Chiasmus is an ancient literary device, as old as Hebrew scripture and ancient Greek verse. Its use in English literature is often a callback to those ancient origins, but just as often, it’s used
as a simple way to add emphasis to a particular pair of phrases.
What is the importance of chiasmus?
The Importance of Chiasmus. The
chiasmus creates a highly symmetrical structure, and gives the impression of completeness
. We seem to have “come full circle,” so to speak, and the sentence (or paragraph, etc.) seems to tie up all the loose ends.
How do writers use chiasmus?
Chiasmus is a figure of speech in which
the grammar of one phrase is inverted in
the following phrase, such that two key concepts from the original phrase reappear in the second phrase in inverted order. The sentence “She has all my love; my heart belongs to her,” is an example of chiasmus.
What does chiasmus mean in literature?
:
an inverted relationship between the syntactic elements of parallel phrases
(as in Goldsmith’s to stop too fearful, and too faint to go)
What’s the difference between chiasmus and antithesis?
As nouns the difference between chiasmus and antithesis
is that
chiasmus is chiasmus
while antithesis is a proposition that is the diametric opposite of some other proposition.
What is the purpose of Zeugma?
The zeugma is an interesting literary device that uses
one word to refer to two or more different things in more than one way
. Zeugmas will either confuse the reader or inspire them to think more deeply. Learn more about zeugmas through several examples.
How do you remember chiasmus?
Pronunciation is easy, if easily mistaken. The word is Greek, and the “ch” is pronounced as a “k” as in “chaos,” “character,” “chameleon,” or “Christ.” The “i” is long. Ki-AS-mus. In a chiasmus, the first subject mentioned becomes the last one in the passage.
What is another name for chiasmus?
Chiasmus is the reversing of the order of words in the second of two parallel phrases or sentences. This rhetorical device is also referred to as
reverse parallelism or syntactical inversion
.
Is to be or not to be a chiasmus?
That prolonged moment of indecision, like crossed swords at the beginning of a duel, mirror the words that move inward and outward at the same time. “To be or not to be” is an example of chiasmus, the “x marks the spot” where the syntax of the sentence turns inside out, turning the logic around at the same time.
What is anaphora technique?
The term anaphora refers to
a poetic technique in which successive phrases or lines begin with the same words, often resembling a litany
. The repetition can be as simple as a single word or as long as an entire phrase.
Where did chiasmus come from?
The term chiastic derives from the mid-17th century term chiasmus, which refers to a crosswise arrangement of concepts or words that are repeated in reverse order. Chiasmus derives
from the Greek word khiasmos, a word that is khiazein, marked with the letter khi
.
What does Zeugma mean in English?
:
the use of a word to modify or govern two or more words usually in such
a manner that it applies to each in a different sense or makes sense with only one (as in “opened the door and her heart to the homeless boy”)
What is a paradoxical chiasmus?
A paradox is a seemingly contradictory statement that nonetheless makes sense, while a chiasmus is
an inversion of word order in two phrases
that are…
Is climax a figure of speech?
Climax is a figure
of speech in which successive words, phrases, clauses, or sentences
are arranged in ascending order of importance, as in “Look! … Climax has the effect of building excitement and anticipation. The device is used in writing of all types, from speeches and songs to novels and plays.
What is an example of Antimetabole?
In rhetoric, antimetabole (/æntɪməˈtæbəliː/ AN-ti-mə-TAB-ə-lee) is the repetition of words in successive clauses, but in transposed order; for example,
“I know what I like, and I like what I know”
. It is related to, and sometimes considered a special case of, chiasmus.
Is euphemism figure of speech?
A euphemism is
a figure of speech
, which means “an expression in which the words are not used in their literal sense.” Therefore, euphemisms are classified as figurative language, which is the “use of words in an unusual or imaginative manner.”
