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Apophasis is a rhetorical technique that alludes to an idea without directly mentioning it. It can be used to describe something through negation, make a selling point, reject similar points to validate a belief system, or as a form of inferential reasoning.
Apophasis literally means “say no”. The word has a number of literary contexts. In terms of rhetorical techniques, it refers to an effort to allude to an idea, person, or object without directly mentioning that concept. It can also refer to a method of explanation in which an individual uses nullifying statements to describe something. Other uses of this technique include its place as a tool of inference or as a means of highlighting a particular idea.
When the term was originally used, apophasis mostly encompassed descriptive passages where a solid, straightforward definition for something was lacking. Thus, the speaker or writer would contrast the object of description negatively with other objects. For example, a car would not be described as a mobile, motorized cart with four wheels, but could be described as “not hand-powered”, “non-static” and “not equipped with two wheels”. In some ways, this apophase approach resembles some guessing approaches.
A more modern understanding of apophasis sees the approach as a rhetorical device to make a selling point. This approach is somewhat ironic, because the intent of the speaker or writer is different from the literal statement. Politics is a common area for this type of use of apophasis, such as when a politician refers to an opponent’s voting record or personal life by stating that the topic will not be discussed: “I’m not here to talk about the fact that Mr. Smith voted against this policy’. Any statement that carries with the caveats “I don’t want…” or “I can’t…” or similar phrases is likely a case of apophasis if it is directly followed by an allusion to the alleged refuted subject. This type can also be known as paralepsis.
Another context for understanding apophasis occurs when an individual constructs a main point or premise by rejecting other similar points or premises. Theologians sometimes use this approach to referencing a spiritual deity by rejecting other spiritual claims and thereby validating the deity itself and its surrounding belief system. This approach can also serve as a means of conveying how the deity, or subject at hand, cannot be adequately described in mere words.
In yet another approach, apophasis is understood as a form of logic. When used in this way, the term is specifically a form of inferential reasoning. Statements known as syllogisms are one of the main methods, presenting a logical sequence of thought with a beginning, middle and end. For example, a syllogism might consist of the following statements: All fish can swim; Trout is a fish; Trout can swim. The apophasic version of this argument would leave out the central statement, leaving it as an implication rather than a direct statement.
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