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Contempt

Psychology
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 feeling of scorn or disdain toward someone or something perceived as inferior or unworthy.

Detailed Definition
Contempt in poetry sharpens satire, dramatic dialogue, and bitter lyricism. It emerges through caustic diction, deflating metaphors, and dismissive tone. Poets wield contempt to critique social hypocrisy, express personal betrayal, or assert superiority, yet often undercut it with vulnerability, revealing that contempt masks wounded pride or thwarted longing, enriching character complexity and emotional range.
Example
Example in poetry:
Contempt in Robert Browning's "Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister" shows a monk's intense disdain for Brother Lawrence; Jonathan Swift's "On The Day Of Judgement" uses percussive consonants to reinforce contempt; Donald Justice's "Stanzas" recognizes "the contempt some men have for themselves"; In "Contempt Has a Name," contempt is expressed as limitless disgust; Jessie Ennans' "Contempt" explores how society's contempt feeds inner monsters; William Henry Davies' "The Worms' Contempt" contrasts human pride with the worms' indifference.
Additional Notes
Contempt in poetry sharpens satire, dramatic dialogue, and bitter lyricism through caustic diction, deflating metaphors, and dismissive tone. Poets wield contempt to critique social hypocrisy, express personal betrayal, or assert superiority, yet often undercut it with vulnerability. In teaching, distinguish contempt from scorn: contempt is a settled attitude of disdain, while scorn is more openly mocking and bitter. Contempt often masks wounded pride or thwarted longing, enriching character complexity. Students should analyze how a poet's use of irony, sarcasm, or deflating similes signals contempt and invites readers to question the speaker's reliability.
Also Known As
Disdain scorn ridicule mockery derision
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