updated 23 October 2007
REVIEW
RHETORICAL TERMS WITH EXAMPLES: FALL 2007

With examples provided by students enrolled in ENGL 5730 in Fall 2007. Sources of quotations (if provided) are in parentheses; the names of the students who submitted the quotations (if provided) are in brackets.
  
Terms beginning A-G are on this page.  Terms H-Z are here.

How to use this page: After studying the example(s) accompanying each rhetorical term below, try to compose a clear and accurate definition of the term.  Better yet, write down your definition.  Then click on the term to compare your definition with the one in our online glossary.

Comments accompanying "standouts" and "puzzlers" are in italics. My comments (signed "N") are in red. I've tried to identify especially good examples, troublesome examples, and flat out wrong examples. Treat those without any comments as OK.

Evaluations submitted by:
Sheryl Avery
Chris Buckner
Jeremy Buff
Erin Christian
Rance Clark
Donna Corbett
George Dalrymple
Mollie Diamond
Karen Farmer
Johnny Flynn
Eugene Garcia
Veronica Golden
Wanda Goss
Brandon Griffin
Pat Hamilton
Victoria Hammond
Katharine Harrington
Lauren Hunsberger
Caitlin Johnson
Elizabeth Larrimore
Michael Martin
Stacy Mincey
Jim Muenckler
Chris Murphy
Katie Nichols
Erin O'Keefe
Carmela Orsini
Kathryn Palmer
Sarah Rauers
Scott Robinson
Laura Stephens
John Wilson
____________________________________

TERMS A-G

Alliteration
--“ One Sunday afternoon I went to the grocery store, and I noticed some people taking turns cuddling some young, yellow Labrador Retrievers.  They were standing around a pick-up truck with Colorado plates that I had correctly assumed was their vehicle.   After awhile, I realized that these out-of-towners were not taking a break on their way back home – they were trying to sell these dogs.  I called them the “people peddling puppies in the Piggly Wiggly parking lot.”   I know – it’s probably lame – but a true story nonetheless.  It might have been worse -  they could have come from Pueblo.  AND – it was the Pooler Piggly Wiggly. “ [Katharine Harrington] 

Ambiguity
STANDOUT
--Has anyone here been caught thieving in the Middle East? Let’s see have a show of hands.(Jimmy Carr)[Laura Stephens] 
* A well understood double meaning.  The reader knows that the show of hands is an affirmation to what Jimmy says, but the reader who knows the punishment for thieves in the Middle-East understands that those hands have been severed. [Lawrence L. Clark III]
(Good one.--N)

STANDOUT & PUZZLER
--“Thanks for Dinner.  I’ve never seen potatoes cooked like that before.” (Jonah Baldwin in “Sleepless in Seattle”) [Katharine Harrington]
* It is not clear whether it is a compliment or trying to hide something by being nice.  It is a good quote for this term and easily relatable. [Caitlin Johnson]
* This seems to have the same meaning or at least a connected meaning rather than two possible meanings. Dinner and potatoes cooked go together. [Wanda Goss]
(It works for me--in the same ambiguous league as ""I can't tell you how much I enjoyed meeting your husband." -- N)

Anadiplosis
--“Make money, money by fair means if you can, if not, by any means money.”
(Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus)) [Caitlin Johnson] 

STANDOUT
--"They call for you: The general who became a slave; the slave who became a gladiator?” (Commodus in the movie Gladiator.)[Katie Nichols] 
* The repetition of slave is very clearly demonstrated and helps to build the dramatic effect of the sentence.  I think the quote actually goes on to include another anadiplosis: (The gladiator who defied an emporor.) [Carmela Orsini]
(Right you are: "The general who became a slave. The slave who became a gladiator. The gladiator who defied an emperor. Striking story!" -- N)
* This is possibly the most clear-cut and memorable example of this device, and the clauses are well defined. [Erin Christian]

-- “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word God.” (John 1:1) [Kara Hooper]  

-- “It is not for kings, O Lemuel—not for kings to drink wine” (Proverbs 31:19) [Eugene Garcia] 

-- "Beauty is truth, truth beauty"---that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to now. (Ode on a Grecian Urn-Keats) [Cherwonna Ferguson] 

PUZZLER
--There are those who will spend a lifetime of leisure
‘til the leisure finally takes control
And they’ll spend their life in search of pleasure
Never knowing the treasure that they own

There are those who will spend a lifetime in hard labor
‘til the labor breaks both body and soul
And they will learn to love their neighbor
And be assured of what they own
(Thin Lizzy’s “With Love”) [Erin O’Keefe]
* I don’t know about this one because there seems to be a kind of poetic anadiplosis – one which would seem more obvious if you were singing or speaking the lyrics – but in considering the meaning of the words themselves, the words “leisure” and “labor” are separated by “’til.”  The conjunction is involved in the syntax of the sentence; therefore I would say that the lines ending in “leisure” and “labor” are begun with “until,” not with the repetition of the same word. [Sarah Rauers]
(I agree. It's an anadiplosis wannabe. But points for citing Thin Lizzy.-- N)

Analogy
STANDOUT
-- the school day is like a slow, tortuous death that culminates with the promise of starting all over again. [Cherwonna Ferguson] 
* This has the word I look for-“like” and is personally relevant because I’m in school, which makes it easy to remember. [Wanda Goss]

--“Nuclear disarmament is the ultimate form of preventive medicine” (Helen Caldicott)[Veronica Golden] 

Anaphora
PUZZLER
--“And there, there overhead, there, there hung over
Those thousands of white faces, those dazed eyes,
There in the starless dark the poise, the hover,
There with vast wings across the cancelled skies,
There in the sudden blackness the black pall
Of nothing, nothing, nothing—nothing at all.”
(Archibald Macleish, “The End of the World”) [Elizabeth Larrimore] 
* I thought the word repeated should have more meaning? Instead of “there”. Like for instance in your example it says “I’m not afraid…”[Katie Nichols]
(This one--unlike the next one--is arguable. But there are good clear examples of epizeuxis and asyndeton here. --N)

PUZZLER
-- It’s clearly a budget. It’s got a lot of numbers in it. (George W. Bush) [Laura Stephens] 
*  This one is not really "puzzling," but because "It's" is such a common word, and only repeated once, it doesn't help me remember this one as well as the other examples. [Kathryn Palmer]
*  Something about the use of “it’s” as the repeated word in this example bothers me. Is there a rule for what types of words work for anaphora, or for how often some words may require repeating before they firmly fit within the definition of anaphora? [John Wilson]
*  This was defined as anaphora; however, the way I saw anaphora was repetition after repetition.  This does have some repetition with in it, but it is not the same word as the definition calls for.  It is redefining what a budget is, numbers. [Jim Muenckler]
(Kathryn makes a key point. The effect of anaphora is created by either a distinctive and memorable word or--more often--phrase: that repetition ought to ring in our ears. "I'm not afraid to die. . . . I'm not afraid to live. I'm not afraid to fail. I'm not afraid to succeed. I'm not afraid to fall in love. I'm not afraid to be alone. I'm just afraid I might have to stop talking about myself for five minutes." Kinky Friedman, When the Cat's Away -- N)

STANDOUT
--“His lawyers are calling his parents
His girlfriend doesn’t know what to think
His partners are studying their options
He’s just singing and ordering drinks”
(Jimmy Buffet—“The Weather Is Here”)[Chris Buckner] 
* Has all the makings of a great example of anaphora (His,His,His)plus an order of drinks to drown it all out. [Johnathon Robinson]
(See above.--N)

