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Avertive construction

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A syntactic pattern that turns attention away from one element toward another

Detailed Definition
Avertive construction is a grammatical or rhetorical strategy that deflects direct statement through negation, euphemism, or circumlocution, often to express taboo, trauma, or ineffable experience; in poetry, it creates haunting absence by naming through avoidance, as in Holocaust or elegiac verse.
Example
Example in poetry:
Avertive construction: In Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy,” the line “I never could talk to you” uses avertive construction—turning away from direct address even while invoking the father’s presence.
Additional Notes
Avertive construction: Syntax that deliberately avoids direct statement, using negation, deflection, or indirection; common in trauma poetry or works addressing taboo subjects.
Also Known As
Turning-away construction avoidant syntax deflective structure evasive form
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