Chiasmus and antimetabole are literary devices that involve reversing words or clauses for emphasis. Chiasmus is a reverse repeating clause with opposite meanings, while antimetabole reverses the order of words to juxtapose meaning. Antimetabole is a subcategory of chiasmus with stricter rules. Both devices are used in literature and speeches for emphasis and memorability.
Chiasmus and antimetabole are two closely related literary devices. Many literary scholars use these terms interchangeably, although each term refers to a different literary device. Scholars generally know that chiasmus occurs when a sentence is repeated, but reversed, to make a point or emphasize an action. The antimetabole is very similar to the chiasmus, but the words and grammatical structure must be reversed, as simply reversing the meaning is not enough. Knowing this, scholars may find that all cases of antimetabolites are also chiasmus, but the reverse is not always true.
The definition of chiasmus is a reverse repeating clause. The only requirement of a chiastic sentence is that the two clauses within the sentence must have opposite meanings. For example, Havelock Ellis’ famous quote, “Charm is a woman’s strength, strength is a man’s charm,” is just one example of a chiasmus. Here, the meanings in the two clauses are opposite, but the grammatical structure and wording are different, which means that it cannot be an example of an antimetabole.
Antimetabole is defined as a literary device that reverses the order of words in a sentence to juxtapose meaning. An example is the Mae West slogan: “It’s not the men in my life, it’s the life in my men.” Here, the exact same words, grammatical structure, and rhythm are used to create the second clause with the opposite meaning. Many scholars consider this device as a subcategory of the chiasmus because its rules are stricter and very narrowly defined.
The humorous line “I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy” is just chiastic. Here, the comedian changes the sounds and words to make a point. The clauses are rhythmic and bump into each other nicely. The chiastic structure can even be used to reverse entire poems because its definitions and rules are so loose. Judith Vorst provides a good example in her short poem: “Lust is what keeps you wanting to, even when you have no desire to be together. Love is what keeps you wanting to be together, even when you don’t feel like it.” Changing the wording puts this verse in the chiastic category.
The restrictive rules for the antimetabole make it much more difficult to use in longer jobs than the chiasmus. Scholars usually save the antimetabole for shorter sentences such as “Home is where the great are small and the little are great.” Both devices are used to great effect in older works, such as the King James Bible, the plays of Shakespeare, and the poetry of Alexander Pope. Presidential speechwriters also use these devices to help people remember their causes. A lasting example of this is John F. Kennedy’s famous quote “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”.
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