| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Parallelism | grammatically parallel & often repetitious; corresponding grammatical structure; syntactical parallel structure |
| Isocolon | when grammatical similarities are in grammar, length, & even syllables; approaches the recurrent beat of verse (syllable patterns) |
| Antithesis | the juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas to give a feeling of balance |
| Juxtaposition | parallel structure-placing two things side for comparison |
| Paradox | a statement that contradicts itself |
| Oxymoron | a smaller unit of paradox where two words combine to have a definition that oppose each other (example- she’s pretty ugly) |
| Listing | simple parallelism with words rather than phrases-must maintain grammatical structure! |
| Ellipsis | deliberately omitting a word (or words) that is implied by the context--Allows you to speed things up & get to the point; emphasizes what’s left |
| Asyndeton | the deliberate omission of conjunctions between a series of related clauses--Emphasizes the parallel structure & the relation of the clauses--Very punctuated; one after another |
| Apposition | placing side by side to coordinate elements with one modifying the other--speaks about the subject--Set off by comas, dashes, or parentheses |
| Parenthesis | the insertion of some verbal unit that interrupts the syntactical flow--The speaker editorializing what’s happening in the sentence--Cut off from syntax of rest of the sentence; gives sentence an emotional charge-voice |
| Polysyndeton | deliberate use of many conjunctions--Slows down things down--The opposite of asyndeton |
| Anaphora | the repetition of the same word of group of words at the beginning of successive clauses--Makes you remember what is repeated—repeat what you want remembered! |
| Epistrophe | repetition of the same word of group of words at the end of successive clauses--Can feel more abrupt |
| Anadiplosis | repetition where a word ends one phrase & starts another--Causes emphasis on effect & connection--Stronger the more you use it |
| Epanalepsis | the “bookend” scheme-a word both ends & begins a scheme--“blood hath brought blood”--More appropriate for verse--Highly dramatic-don’t overuse it |
| Antimetabole | repetition of words in successive clauses in reverse grammatical order--Example- “one for all and all for one”--Emphasizes antithesis (usually, not always) |
| Climax | scheme of amplification, words/phrases/clauses ordered in order of importance (least to greatest) |
| Chiasmus | flip of grammatical structure; the order in one of two parallel clauses is inverted in the other--Same effect as antimetabole--Example- “It is hard to make money, but to spend it is easy” |
| Polyptoton | the repetition of words derived from the same root--Example- “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” |
Combine with other sets
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