Home › Glossary › Letter O

Opposite position

Concept
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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 conceptual or rhetorical stance in poetry that directly opposes another viewpoint, often used to explore conflict, duality, or ideological critique.

Detailed Definition
Opposite position refers to a stance, perspective, or viewpoint directly contrary to another within a poem, often used to create dialectical tension or explore multiple sides of an issue. Taking or presenting an opposite position is a rhetorical strategy that can serve various purposes from argument to ambiguity. Poets may present opposing positions through dialogue, debate, or the juxtaposition of contrasting perspectives without resolution. This technique acknowledges complexity and resists simple conclusions, reflecting how truth may be approached from contrary directions or how contradictory positions may both contain validity.
Example
Example in poetry:
Opposite position: In John Donne’s “Batter my heart,” the speaker asks God to “imprison” him to be free; Emily Dickinson’s “Much Madness is divinest Sense” inverts societal norms; Alexander Pope’s “To err is human, to forgive divine” contrasts mortal and divine; contemporary poet Claudia Rankine writes “You are not sick, you are injured” to reframe racism as systemic violence; opposite positions create paradoxical tension that deepens meaning; they often appear in volta or rhetorical reversal.
Additional Notes
Opposite position|A stance or placement that reverses or contradicts another idea; emphasises tension or debate in a poem.
Also Known As
antithetical stance contrary viewpoint polar arrangement Contrapositive
Skip to main content