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Defamiliarising image

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

An image presented to make the familiar seem strange, thereby renewing perception.

Detailed Definition
A Defamiliarising image renders the ordinary strange by presenting familiar objects or scenes through unexpected angles, distorted scale, or alien perspective, forcing readers to perceive anew; central to Russian Formalism and modernist poetics, this technique appears in Rilke’s “Archaic Torso of Apollo” or Elizabeth Bishop’s “The Fish,” where meticulous description estranges the commonplace to reveal hidden wonder or unease.
Example
Example in poetry:
“The moon stitched the night with silver thread” (unfamiliar stitching); “Her voice was a cracked teacup” (unexpected fragility); Plath’s “The tulips are too excitable” (animate flowers); Defamiliarizes the ordinary through startling metaphor
Additional Notes
Image making familiar things strange to renew perception. Russian Formalist concept. Related to ostranenie, defamiliarization. Tip: Notice everyday objects described as if seen for first time.
Also Known As
ostranenie estrangement
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