Home › Glossary › Letter C

Conceit Paradoxical Wit

Metaphysics
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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 conceit combining paradox with wit and verbal cleverness, using logical impossibility, puns, or intellectual games to generate both laughter and insight into metaphysical truth. Lightness and profundity coexist.

Detailed Definition
Paradoxical wit suggests that intellectual playfulness and serious philosophy can coexist, that laughter and wisdom often accompany each other. By using verbal cleverness to express paradox, such conceits make metaphysical truth feel surprising, delightful, and intellectually satisfying rather than solemn or oppressive.
Example
Example in poetry:
John Donne’s “The Flea” uses witty paradox: the flea’s bite equals marriage; Andrew Marvell’s “The Definition of Love” uses geometric wit to describe impossible union; Alexander Pope’s “The Rape of the Lock” uses mock-heroic wit to elevate triviality; Emily Dickinson’s “I’m Nobody! Who are you?” uses self-deprecating wit; T.S. Eliot’s “Prufrock” uses ironic wit (“I am not Prince Hamlet”); Sylvia Plath’s “Lady Lazarus” uses darkly playful wit (“I do it so it feels like hell”).
Additional Notes
Conceit Paradoxical Wit combines intellectual surprise with emotional depth—Marvell’s claim that lovers create their own world in “The Definition of Love” uses witty impossibility to express profound isolation and unity.
Also Known As
Witty Paradox Intellectual Irony Playful Contradiction
Skip to main content