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Paralipsis line

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 line that claims to omit a subject while actually drawing attention to it through striking omission or understatement.

Detailed Definition
A paralipsis line is a rhetorical device in poetry where the speaker claims to omit or pass over something while simultaneously drawing attention to it, often through phrases like “I won’t mention…” or “Needless to say…”; this technique creates ironic emphasis, allowing the poet to imply controversial, taboo, or emotionally charged content indirectly, thereby engaging the reader’s inference while maintaining a veneer of restraint or decorum, and is frequently employed in satirical, confessional, or politically subversive verse to critique power structures or personal failings without overt accusation.
Example
Example in poetry:
Paralipsis line: Shakespeare’s “I must be cruel only to be kind” in “Hamlet” admits necessary harshness; Emily Dickinson’s “I cannot live with You” uses “It would be Life— / Without the Date—” to imply impossibility; contemporary poet Claudia Rankine writes “What did you say?” to highlight unspoken racism; paralipsis (saying by not saying) reveals truth through feigned omission; it often appears in dramatic monologue or social critique.
Additional Notes
Line employing paralipsis (mentioning by claiming not to mention). "I won't discuss their crimes..." Creates ironic emphasis. Related to apophasis. Effective for satire or rhetorical positioning.
Also Known As
Omission line Preterition verse Saying-by-not-saying line Denial-mention verse Praeteritio line
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