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Epanorthosis

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

The immediate rephrasing of a word or statement for emphasis or correction

Detailed Definition
Epanorthosis is a rhetorical self-correction where a speaker immediately revises a word or phrase for greater accuracy, intensity, or emotional effect; in poetry, it reveals inner conflict or escalating urgency, as in “I loved her—no, worshipped her,” where the correction deepens the speaker’s vulnerability or obsession.
Example
Example in poetry:
Self-correction: “I loved him—no, I worshipped him”; Shakespeare’s “I am not prone to weeping… but yet…”; Confessional poets revising their truths; Example: Plath’s “Daddy” with abrupt tonal shifts
Additional Notes
Self-correction for emphasis or precision. Rhetorical device strengthening statement by revising it. Example: "He's mistaken—no, he's lying." Related: metanoia, correction devices.
Other Meanings of “Epanorthosis”
Also Known As
Self-correction Reconsideration Thought revision Rhetorical retraction Metanoia Rhetorical revision
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