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Caesura expansion

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

The deliberate lengthening of a caesural pause beyond its typical duration, heightening dramatic or rhythmic effect.

Detailed Definition
Caesura expansion is a technique where a mid-line pause (caesura) is prolonged through punctuation, spacing, or syntactic break to heighten dramatic effect, create suspense, or emphasize juxtaposed ideas, as seen in Anglo-Saxon alliterative verse or modernist fragmentation.
Example
Example in poetry:
Caesura expansion in Milton: "Thus with the Year || Seasons return, but not to me returns / Day"; Contemporary example: "I left home |||| and never looked back"; Expanded caesura uses extra space or punctuation to stretch pause; The technique visualizes hesitation or trauma; Caesura expansion makes silence typographic
Additional Notes
Caesura lengthened beyond standard pause, creating dramatic suspension. Related: caesural pause, dramatic pause. Timing device emphasizing silence as structural element. Consider performance implications.
Also Known As
Extended pause Prolonged caesura Stretched break Amplified mid-line stop
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