STANDOUT
---Sow a thought, and you reap an act;
Sow an act, and you reap a habit;
Sow a habit, and you reap a character;
Sow a character, and you reap a destiny.
(Quoted by Samuel Smiles, in Life and Labor 1887) [Caitlin Johnson] 
*  I really think this is perfect example of anaphora, since the repetition actually has meaning other than making it a point to show that the words are repeated.  The repetition isn’t there to just be there, basically. [Jeremy Buff]

STANDOUT
-- It is never too late to deal a blow to al-Qaida. It is never too late to advance freedom. And it is never too late to support our troops in a fight they can win. (President Bush, televised speech 13 September, 2007) [Katharine Harrington]
* This is a great example of anaphora.  It has more meat than a simple one word repetition. [Chris Buckner]
(I agree. Evaluate the logos on your own. --N)

STANDOUT
-- “We cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground"  (Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln) [Katie Nichols] 
* This is actually what a good example of anaphora is.  Repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of a clause. This stands out in my mind because it is a similar example of to “I have a dream.” [Jim Muenckler]

SEMI-PUZZLER
-- “Love, quick to kindle in the gentle heart,
Seized this one for the beauty of my body,
Torn from me, (How it happened still offends me!)
“Love, that excuses no one loved from loving,
Seized me so strongly with delight in him
That, as you see, he never leaves my side. 

Love led us straight to sudden death together.
Caina awaits the one who quenched our lives.”
These were the words that came from them to us.”
(Dante Alighieri’s: Canto V/”Paolo and Francesca” Lines 100-108) [Jim Muenckler] 
* I think this is a good example of what anaphora is; however, it is way too long.  When I did the assignment I was just looking for examples and not thinking, hey maybe they should be shorter so that it will be useful and students, including myself, would remember them.  So this one is good but way too long! [Jim Muenckler]
(Length isn't necessarily a problem--but the three-line delay between repetitions makes this example less forceful than some others.--N)

-- You’re a fine Christian! You’re just like them all say one thing and do another. You’re a perfect Christian, you’re?
|(From Flannery O’Connor’s "Good Country People") [Lauren Hunsberger]

-- With love
She says she wont be back no more
With love
She says she’s leaving for sure
(Thin Lizzy’s “With Love”) [Erin O’Keefe]
 

Anticlimax
-- It only figures that I’d ride my bike through wet cement, and as I’m sinking, the last thing I think is, “Did I pay the rent?”
 (Jim O’Rourke, “Ghost Ship in a Storm”)[Sarah Rauers]
(This works for me.--N)

Antithesis
-- "Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it’s precisely the opposite."
(J.K.Galbraith) [Laura Stephens] 
(Call it ironic antithesis or antithesis deconstructed if you like, but this one's a keeper. -- N)

STANDOUT
--“I'm stupid. You're smart. I was wrong. You were right. You're the best. I'm the worst. You're very good-looking. I'm not very attractive.” 
(Happy Gilmore  sucking up to Chubbs  in Happy Gilmore) [Katharine Harrington] 
*  I think this is an excellent example because it clearly illustrates what antithesis means.  I may be a bit biased in stating this is a good one because I love this film, but it really works in defining what antithesis truly is. [Jim Muenckler]
*  The clear, concise, and balanced manner of these quipped comments makes the term, antithesis, easily recognizable. [Karen Farmer] 
*  I love this example because it shows how sometimes rhetoric can be seen as flattery. Like Katherine Harrington says, in this scene Happy Gilmore is sucking up to Chubbs by using the rhetorical device know as antithesis. The device works so well in this situation because it only allows for two possible choices, therefore Happy is purposely demonstrating to Chubbs that he is better than Happy by contrasting ideas. It works perfectly when trying to win someone over quickly. [Lauren Hunsberger]
(When it comes to Adam Sandler, I defer to the class. -- N)

STANDOUT
--"I’m not a feminist, but why is there a smart woman behind every successful man and a vacant space beside every successful woman."
(From Skirt! magazine, July 2007)[Lauren Hunsberger] 
* This stands out to me because it is a clever, witty, and humorous statement. It makes it easy for me to remember, thus associate with the word. [Kathryn Palmer]
* This example is a great example of antithesis. She says she’s not a feminist but raises the issue of a woman being behind a successful man, but a successful woman being alone. Very good. [Victoria Hammond]
(Okay. -- N)

Antimetabole
PUZZLER
--“Do not judge, and you will not be judged.” (Bible Chapter 7 in the Sermon on the Mount) [Jim Muenckler]
* I didn’t really think this fit the definition exactly; it seems closer to parallelism or epiphora. But it also seemed like it could work for the definition. [Pat Hamilton]
(Polyptoton and dehortatio, yes, but not antimetabole. - N)

 Antirrhesis 
STANDOUT
--“When Erica Lavine was 23
Her lover said “Erica, marry me
This relationship is answering a basic need
And I’d like to have it legally guaranteed
For without you and your precious love, I would truly die
So why can’t we make it legal?” Erica said, “Why?
Basic needs at your age should be met by you.
I’m your lover, not your mother, let’s be careful what we do
If I should ever marry, I will marry to grow
Not for tradition or possession or protection. No
I love you, but your needs are a very different issue.”
Then he cried and Erica handed him a tissue.”
(From The Ballad of Erica Lavine by Bob Blue) [Donna Corbett]
* For me, this poem clearly illustrates the meaning of the term since it distinctly points out the error of the proposal (argument). [Karen Farmer]
(Agreed--it's an excellent example. -- N)

--“It’s not that big of a deal,” said Molly. “A DUI is a misdemeanor.” [Michael Martin]

-- "There are those who claim our strength is inadequate to protect on both fronts, that we cannot divide our effort. I can think of no greater expression of defeatism. If a potential enemy can divide his strength on two fronts, it is for us to counter his efforts. The Communist threat is a global one. Its successful advance in one sector threatens the destruction of every other sector. You cannot appease or otherwise surrender to communism in Asia without simultaneously undermining our efforts to halt its advance in Europe."
(Douglas MacArthur's Speech On April 19, 1951 to a Joint Session Of Congress After Truman Relieved Him of Command in Korea) [Stacy Mincey] 
(Okay--N)

Antonomasia
PUZZLER
--“I think the youth have picked up the Establishment paranoia. Like it was Make Love, Not War a few years ago. It’s turned into KILL THE PIGS. The whole place is paranoic and I want to remind them; REMEMBER LUV. Remember that you have love inside you and so has the pig. Give Peace a chance…Kiss A Cop For Peace Week!” (John Lennon: In His Own Words p. 83) [Mollie Diamond]
* I had trouble understanding where the substitution of a name came up. It just wasn’t as clear to me as other examples I’ve seen. [Victoria Hammond]
(“Pig” for “cop” is closer to tapinosis. To call a troubled police officer a "Sipowicz"--after the NYPD Blue character--would be antonomasia.)

STANDOUT
-- Lucky Day: “In a way, each of us has an El Guapo to face. For some, shyness might be their El Guapo. For others, a lack of education might be their El Guapo. For us, El Guapo is a big, dangerous man who wants to kill us. But as sure as my name is Lucky Day, the people of Santa Poco can conquer their own personal El Guapo, who also happens to be *the actual* El Guapo!” (From one of the best underrated comedies of all times The Three Amigos, Lucky Day played by Steve Martin replaces the descriptive phrase of “internal struggle” or “personal demons” with the name of the bad guy that the people he is addressing are fighting, El Guapo.) [Carmela Orsini}] 
* Since I’ve seen this movie I find this speech to be memorable. [Donna Corbett]
(Okay--N)

STANDOUT
--"Queen of Pop" = Madonna [posterofaboyy@aol.com]
* I will remember the reference to Madonna because I’m an 80’s child. [Wanda Goss]

--“The ignorant athlete Jock”(quoted by Katie Nichols)[Katie Nichols]

-- “Dear Constant Reader”
(Stephen King addresses all his readers this way in the foreword of his books.) [Wanda Goss]
(Fine example but a point of trivia: King hijacked the phrase from Dorothy Parker: "Constant Reader" was the nickname she used in the 1930s and '40s to sign her book reviews at The New Yorker.)

