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Ecphrasis

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 vivid, often dramatic verbal description of a visual artwork within a poem, inviting reflection on art, perception, and representation.

Detailed Definition
A vivid and detailed literary description of a work of visual art, creating a verbal representation of visual experience and establishing dialogue between different artistic media. Derived from Greek meaning "description," ekphrasis has ancient roots in Homer's description of Achilles' shield and continues through Keats' "Ode on a Grecian Urn" to contemporary museum poetry, raising complex questions about representation, the limits of language, and relationships between temporal and spatial arts.
Example
Example in poetry:
Homer's description of Achilles's shield in The Iliad; Keats's "Ode on a Grecian Urn"; Auden's "Musée des Beaux Arts"; Ashbery's "Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror"
Additional Notes
From Greek "description." Brings visual art into literary realm. Raises questions about representation and translation between media. Important in interdisciplinary studies.
Other Meanings of “Ecphrasis”
Also Known As
Art description Gallery poem Picture verse Visual art poetry Ekphrasis
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