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Contrary statement

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 declaration that opposes or contradicts apparent or expected meaning

Explore this topic in depth (1)

Satire in Poetry — Satirical poetry can make us laugh, wince or feel implicated. This guide explains how satire works: from irony and caricature to persona, historical context and the crucial role of voice in performance.

Detailed Definition
A contrary statement in poetry deliberately asserts the opposite of what is literally true or expected, often to underscore irony, provoke thought, or reveal deeper emotional or philosophical truths through paradoxical expression.
Example
Example in poetry:
Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” states: “I rather recommend buying the children alive, and dressing them hot from the knife,” presenting cannibalism as reasonable; In “The Rape of the Lock,” Pope writes: “What mighty contests rise from trivial things!”—mocking epic conventions by applying them to a stolen lock of hair; Oscar Wilde’s “The Ballad of Reading Gaol” includes: “Yet each man kills the thing he loves,” a stark, contrary assertion of human nature; In Auden’s “September 1, 1939,” “We must love one another or die” presents a dire choice as moral imperative.
Additional Notes
A contrary statement asserts the opposite of what is expected or true to highlight hypocrisy, absurdity, or injustice; a key tool in satire and irony; often paired with understatement or hyperbole.
Also Known As
Paradoxical assertion Inverted declaration Reversal statement Irony
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