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Encomium

Genre
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 formal poem or oration that celebrates and honors a person, event, place, or ideal with elevated language.

Detailed Definition
An Encomium is a formal speech or poem of high praise, often structured around classical rhetorical conventions (origin, deeds, virtues, legacy); in poetry, it elevates its subject through hyperbolic imagery, historical allusion, and rhythmic grandeur, as seen in Milton’s elegies or contemporary tributes to cultural icons.
Example
Example in poetry:
Pindar’s Olympian Odes praise athletic victors; Ben Jonson’s “To Penshurst” lauds the Sidney estate’s virtue; Milton’s “Lycidas” eulogizes Edward King while critiquing the church; Audre Lorde’s “A Woman Speaks” encomiastically celebrates Black womanhood
Additional Notes
Formal praise poem honoring person, achievement, or quality, from Greek tradition. Related to ode and panegyric but specifically emphasizes laudatory purpose. Classical epideictic rhetoric adapted to verse. Study Pindar for defining examples.
Other Meanings of “Encomium”
Also Known As
Praise poem Tribute verse Laudatory composition Commendation ode Ancient Greek praise-poem Encomiastic poetry Panegyric Praise poetry Tribute poem Laud
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