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Defiance

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

In poetry, an attitude of bold resistance against authority, fate, or societal norms, often expressed through defiant diction, tone, or persona.

Detailed Definition
Defiance embodies rebellious spirit and self-assertion. Poetry channels it through sharp diction, irregular meter, or confrontational address, transforming personal or collective resistance into lyrical acts of autonomy against oppression or conformity.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Percy Bysshe Shelley’s “Ode to the West Wind,” defiance fuels revolutionary hope: “Be thou, Spirit fierce, / My spirit!”; In Langston Hughes’ “I, Too,” defiance asserts belonging: “I, too, am America”; In Audre Lorde’s “Power,” defiance erupts against systemic injustice: “I am trapped on a desert of raw gunshot wounds”; In Emily Dickinson’s “The Soul selects her own Society,” defiance rejects societal intrusion; In June Jordan’s “Poem About My Rights,” defiance claims bodily and political autonomy; In Mahmoud Darwish’s poetry, defiance resists erasure under occupation.
Additional Notes
Defiance—active resistance to authority or norms—is central to protest poetry (Angelou, Jordan); differs from rebellion by its principled, often collective stance; poetic techniques include imperative verbs, anaphora, or reclaimed slurs; students should consider power dynamics: Who defies whom, and at what cost?; note its link to courage and identity formation; in form, defiance may break conventions (syntax, rhyme) to mirror thematic rupture.
Also Known As
Rebellion Resistance Insolence defarre
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