Antiphrasis is a figure of speech in which a phrase or word is opposite to its literal meaning in order to create an ironic or comic effect. Examples: “The Chihuahua’s name is Goliath.” “The actress was a mere babe of forty years.” “Get in, little man,” he told his six foot tall friend. Antiphrasis surprises […]
Rhetorical Devices Epitasis and Anesis
Epitasis is the addition of a concluding sentence that merely emphasizes what has already been stated. A kind of amplification. Example: Eat your sandwich. All of it. Anesis is the opposite of epitasis. It adds a concluding sentence that diminishes the effect of what was said previously. Examples: The little dog is cute and obedient. […]
Rhetorical Device Polysyndeton
The rhetorical device, polysyndeton, is the opposite of asyndeton, the term I explained in my last post. Asyndeton omits conjunctions between words, phrases, or clauses. Polysyndeton adds several conjunctions in close succession between each word, phrase, or clause without commas. It makes the sentence slower and the items more emphatic than in asyndeton. The repetition […]
Asyndeton, a Rhetorical Device
Rhetorical Devices attract and hold attention with words. Asyndeton is one in which conjunctions are omitted deliberately from a series. Julius Caesar eliminated “and” when he said, “I came. I saw. I conquered.” Asyndeton produces a hurried rhythm in a sentence. It creates a concise, dramatic effect. Abraham Lincoln used asyndeton when he said, “of […]