Antithesis
A grammatical balance of two opposed ideas — 'to be or not to be'.
Antithesis is a figure of speech that places two opposed ideas in grammatical balance, producing contrast and clarity. The structure is usually parallel: 'man proposes, God disposes'; 'it was the best of times, it was the worst of times'.
Antithesis is closely related to chiasmus, but it does not require word-order reversal — only the juxtaposition of opposites. It is one of the foundational figures of English prose rhythm, partly because Latin training drilled it into generations of writers.
Used well, antithesis sharpens an argument by forcing the reader to feel both sides at once. Used poorly, it produces false binaries, which is why politicians overuse it.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”
Keep reading the glossary
An ABBA word-order reversal — 'ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country'.
The deliberate repetition of a word or phrase at the start of successive clauses.
The art of persuasive speaking and writing — the discipline behind every great quoted line.
Aristotle's three modes of persuasion — character, emotion, and reason.