking at the substance from the stylistic side that features are more than entertaining reading but are positioned as a medium for local branding. The results show that the morphology of feature writing is built on cohesion and imagery as the dominant elements of stylistics that support the delivery of meaning through the narrative structure. In conclusion, from a structural hermeneutic perspective, stylistic elements in feature writing not only build an entertaining discourse, but objective and informative, which implicitly promotes the locality as local branding.


Introduction
Feature writing is widely seen as entertaining and inspiring because of the creativity in combining opinion, facts, touching storytelling, and the beauty of branding in the anthology entitled "Jejak Memori Kampung HalamanKu."This research takes stylistics as the formal object and feature writing in the anthology entitled "Kampung HalamanKu" as the material object.The structural hermeneutics approach to a work reconciles the tendency of subjectivity in hermeneutics with the rigidity of structuralism in its tendency of objectivism.This research uses a structural hermeneutics approach based on three main points in Paul Ricoeur's theory of interpretation (1981), namely (1) a detailed study of the linguistic patterns of the text as the objective dimension of interpretation, (2) the interpreter's perspective as the subjective dimension of interpretation, (3) both dimensions are equally important in the activity of interpretation.
Structural hermeneutics has been used as an approach as well as a method in previous studies.The approach and methods of structural hermeneutics in behavior produce theories, assumptions, and descriptions of culture (Alexander and Smith, 2003).In the context of culture and media artworks, this paradigm analyzes how impressions work as structures of meaning and media texts (Norton, 2011).Performing structural hermeneutics also provides what is referred to as "the bones of what is observed without losing its flesh" to literary works (Ahimsa-Putra 2006).Research with stylistics as a formal object has been done in many previous studies of literary works but not with a structural hermeneutic approach or method.Analyzing a text stylistically is different from analyzing a literary work because it must be more objective and rooted in facts.In previous studies, stylistic analysis has explained how the words in a text create the feelings and responses we get when reading it, how analysis can be structured, how to relate linguistic elements to meaning, and how to provide an objective explanation of the initial interpretation of a text (Ali, Bhatti, and Shah, 2016;Almahameed, 2020;Isti'anah, 2017;Saputra and Abida, 2021).In this study, structuralism and hermeneutics as interrelated paradigms are used to conduct content analysis on feature writing by looking at the relationship between stylistic elements that construct ideas about the facts of locality, imagination, and creativity of the author for local branding.The utilization of stylistics in feature writing for promotional purposes has not been discussed in previous studies.

Method of Research
This research is an interpretative qualitative content analysis.Content analysis is used to identify and analyze characteristics embedded in the text (Frey, Botan, and Kreps, 1999).The design of interpretive content analysis is, "especially for latent content analysis, where the researcher goes beyond simply quantifying the most straightforward denotative elements in a text" (Ahuvia, 2001).Qualitative data were taken from four feature writings in an anthology entitled "Jejak Memori Kampung Halamanku" written by MAN 1 Yogyakarta students, edited by Joko Santoso, Awla Akbar Ilwa, and Wiwien Widyawati Rahayu, and published in 2023.The contents of the anthology were classified into four major categories, namely "Romantisme" (Romanticism), "Memori" (Memory), "Sejarah dan Tradisi" (History and Tradition), and "Geliat Ekonomi" (Economic Stretch This study applied the qualitative research procedure of interpretative content analysis.The data analysis procedure adapted and combined Ahimsa-Putra's ceriteme model ( 2006) and Nurgiyantoro's stylistic elements (1995) as rhetorical devices.The procedure is as follows: First, selecting the sample texts.Second, determining ceriteme (groups of sentences that form a narrative structure) as the unit of analysis.Third, classifying the unit of analysis based on stylistic elements (1995).Fourth, analyzing the unit categories (ceriteme) based on language and style (stylistic elements) as rhetorical elements.Fifth, drawing inferences of the meanings in the text structure concerning promoting locality.

Discussion
The result of the research shows the morphology of 4 feature writings that become the material object of this research.The morphology of the feature texts shows the number of sentence lines, the overall categorization of the sentence lines into paragraphs, the grouping of sentences that make up the narrative structure of the feature text (ceriteme), dominant stylistic elements that become rhetorical devices of the feature text, and the meanings in the narrative structure concerning promoting locality.The following tables show the morphology of feature texts systematically.The relationship between the storytelling and dominant stylistic elements supports the formation of meanings that promote local nature, culture, and economic life.Stylistic elements, especially cohesion, and imagery, support the story that describes geographical conditions.The excerpts of the feature writing entitled "Lembaran Kisah Pengangkut Batu" show the relationship between sentences that convey meaning supported by imaginary elements to form a series of stories to produce meaning about a life that blends with the locality and nature as a source of livelihood.
The relationship between cohesion elements and imagery in the story describes the geographical conditions that support local nature as local branding, which introduces the beauty of local nature to readers.The excerpts of the feature writing entitled "Wonosobo, Kota Sejuta Kenangan" also introduce the beauty of local nature to the reader.The coherent imagery also supports ceriteme in describing the local culture.Imagery is the use of words and expressions that can evoke sensory responses.According to Nurgiyantoro (1995), Images and imagery refer to mental reproduction.Imagery is a picture of various sensory experiences evoked by words.The excerpts of "Balorejo, Kesuburan di balik Daerah Rawan Banjir" show that the coherent imagery supports the story in describing local culture.
The promotional side of feature writing is attached to stylistic elements, especially cohesion, and imagery, which support ceriteme in forming certain meanings.Stylistic analysis with a structural hermeneutic approach to feature writings positions stylistic elements that are interrelated in the text to form meaningful narratives for readers.Thus, stylistics is more than just building "beauty" as in literary texts (poetry, novels, and drama) but an objective and clear understanding and information on the meaning in the feature texts.

Conclusion
In conclusion, from the structural hermeneutic perspective, the art of feature writing emphasizes the morphology of linguistic patterns of texts as the objective dimension of interpretation.The morphology of the feature writings includes stylistic elements, particularly cohesion, and imagery to support the ceriteme to convey meanings to readers, which is more than entertaining reading, but inspiring and informative reading to locality.The process of interpreting the feature text involves the subjective dimension of the reader (the analyst) who sees the meaning of inspiring and informative reading to the locality in feature writings as a medium for local branding.