In a dilemma, we may have conflicting needs or desires, but those desires are logically compatible, so there’s no logical paradox. Parody. Like Hamlet, the speaker here is trying to argue that a little cruelty can be a sign of love, a sentiment that also echoes the paradoxical blending of love and hate in Romeo and Juliet. Oxymoron: uses contradiction, but is more compressed than a paradox. In literary analysis, “paradox” can sometimes have a looser meaning: a person or situation that contains contradictions. An However, the professor could be seen as a literary paradox, since her personality combines two disparate elements: expertise in ethics, and an inability to behave ethically. It is also used to illustrate an opinion or statement contrary to accepted traditional ideas. ), In an episode of Futurama, Fry (one of the main characters) travels back in time to the 1940s, where he comes face-to-face with his own grandfather, Enos. Paradox: an assertion seemingly opposed to common sense, but that may yet have some truth in it. share | improve this question | follow | edited Dec 20 '18 at 3:37. When an author places two or more disparate elements next to one another, this is referred to as juxtaposition, but it can also fall under the broad definition of literary paradox. Nick Lowe and Ian Gromm borrow a turn of phrase from Shakespeare's Hamlet, cited above, in their co-written song "Cruel to Be Kind." Or go back to school, get a better job, and give them a better life? Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. The image juxtaposes violence against the gentle harmlessness of flowers. Irony (from Ancient Greek εἰρωνεία eirōneía 'dissimulation, feigned ignorance'), in its broadest sense, is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or event in which what on the surface appears to be the case or to be expected differs radically from what is actually the case.. One word more, good lady— HAMLET. Hamlet is on a righteous mission to avenge his father’s death and brings an entire kingdom down doing it. When writing a story or making a point, you can just use the facts, which is totally fine for in some cases like journalism, or you can liven things up a bit with a literary device. Refine any search. This statement undermines the sanctity of the traditional "golden rule" (i.e., "do unto others as you'd have them do unto you"), suggesting a more flexible worldview. Teacher Editions with classroom activities for all 1379 titles we cover. Explanations and citation info for 28,345 quotes across 1379 books, Downloadable (PDF) line-by-line translations of every Shakespeare play. In the study of logic, paradoxes have a slightly different meaning than the one we cover in this entry. *I must be cruel only to be kind. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Put more broadly: rather than using language figuratively to construct a new and unexpected meaning (as in literary paradox), logical paradox actually uses language nonsensically to create the appearance of meaning which upon further review is revealed as hopelessly contradictory and therefore lacking. What literary device is use here? In literature, paradoxes can create humor, express the confusion or frustration of a seeming impossibility, or make clear the absurdity of an unexpected situation. And so "one must be cruel to be kind". Of course, we know from experience that it’s quite easy to walk twenty feet and touch a wall — but the logic shows this to be impossible! The literary paradox, on the other hand, may help “art imitate life.” The world around us is full of contradictions, especially when it comes to people’s behavior and personality. To bring peace, you must bring war. 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