-- “But this Casanova’s roving days are over more or less” (Thin Lizzy’s “With Love”) [Erin O’Keefe]

Apophasis
STANDOUT
--“I shall ignore the fact that Learning is youth's finest ornament, the strong support of the prime of life, and the consolation of old age.  I shall make no point of the fact that, after careers full of achievement and glory, many of the men who have been most honored by their contemporaries and many of the most eminent of the Romans withdrew from the conflict and hurlyburly of ambition to literary studies, as to a harbor and a delightful treat.” (John Milton in Prolusion VII: Learning Makes Men Happier Than Does Ignorance) [Erin Christian]
*  This is a great example of apophasis.  The entire statement does everything but ignore learning. [Chris Buckner]
*  This example directly illuminates the core of an apophasis, by making a point in the disguise of denying to be saying it. The repetition of ‘I shall’ helps the exemplary effect of this quote. [Laura Stephens]
*  I think that this is an excellent example of apophasis because not only does Milton deny mentioning his idea once, but he does it twice. Because he is able to use the same device twice without sounding cheesy or tricky, this is a fabulous example of apophasis and how the device is actually used to emphasis the point rather than hide it. [Lauren Hunsberger]
(Agreed: great example of an important term. -- N)

Aposiopesis
PUZZLER
--“I think that I’ve had two lives. The first one ended wonderfully--and now the second is about to begin. I think--as marvelous as the first one was--the new one will be even better, because I am more at peace with myself and with Yoko” (John Lennon: In His Own Words p.126) [Mollie Diamond] 
* I doesn’t seem like an unfinished thought to me, just an interrupted one.  [Caitlin Johnson]
* Don’t know if this really exemplifies aposiopesis; although the thought is broken up by parentheticals, the thought is finished in a reasonably timely fashion. [Sarah Rauers]
(Right. Call it parenthesis. -- N)

-- “I’ve got to get and A or I’ll—
What would happen if—“  (Chris Murray) [Chris Murray] 
(This works. -- N)

STANDOUT
--"If you pop that gum ONE more time..." (Chicago, "Cell Block Tango")[posterofaboyy@aol.com]
*  One heard by thousands that never has a clear punishment behind it, if anything is even said at all.  I think a good example. [Caitlin Johnson]
*  We say things like this so often, yet we’ve never bothered to come up with the rest of the sentence. It’s sort of an empty threat in that way. Usually, though, it’s an effective empty threat; the rest of the sentence is just so horrible we can’t even bring ourselves to say it out loud. [Elizabeth Larrimore]
(Okay--N)

Apposition
-- “Queen Margaret:
Thy Edward is dead, that kill'd my Edward;
The other Edward dead, to quit my Edward;” (Shakespeare's Richard III)[Erin Christian]

--“Avoid shame, but do not seek glory--nothing so expensive as glory.” Sydney Smith

“As the French say, there are three sexes- men, women, and clergymen.” Sydney Smith
(Apposition involves explaining a noun or noun phrase by renaming it or identifying its parts. Of the five examples here, this is the only one that illustrates apposition. Check out the grammatical term appositive.--N)

“It was a delightful visit--perfect, in being much too short.” Jane Austin [Caitlin Johnson]

 --“People always say I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn’t true. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in”
(Rosa Parks)[Veronica Golden]

Apostrophe
-- “Virtue, alas, now let me take some rest.
Thou set'st a bate between my soul and wit.
If vain love have my simple soul oppress'd,
Leave what thou likest not, deal not thou with it.”
( Sir Philip Sidney's Astrophil and Stella) [Erin Christian] 
(This works. -- N)

PUZZLER
--“Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks. Rage, blow.” (Lear, “King Lear”   Act III, sc ii) [Katharine Harrington] 
*  Is this really apostrophe or Personification? “Crack your cheeks” causes it to take on human qualities and abilities, and it is causing me to sway more towards personification. [Sheryl Avery]
(Lear is addressing the storm: it's both apostrophe and personification.--N)

--"Dear Ketel One Drinker: there comes a time in everyone’s life when they just want to stop what they’re doing and?" (Ketel One advertisement) [Lauren Hunsberger] 

Assonance
-- “A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.” (Matthew 5:14) [ Kara Hooper]
-- "We live on dead people's heads."   (Annie Dillard "For the Time Being")[George Dalrymple]
-- I must confess that in my quest I felt depressed and restless (Thin Lizzy’s “With Love”) [Erin O’Keefe]
(All OK.  -- N)

Asyndeton
STANDOUT & PUZZLER
-- “It’s what the actors do best. They have to exploit whatever talent is given to them, and their talent is dying. They can die heroically, comically, ironically, slowly, suddenly, disgustingly, charmingly, or from a great height.”
(Tom Stoppard, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead) [Elizabeth Larrimore] 
* If my understanding of asyndeton is correct--a form of listing without the use of conjunctions-- then I think this is a perfect example of that. [Mollie Diamond]
(Not exactly: because there's a conjunction before the final item in the last sentence, we have simply a basic series or list. Asyndeton commonly omits conjunctions where we'd expect to find them. The Buffet line below is asyndetic. The Queen Elizabeth line below starts out asyndetic but in the end isn't. Only the last sentence of the MacArthur quote is asyndetic. See more examples at asyndeton. -- N)
* This is a better example of synathroesmus than asyndeton. [Chris Buckner]

PUZZLER
--“The weather is here I wish you were beautiful” (Jimmy Buffet—“The Weather Is Here”)[Chris Buckner]
*   This example of asyndeton confused me because I thought asyndeton was a form of listing without using conjunctions. Wouldn’t this sentence be an example of isocolon rather than asyndeton? [Mollie Diamond] 
(Doesn't have to be a list--may be, as here, a run on sentence.--N)

PUZZLER
-- " . . . I myself will take up arms, I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field." (Queen Elizabeth I's address to troops at Tilbury)[Heather Benton] 
* The thing that got me with this is I thought asyndeton was the omission of conjunctions between phrases. Can there be an “and” in between judge and rewarder? [Katie Nichols]
(See note above. -- N)

-- "The shadows are lengthening for me. The twilight is here. My days of old have vanished, tone and tint. They have gone glimmering through the dreams of things that were. Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears, and coaxed and caressed by the smiles of yesterday. I listen vainly, but with thirsty ears, for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing reveille, of far drums beating the long roll. In my dreams I hear again the crash of guns, the rattle of musketry, the strange, mournful mutter of the battlefield. (General Douglas MacArthur) [Stacy Mincey] 

Auxesis
STANDOUT
-- “Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird…it’s a plane…it’s Superman!”
(Adventures of Superman television series) [Elizabeth Larrimore] 
*  Although this is a very common statement, I like that aspect of it because it is
recognizable and easy to remember. A statement that is both easy and recognizable aids in my memorization. [Kathryn Palmer]
*  The increase is tone of voice and the words themselves work well for this one.  Everyone has heard it before but now every time I sneeze I am going to think of Superman. [Caitlin Johnson]
*  The increase in intensity of words and meaning also builds in emotional intensity as one reads, and readers get a jolted feeling of expectation by the time they get to superman!   [Sheryl Avery]
*  This is a perfect example of auxesis. It clearly illustrates a gradual increase in intensity of meaning, and because the phrase is so well known, it makes it that much easier to remember. [Mollie Diamond]
*  This is extremely memorable for me. [Donna Corbett]
(This works for me. -- N)

--“I thank God for my handicaps, for through them, I have found myself, my work, my God.” (Helen Keller)[Veronica Golden] 

--  “A car can make you look good, keep you from walking, and build your credit.” (Original-Wanda Goss)[Wanda Goss] 

Bdelygmia
STANDOUT
--      “Phillips: It’s easy when you play with rejects and a fat kid, Rodriguz.
          Benny: Shut your mouth, Phillips!
          Porter: What’d you say, crap face?
          Phillips: I said you shouldn’t be allowed to touch a baseball. Except for Rodriguez, you’re all an insult to the game.
          Porter: Come on! We’ll take you on right here! Right now! Come on!
          Phillips: We play on a real diamond, Porter. You ain’t good enough to lick the dirt off our cleats.
          Porter: Watch it, jerk!
          Phillips: Shut up, idiot!
          Porter: Moron!
          Phillips: Scab eater!
          Porter: Butt sniffer!
         Phillips: Pus licker!
          Porter: Fart smeller!
          Phillips: You eat dog crap for breakfast, geek!
          Porter: You mix your Wheaties with your mama’s toe jam!
         Phillips: You bob for apples in the toilet and you like it!
         Porter: YOU PLAY BALL LIKE A GIRL!”(The Sandlot)[Elizabeth Larrimore]
*  You have to love kids trying to out word one another by calling the other every name under the sun. Plus, there really is a litany of abuse here.  [Johnathon Robinson]
*  This has enough abusive words for me to identify what it is. I think this is close to a perfect example of Bdelygmia. [Wanda Goss]
*   I mean, it’s literally exactly the definition of bdelygmia; a series of insults, one right after the other. Plus it’s so perfect that it’s back and forth. [Jeremy Buff]
(A good exchange from a good film but a stretch to call it bdelygmia, which usually involves one person launching into an extended attack. Playing the dozens-- sometimes called an "insult fight"--is a version of tapinosis. -- N)

PUZZLER
--“It smelled bad, looked horrible and tasted worse.” [Michael Martin]
* While this is a series of negative attributes, it does not seem like the long litany of abuse or longer series of attributes to something that I would expect with effective bdelygmia. [Erin Christian]
*  This is not a litany of abuse. It is series of negative descriptions. [Michael Martin]
*  I understand that this is a line of abuse, but would one consider this a litany?  Litany is defined as a prolonged and tedious account, but this feels like neither.  It would be closer to an Auxesis because of its building to a point.   [Lawrence L. Clark III]
(Right--this isn't bdelygmia.--N)

PUZZLER
--“If I really knew you, I know what I would find – instead of a brain, a cash register, instead of a heart, a bottom line.”  (Kathleen Kelly to Joe Fox in You’ve Got Mail) [Katharine Harrington] 
* Though this certainly adheres to the “abuse” part of bdelygmia’s definition, I don’t quite see the “litany” aspect here, and as I understand it, the litany is what makes bdelygmia bdelygmia. [Elizabeth Larrimore]
(Precisely. -- N)

Catachresis
STANDOUT & PUZZLER
--“Over the mountain watching the watcher.
Breaking the darkness
Waking the grapevine.
One inch of love is one inch of shadow
Love is the shadow that ripens the wine.
Set the controls for the heart of the sun.
The heart of the sun, the heart of the sun.”
(Pink Floyd, “Set the Controls For the Heart of the Sun”)[Pat Hamilton] 
* Love it!  Darkness can’t really be broken, a grapevine couldn’t really be walked, but the inappropriate metaphor is carried through to the idea of a “shadow that ripens the vine.” [Sarah Rauers]
(OK. Purely optional trivia: "Set the Controls" is the only song recorded by Pink Floyd that has both David Gilmour & Syd Barrett playing on it. -- N)
*  Saying that this is a catachresis might be a stretch unto itself.  If it wasn’t for the last two lines, this statement would make a lot more sense.  First off, the metaphor for the richness in wine, is like richness of the heart.  First, sunshine like goodness can be considered the initial growth of the heart (innocence even).  Then, the shadow is the cause of fermentation that makes a greater, more rich (if you would consider alcohol rich) wine (growing stronger from hardships).  The heart needs days without light, so that it grows greater from the bad experiences, just so it would appreciate the light.  This just states that the light and the darkness are both needed for growth of the heart, spirit, etc.  I just don’t understand why it has to be the “heart” of the sun, instead of just the sun.   [Lawrence L. Clark III]
(I think you're both right--and together you make a good point: more than with most terms, catachresis invites a subjective response. Some readers, for example, view Hamlet's "To be or not to be" speech as catachresis because the metaphors--e.g., "to take arms against a sea of troubles"--appear to be discordant, unrelated. Other readers say that discord is the point. Still others see subtle metaphorical interrelations where others don't.)

-- 'The Quality of Mercy is not Buffy' (Xander, Buffy the Vampire Slayer)[ posterofaboyy@aol.com] 

STANDOUT
--“I will speak daggers to her.” (Shakespeare, Hamlet) [Kara Hooper] 
* This serves as a memorable, short, and clear example of the concept of catachreis. Who speaks actual daggers? No one, but yet the statement clearly conveys an intention to speak in a direct or pointed manner to someone. [John Wilson]
(OK. -- N)

--“He claimed to love Clay, and perhaps he did, a little, but if so, his love was the kind that bites and burns.”(Stephen King, “Blaze” 29)[Wanda Goss] 

--"I dropped by to see you late last night
But you where out like a light
Your head was on the floor
And rats played pool with your eyes 
Death is a good disguise
For late at night."
(Jim Morrison) [George Dalrymple]  

Categoria
PUZZLER
--“If Mr. Clemens cannot think of something better to tell our pure-minded lads and lasses, he had best stop writing for them.”
(Louisa May Alcott, On Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885) [Caitlin Johnson]
* I was unsure about this one; it seemed a little too inferential to be used for categoria. [Pat Hamilton]]
(I feel the same way. If Alcott had called Twain a "corrupter of youth," she'd have been using categoria.--N)

Chiasmus
--"Well, I can't believe ‘I Can't Believe It's Not Butter’ and the stuff I can't believe is not ‘I Can't Believe It's Not Butter’ are not butter, and I believe that they both just might in fact be butter, but in cunning disguises, and in fact there's a lot more butter out there than we believe." (Alice from The Vicar of Dibley) [Erin Christian]

--"Too fucking busy, and vice versa." (Dorothy Parker while she was on her honeymoon, in a reply to an editor who was badgering her for a late story.) 

STANDOUT & PUZZLER
--"I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy." (Randy Hanzlick, title of song) [Chris Murray] 
*  I love that this isn’t a blatant form of chiasmus. It’s more subverted as something that works on our ears more than our eyes. It’s unconventional and unexpected, and I like that. [Elizabeth Larrimore]
(Very well put: it's a quasi-chiasmus. See Grothe's story about it here. And let's credit Tom Waits for the original line.--N)
*  I thought this one was really good and it actually helped me understand for the first time. I was confused on it’s meaning. I know see what it means when it says that the first and second half are balanced. [Katie Nichols]
*  I think this is an AWSOME example of what chiasmus is.  I laughed extremely hard when I read this because it is extremely creative and extremely effective! [Jim Muenckler]
*  This is my new favorite example of chiasmus, replacing Joyce’s “faintly falling / falling faintly.”  I wish I was this clever! [Sarah Rauers]
*  Can a chiasmus be formed by similar sounding or similar spellings of words? [John Wilson]
(Sort of. Check out the "types of chiasmus" at Grothe's site.--N)

--“What is valuable in not new, and what is new is not valuable.”
(From the Edinburgh Review (1802), The Work of Thomas Young) [Caitlin Johnson] 

-- “Laugh when you like, and like when you laugh.” (One that I came up with!) [Jim Muenckler] 

-- Clothes don’t make the man, the man makes the clothes. I don’t know who said this and I realize that it is sort of cliché` as well, but I think it may work for this example.  [Cherwonna Ferguson] 

-- "I dont want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."
(Jack Nicholson in "The Departed") [George Dalrymple]  
(These last four are fine. --N)

STANDOUT & (SELF-)PUZZLER
--"I’d like to make that fraulein mine, mein fraulein" (Thin Lizzy’s “With Love”)[Erin O’Keefe] 
* The word play between “fraulein mine” and “mein fraulein” was particularly useful in illustrating this example. Very clever. [Pat Hamilton]
(Good example from a fine song--on YouTube--by an under-rated Irish group. -- N)
*  After I submitted this, I started wondering if it really consituted as chiasmus since it incorporates two different languages, yet the meanings of the words in each respective language correctly correspond in terms of what qualifies as chiasmus. [Erin O’Keefe]

Chreia
--"The world has turned over many times since I took the oath at West Point, and the hopes and dreams have all since vanished, but I still remember the refrain of one of the most popular barracks ballads of that day which proclaimed most proudly that old soldiers never die; they just fade away. And like the old soldier of that ballad, I now close my military career and just fade away, an old soldier who tried to do his duty as God gave him the light to see that duty."
(Good Bye. Douglas MacArthur) 
(You've got the general idea here, though chreia are usually more expansive.--N)

Climax
--“Life is like a mean machine
It made a mess outta me
It left me caught between
Like an angry dream I was stranded, I was stranded”
(Rob Thomas, “This Is How A Heart Breaks”) [Wanda Goss]
(I don't get this one. See climax. --N)

Commoratio
STANDOUT
- Stewie: “How you uh, how you comin' on that novel you're working on? Huh? Gotta a big, uh, big stack of papers there? Gotta, gotta nice little story you're working on there? Your big novel you've been working on for 3 years? Huh? Gotta, gotta compelling protagonist? Yeah? Gotta obstacle for him to overcome? Huh? Gotta story brewing there? Working on, working on that for quite some time? Huh? (voice getting higher pitched) Yea, talking about that 3 years ago. Been working on that the whole time? Nice little narrative? Beginning, middle, and end? Some friends become enemies, some enemies become friends? At the end your main character is richer from the experience? Yeah? Yeah? (voice returns to normal) No, no, you deserve some time off.” (Brian from The Family Guy has just made the comment that he could use a vacation.  Stewie sarcastically rephrases the same point over and over in the form of questions to argue that Brian actually never does anything and would therefore not need a vacation.) [Carmela Orsini]
* Again, the pop culture reference is what is going to stick in my memory. [Donna Corbett]
(Good example of a commoratio that also ends up as bdelygmia. -- N)

--“Don’t walk. Run to your nearest convenient store to buy our brand new product. Hurry while supplies last,” said the essence of every commercial. [Michael Martin] 

PUZZLER
--“He was foolish enough to order the new music CD sight unseen” (Silvia Rhetoricae) [Victoria Hammond]
*  I do not see any repetition or dwelling on a point. [Caitlin Johnson]
*  Im not quite sure how this is  saying the same thing several different ways. [Stacy Mincey]
*  To me, commoratio occurs when a speaker or writer reiterates a point by saying it in different ways. I think in this example the student thought that maybe the words “new” and “sight unseen” were making the same point, but I feel that in order to be a true example of commoratio the idea that is being repeated needs to be repeated more than twice and needs to be repeated in order to make some kind of point. I do not think the repetition in this example makes a point about anything. [Lauren Hunsberger]
(At the Silva Rhetoricae website, this line illustrates catachresis, not commoratio.--N)

-- “Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings?” (Job 38:20) [Eugene Garcia]
(I don't think so. -- N)

-- “I have an appointment, I have a date, and I have a meeting on Wednesday at 6 p.m.” (Original- Wanda Goss) [Wanda Goss]
(OK--N)

STANDOUT
--"Ellie keep to yourself, this ain’t your dateright? Don’t hem in on me. Don’t hog. Don’t crush. Don’t bird dog. Don’t trail me, he said in a rapid meaningless voice, as if he were running through all the expressions he’d learned but was no longer sure which one of them was in style, then rushing on to new ones, making them up with his eyes closed, Don’t crawl under my fence, don’t squeeze in my chipmunk hole, don’t sniff my glue, suck my popsicle, keep your own greasy fingers on yourself. " (From Joyce Carol Oates’ "Where are You Going, Where have You Been?") [Lauren Hunsberger]
*   Whenever I hear the title of this story this passage comes to mind because I found it so amusing that someone could come up with so many different ways to say the same thing. This is a wonderful example of the use of commoratio! [Mollie Diamond]
(I agree: wonderful example of commoratio. -- N)

Copia
STANDOUT
-- "A letter truly yours both in the writing and sentiment was given to us on the 30 December by your very dear brother, the Duke of Finland. And while we perceive there from that the zeal and love of your mind towards us is not diminished, yet in part we are grieved that that we cannot gratify your Serene Highness with the same kind of affection." (Queen Elizabeth I's rejection to proposal of Erik of Sweden (fancy way of saying "let's just be friends")) [Heather Benton]
*  Heather actually summed this nicely in her entry by stating this was just a “fancy way of saying, ‘let’s just be friends.’”   The word copia means abundance.  While this statement could have been said more simply, it was written in this wordy style purposely – to reflect the speaker, a Queen, who is materially and verbally wealthy. [Katharine Harrington]
*  This is a clear example that will help me to easily remember the meaning of a term I had struggle with memorizing.  Also, the quote is interesting which makes it easier to remember. [Stacy Mincey]
(OK, but don't reduce the concept of "expansive richness" to "wordiness." Read Copia. -- N)

Crot
STANDOUT
-- Mitch Hedberg: “I tried walking into a Target, but I missed.   I wish I could play little league now.  I'd be way better than before.  I'm against picketing, but I don't know how to show it.” (The late comedian Mitch Hedberg's entire performing style could be described as crot.  He mumbled through unrelated one-liners creating the staccato effect causing jokes to feel abruptly cut off.  Below is an example from one of his performances.) [Carmela Orsini] 
* I have heard and seen Mitch’s performance.  This clip is good example of his entire comic routine, as the monologues seem so broken that the audience would think that he was stuttering.  [Lawrence L. Clark III]
(I agree. RIP, Mitch. Also (free term) paraprosdokian (figure in which the second part of a line surprises in a way that causes a reader or listener to reframe the first part): "I haven't slept for ten days, because that would be too long." Mitch -- N)

-- "But he busted her jar of mayonnaise and nothing worked out for the rest of the day." (Checkouts, Cynthia Rylant) [Cherwonna Ferguson]
(I don't think so. -- N) 

STANDOUT
--"Who are these pigs--as a validated addict I demand to be left alone--drink the eucalyptus oil--with dials and knobs still high as a freak male locked into the vibrations of the jet engines--get a bag of acid and a credit card for airlines--evaluate the pitch, roll and yaw-no sense of movement in this plane--just humming-the phones-acid-style high tingling and strange, intense vibrations.  Get that dead animal off the seat--put it under--where is the drink?" (Hunter S. Thompson "Mescalito") [George Dalrymple] 
*  For some reason crot always confuses me, but this example really helped me to understand how crot is used as a rhetorical device. Hunter S. Thompson was a master of this device and I will now be able to associate him with it. [Mollie Diamond]
*  This seemed like the most cohesive use of the characteristic crot fragmentation in the examples from this term.   It reminds me most of the Charles Dickens, Little Dorrit, example on the main terms page. [Erin Christian]
*  I have been studying all the terms and one of the more difficult ones to come up with an example for was crot. I understand the concept but other than very limited circumstances could you really use it. So I see this example as a very possible use of the term so I deem it a standout. [Chris Murray]
(Yes! Wonderful example of crot. See also "In Defense of Fragments." -- N)

Dehortatio
STANDOUT
-- “When I was one-and-twenty
I heard a wise man say,
‘Give crowns and pounds and guineas
But not your heart away. 

Give pearls away and rubies
But keep your fancy free.’
But I was one-and-twenty
No use to talk to me.”
(From "When I Was One-And-Twenty"  A.E. Housman) [Donna Corbett] 
* I think this example does a great job of conveying the idea of dehortatio; the wise advice of someone who knows better, and the unhearing ears of a twenty-one year old. [John Wilson]
(OK--N)

STANDOUT
--“Warning!  Don’t ever start a band!” (Jimmy Buffet—“The Weather Is Here”)[Chris Buckner] 
*  This is a clear authority voice concerning a band- Jimmy Buffet should know what he’s talking about when he gives the advice not to start a band. This is another familiar name that will help me remember the term Dehortatio. [Wanda Goss] 
(OK--N)

STANDOUT
-- Lewis Black: “Behind me, I heard a young woman of 25 say 'If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college' ... Do NOT think about that statement too long or BLOOD will shoot out your NOSE.” (Below, comedian Lewis Black advises against thinking something in an authoritative waiting, even going so far as providing consequences for said action.) [Carmela Orsini] 
* I may be a bit biased because of my love of Lewis Black, but this is also great dissuasive advice given with passionate authority. The humor inherent in this example also makes it extremely memorable for learning this term. [Erin Christian]
* I want to add myself because I think my example of dehortation (Chris Crocker’s tearful “LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!” on YouTube) was perfect, but I thought better of it. [Sarah Rauers]
(OK--N)

--“Leave Britney alone!” (Chris Crocker) [Sarah Rauers] 

PUZZLERS
(Except for the American Express slogan, which works, the following illustrate diatyposis, not dehortatio. -- N)
--“Think Different.” (Apple Macintosh, 1998 TV ad)[Kara Hooper]

--“Have it your way.” (Burger King, 1973 TV ad) [Kara Hooper]
* I don’t see how these are dissuasive, it seems to be a command to do something, instead of to not do something. [Stacy Mincey]

--“Don’t leave home without it.” (American Express, 1975 TV ad)[Kara Hooper] 

-- ’The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” ‘(Luke 42-43)[Eugene Garcia] 

Diacope
-- “I’ve always needed a drug to survive. The others, too, but I always had more, more pills, more of everything because I’m more crazy probably” (John Lennon: In His Own Words  p.50) [Mollie Diamond]

STANDOUT
-- “Food, glorious food! Hot sausage and mustard.” (From Oliver! words by Lionel Bart) [Donna Corbett] 
* I thought the beginning of the phrase demonstrated the meaning perfectly. It probably could’ve done without the second half, though. [Pat Hamilton]
(Good one. And check out the extended diacope in the last verse of this song:
Food, glorious food!
   What wouldn't we give for
   That extra bit more --
   That's all that we live for.
   Why should we be fated to
   Do nothing but brood
   On food,
   Magical food,
   Wonderful food,
   Marvellous food,
   Fabulous food,
   Beautiful food,
   Glorious food!)

-- “Scut Farkus staring out at us with his yellow eyes. He had yellow eyes! So help me, God! Yellow eyes!”
(Ralphie Parker, A Christmas Story)[Elizabeth Larrimore] 
*  This is a great example because the phrase yellow eyes is repeated as well as broken up by the intervening words/phrase he had and so help me,God, thus making this movie quote a fine example of how diacope is used. [Katharine Harrington]
(Exactly. -- N)

--“Rain down, rain down
Come on rain down on me”
(Radiohead—“Paranoid Android)[Chris Buckner] 
(OK--N)

-- Cameras are flashing while we're dirty dancing
They keep watchin' (They keep watchin')
Keep watchin
Feels like the crowd is saying

[CHORUS]
Gimme gimme more
Gimme more
Gimme gimme more
Gimme gimme more
(Britney Spears, "Gimme More") [posterofaboyy@aol.com]
(Nope.--N)

-- “government of the people, by the people, for the people?” (Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln) [Katie Nichols] 
(Yes--but the rhetorical effects associated with epiphora and tricolon are probably more significant.--N)

-- “A sacred month for a sacred month: sacred things too are subject to retaliation.  If anyone attacks you, attack him as he attacked you.  Have fear of God, and know that God is with the righteous.” (The Koran “The Believer’s Duties”  2:194) [Jim Muenckler] 
(OK--N)

PUZZLER
-- Abso-freakin-lutely [Victoria Hammond]
* Isn’t it the repetition which is supposed to be broken up? [Johnny Flynn]
(Right. Breaking up a word in this fashion--"La-dee-freakin'-da"--is called tmesis. -- N)

Effectio

--“Gold watch, diamond ring,
I aint missin a single thing.
And cufflinks, stick pin,
When I step out Im gonna do you in.”
(ZZ Top, “Sharp Dressed Man”)[Pat Hamilton]

STANDOUT
--She doesnt own a dress, her hair is always a mess
If you catch her stealin, she wont confess
Shes beautiful
She smokes a pack a day, oh wait, thats me but anyway
She doesnt care a thing about that, hey,
She thinks Im beautiful
Meet virginia
She never compromises, loves babies and surprises
Wears hi-heels when she exercises
Aint that beautiful
Meet virginia
Well she wants to be the queen
Then she thinks about her scene
Pulls her hair back as she screams
I dont really wanna be the queen
Her daddy wrestles alligators, mama works on carburetors
Her brother is a fine mediator for the president
Well here she is again on the phone
Just like me hates to be alone
We just like to sit at home, and rip on the president
Meet virginia
Well she wants to live her life
Then she thinks about her life
Pulls her hair back as she screams
I dont really wanna live this life
She only drinks coffee at midnight, when the moment is not
Right, her timing is quite-unusual
You see her confidence is tragic, but her intuition magic
And the shape of her body - unusual
Meet virginia-i cant wait to
Meet virginia-yea”
[posterofaboyy@aol.com]
* This example of effectio elaborates very descriptively and gives one the visual of the entire person and details about them. [Johnathon Robinson]
(A memorable example--and closer to a head-to-toe description than the ZZ Top lines above.--N)
 

Encomium
--“His wisdom is profound, his power is vast. Who has resisted him and come out unscathed? He moves mountains without their knowing it and overturns them in his anger.” (Job 9:4-5)[Eugene Garcia]

-- “And what sort of soldiers are those you are to lead? Are they reliable? Are they brave? are they capable of victory?

"Their story is known to all of you. It is the story of the American man at arms. My estimate of him was formed on the battlefields many, many years ago, and has never changed. I regarded him then, as I regard him now, as one of the world's noblest figures; not only as one of the finest military characters, but also as one of the most stainless.

"His name and fame are the birthright of every American citizen. In his youth and strength, his love and loyalty, he gave all that mortality can give. He needs no eulogy from me, or from any other man. He has written his own history and written it in red on his enemy's breast.

"But when I think of his patience under adversity, of his courage under fire, and of his modesty in victory, I am filled with an emotion of admiration I cannot put into words. He belongs to history as furnishing one of the greatest examples of successful patriotism. He belongs to posterity as the instructor of future generations in the principles of liberty and freedom. He belongs to the present, to us, by his virtues and by his achievements.

"In twenty campaigns, on a hundred battlefields, around a thousand campfires, I have witnessed that enduring fortitude, that patriotic self-abnegation, and that invincible determination which have carved his statue in the hearts of his people.

"From one end of the world to the other, he has drained deep the chalice of courage. As I listened to those songs of the glee club, in memory's eye I could see those staggering columns of the First World War, bending under soggy packs on many a weary march, from dripping dusk to drizzling dawn, slogging ankle deep through mire of shell-pocked roads; to form grimly for the attack, blue-lipped, covered with sludge and mud, chilled by the wind and rain, driving home to their objective, and for many, to the judgment seat of God.

"I do not know the dignity of their birth, but I do know the glory of their death. They died unquestioning, uncomplaining, with faith in their hearts, and on their lips the hope that we would go on to victory. Always for them: Duty, Honor, Country. Always their blood, and sweat, and tears, as they saw the way and the light.

"Their resolute and determined defense, their swift and sure attack, their indomitable purpose, their complete and decisive victory -- always victory, always through the bloody haze of their last reverberating shot, the vision of gaunt, ghastly men, reverently following your password of Duty, Honor, Country.”
(excerpts from Douglas MacArthur’s Thayer Award Acceptance address) [Stacy Mincey]
(Good example. -- N)

Ellipsis
--“Don't want to be a fat man, people would think that I was just good fun.
Would rather be a thin man, I am so glad to go on being one.” (Jethro Tull: Fat Man) [Erin Christian]
(OK--I see ellipsis in "Fat Man," but just a fragment below.--N)

 --“That debt which cancels all others.” Charles Caleb Colton [Caitlin Johnson] 

Enthymeme
-- Let tyrants fear*, I have always so behaved myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the *loyal hearts* and good-will of my subjects." (from Queen Elizabeth I's speech to the troops at Tilbury)[Heather Benton]
(I guess so--N)

Epanalepsis
-- “I can’t cure you. You can cure you” (John Lennon: In His Own Words p. 126) [Mollie Diamond] 

-- "There is no jewel, be it of never so rich a prince, which I set before this jewel." (Queen Elizabeth I's Farewell Speech (Golden Speech)) [Heather Benton]

(Both examples are fine. -- N)

Epicrisis
-- “The second verse goes ‘No one I think is in my tree.’ Well, I was too shy and self doubting. Nobody seems to be as hip as me is what I was saying” (John Lennon: In His Own Words p.10)[Mollie Diamond] 
(OK--N)

STANDOUT
--“'Kiss your hemorrhoids goodbye,' the commercial said. Not even I could do that." (John Mendoza) [Laura Stephens] 
*  I tired to find a memorable example of this term and found it difficult to find one that wasn't boring.  This one is great!  The second half definitely refers to the quote at the beginning. [Carmela Orsini]
*  Very funny, and short, so therefore very easy to remember. A short quote and a clear comment on the quote. Very effective. [John Wilson]
*  This really exemplifies the word and is also rather funny, a trait which makes it memorable and a great example. [Johnny Flynn]
(I agree. -- N)

-- “I remember when that guidance counselor said, 'Damnit Chris, you will never amount to anything,' boy that old cow was great at positive speaking. “ (Chris Murray) [Chris Murray] 

--I recollect not enough of the passages in Job to insert them correctly: but there is one occurs to me that is applicable to the subject I am speaking upon. canst thou by searching find out God; canst thou find out the almighty to perfection. I know not how the printers have pointed this passage, for I keep no Bible, but it contains two distinct questions that admits of distinct answers. First, Canst thou by searching find out God? Yes. Because, in the first place, I know I did not make myself, and yet I have existence? (From Thomas Paine’s The Age of Reason)
(Both examples above are OK--N)

Epimone
STANDOUT
--“Do they owe us a living?
Of course they do, of course they do!
Do they owe us a living?
Of course they do, of course they do!
Do they owe us a living?
Of course they fucking do!”
(Crass, “Do They Owe Us a Living?”) [Pat Hamilton] 
*  A pair of triple repetitive lines.  With this kind of emphasis, any reader should be able to get the point.  The audience and the main speaker are clearly emphasizing what they are owed.  [Lawrence L. Clark III]
(Right--this lyric illustrates epimone. Unlike some song lyrics--say, "Give It Away" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers or anything by Alanis Morissette--which simply repeat the same line ad nauseam. -- N)

PUZZLER
-- Please, don’t kill me! I want to live! Let me live! Don’t shoot me! [Victoria Hammond]
*  I don’t think that this is an example of epimone because, although it does dwell on a point, it doesn’t contain repetition of a phrase. I think this would be a better example of commoratio because it repeats a point using different words. [Mollie Diamond]
(Good observation, but epimone has a couple of definitions: though it usually means frequent repetition of a phrase, it may also mean, more broadly, dwelling on a point. -- N)

Epiphora
-- “I had forgiven you for tricking me again
But I have been tricked again”
(Flaming Lips—“Are You A Hypnotist?”)[Chris Buckner] 
(Almost--but it is polyptoton.--N)

-- South o the bridge in Seventeenth
I found back of the willows one summer
Day a motorcycle with engine running
As it lay on its side, ticking over
Slowly in the high grass. I was fifteen. 

I admired all that pulsing gleam, the
Shiny flanks, the demure headlights
Fringed where it lay; I led it gently
To the road and stood with that
Companion, ready and friendly. I was fifteen. 

We could find the end of a road, meet
The sky on out Seventeenth. I thought about
Hills, and patting the handle got back a
Confident opinion. On the bridge we indulged
A forward feeling, a tremble. I was fifteen. 

Thinking, back farther in the grass I found
The owner, just coming to, where he had flipped
Over the rail. He had blood on his hand, was pale—
I helped him walk to his machine. He ran his hand
Over it, called me a good man, roared away. 

I stood there, fifteen.
(William Stafford) [Cherwonna Ferguson]  
(This certainly conveys the spirit of epiphora. Though "I was fifteen" doesn't conclude successive clauses, it does serve as a tag to successive stanzas--we might simply call this a "refrain.")

