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antithesis

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

an·tith·e·sis / anˈti[unvoicedth]əsis/ • n. (pl. -ses / -ˌsēz/ ) a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else: love is the antithesis of selfishness. ∎ a contrast or opposition between two things. ∎ a figure of speech in which an opposition or contrast of ideas is expressed by parallelism of words that are the opposites of, or strongly contrasted with, each other, such as “hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins.” ