An arrestive caesura is a forceful mid-line pause—marked by punctuation, syntax, or dramatic emphasis—that halts the reader’s progress abruptly, creating a moment of heightened attention, shock, or revelation; unlike gentle or flowing caesuras, this type severs the line into starkly contrasting halves, often isolating a key word or image for maximum impact, as in the biblical “Stop!—or I’ll—” or Dickinson’s dashes, where silence becomes a charged space of suspended meaning.

Caesura that creates stopping or halting effect, emphasizing pause rather than flow. Contrast with flowing caesura. Related to dramatic pause. Useful for creating emphasis or suspense mid-line.