--"Let the indomitable spirit of Bataan and Corregidor lead on. As the lines of battle roll forward to bring you within the zone of operations, rise and strike. Strike at every favorable opportunity. For your homes and hearths, strike! For future generations of your sons and daughters, strike! In the name of your sacred dead, strike! Let no heart be faint. Let every arm be steeled. The guidance of divine God points the way. Follow in His Name to the Holy Grail of righteous victory!"
(Douglas MacArthur, Radio Message from Leyte Beachhead) [Stacy Mincey] 
(OK.--N)

Epiplexis
-- “Criminal Lawyer. Or is that redundant?” (William Durst) [Laura Stephens] 

--“What is in us that turns a deaf ear to the cries of human suffering?!!!”
(System of A Down—“Sad Statue”)[Chris Buckner] 
(Yes--this is the idea.--N)

STANDOUT
-- Dr. Cox: “Ah, sorry to interrupt you there, Bobbo, but I gotta ask you a quick question. Now, when you were born, nay, *spawned* by the Dark Prince himself, did that rat bastard forget to give you a hug before he sent you along your way?” (The ever sour Dr. Cox from TV show Scrubs asks chief of medicine Bob Kelso a question which he does not expect to be answered.) [Carmela Orsini] 
* What makes this example so effective are the casual tone and absurd premise. Cox calls Bob “Bobbo”, and “Spawned by the Dark Prince” is clearly absurd. It catches the recipient of the question off guard and prevents any sort of rational response from being delivered. [Elizabeth Larrimore]
(Great example. -- N)

-- "There’s that word again – pride.  Do you pride yourself on being polite? Do you feel pride when you’re alone? Does the mirror say good day today?  Does your family make you feel pride?  Do the pictures keep you warm? Is your smile so easily worn? Worn away… Do you feel proud?" (Jim O’Rourke, “Movies on the Way Down”) [Sarah Rauers] 

Epistrophe (not on our terms list)
-- Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. [Victoria Hammond]
(No. Nor is it epiphora. -- N)

Epithet
PUZZLER
--“He had a chiseled body.” [Michael Martin]
* I don’t really see an epithet as much as I see an ordinary adjective. Perhaps if, instead, the example were “chiseled-bodied Steve,” I would consider that an epithet—something more consistently associate with Steve, who, I’ve just decided, is the guy with the chiseled body. [Elizabeth Larrimore]
(Excellent point. Not all adjectives are epithets. -- N.)

Epizeuxis
-- “I won’t grow up/ I don’t want to go to school
Just to learn to be a parrot/ And recite a silly rule
If growing up means it would be beneath my dignity to climb a tree
I’ll never grow up, never grow up, never grow up
Not me! Not I! Not me! Not me!”
(From “Peter Pan” words by Carolyn Leigh) [Donna Corbett] 
(OK. -- N)

--“Why, Why, Why?”   (Everyone) [Chris Murray]       

--“you always tell me that” I got it, I got it, I got it”(Quoted from my mom) [Katie Nichols]

-- “Happy, happy! Joy, Joy!” (from the cartoon characters Ren and Stimpy) [Victoria Hammond]

-- “ Never, never, never quit.” (Winston Churchill) [Kara Hooper]
(These four are OK--though I believe the Churchill line is "Never, never, never give up.--N)

--"Hey pig,
Yeah you
Hey pig piggy pig pig pig!
All of my fears came true"
(Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails "Piggy") [George Dalrymple] 

Erotesis
-- "Was I not born in the realm? Were my parents born in any foreign country? Is not my kingdom here?" (from Queen Elizabeth I's angry speech to Parliament on the delegation on her marriage)[Heather Benton]

--"I suppose, in a way, this has become part of my soul. It is a symbol of my life. Whatever I have done that really matters, I've done wearing it. When the time comes, it will be in this that I journey forth. What greater honor could come to an American, and a soldier?" (Douglas McArthur) [Stacy Mincey]
(OK for both quotes. -- N)

Exergasia 
STANDOUT
-- “You fill up my senses like a night in the forest
Like the mountains in springtime, like a walk in the rain
Like a storm in the desert, like a sleepy blue ocean
You fill up my senses, come fill me again”
("Annie’s Song," by John Denver) [Donna Corbett] 
* Effective for me because I am familiar with the song, and already knowing the words helps to lock in the rhetorical term that applies to them. [John Wilson]
(OK--N.)

-- "I, I am a time bomb, and I, I lay forgotten at the bottom of your heart.  I’m fine, ticking away the years to blow your world apart. 
I, I am a poison, and I, I am still coursing through your bloodstream like a ghost, like wine, gathering vintage ‘til the day I hurt the most.
I, I am a land mine, and I, I lay on the soil burned out by battles you thought you’d won.  I’ve got time to wait for the footsteps of a memory that’s on the run. 
Well I, I am a tar pit, and I swell like a living thing at the slightest touch, a black grime swallowing everything, a cold and timeless clutch.  
I, I am a trip wire, and I, I’m stretching across the road you’re barreling down tonight, the thinnest twine, waiting to be released right beyond your sight. 
I, I am a fault line, and I, I’m pulling apart the ground that lay beneath your newest seed, so fine, moving in inches now.  I’m crawling, I’m cutting, I’m cleaving like a knife.
I, I am a time bomb, and I, I only live in that one moment in which you die. It’s not right, it’s not what I wanted then, but you know and I know there’s no going back.
I, I am a lost soul, and I, I send out a sickened light for anyone to see, a cry for help, a warning to stay away, the burning, the blinding, the reaching in darkness."
(Dismemberment Plan, “Time Bomb”)[Sarah Rauers] 
(Hmmm--I like this one. -- N)

-- "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want
He makes me down to lie
Through pastures green He leadeth me the silent waters by.
With bright knives He releaseth my soul.
He maketh me to hang on hooks in high places.
He converteth me to lamb cutlets,
For lo, He hath great power, and great hunger.
When cometh the day we lowly ones,
Through quiet reflection, and great dedication
Master the art of karate,
Lo, we shall rise up,
And then we'll make the bugger's eyes water."
(Pink Floyd, “Sheep”) [Pat Hamilton] 

-- “So I will come upon them like a lion, like a leopard I will lurk by the path.  Like a bear robbed of her cubs, I will attack them and rip them open.  Like a lion I will devour them; a wild animal will tear them apart.” (Hosea 13:7-8)[Eugene Garcia] 

Euphemism
--“Don’t make me hafta give you a sock in the man clouds” (Director April Baggs) [Chris Murray] 

PUZZLER
--“Paki” to denote someone of Pakistani descent (BBC’s “The Office”)[Pat Hamilton] 
* I don't know if this would be considered a strong euphemism; it seemed more like tapinosis to me.  [Erin Christian]
(Right. If anything "Paki" is a dysphemism.--N)

Exuscitatio
-- "TO THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES:
I have returned. By the grace of Almighty God our forces stand again on Philippine soil -- soil consecrated in the blood of our two peoples. We have come, dedicated and committed, to the task of destroying every vestige of enemy control over your daily lives, and of restoring, upon a foundation of indestructible, strength, the liberties of your people" (Douglas MacArthur, Radio Message from the Leyte Beachhead) [Stacy Mincey] 

-- “Deputies, Men of the German Reichstag! A year of events of historical significance is drawing to an end. A year of the greatest decisions lies ahead. In these serious times, I speak to you, Deputies of the German Reichstag, as to the representatives of the German nation. Beyond and above that, the whole German people should take note of this glance into the past, as well as of the coming decisions the present and future impose upon us.” (December 11, 1941 Hitler declares war on U. S.  Opening lines) [Jim Muenckler] 

(OK--two quotes that show how a little bit of exuscitatio can go a long way. -- N)

Gradatio
STANDOUT
--“People used to make records
As in a record of an event
The event of people playing music in a room”
(Ani Difranco—“Fuel”)[Chris Buckner]
* This example is easy to remember, and it is a very clear example of the term.  [Stacy Mincey]

STANDOUT
--“Fear leads to anger; anger leads to hate; and hate leads to the Dark Side.” (Yoda in episode 1: Phantom Menace) [Michael Martin]
* Hate it when Mike is right, but this is perfect. Yoda is a rhetorical Jedi. [Sarah Rauers]
(Right. -- N)

TERMS (H-Z) CONTINUED HERE

____________________________________________
English 5730 is taught by Dr. Richard Nordquist.
Armstrong Atlantic State University
                    
updated 23 October 2007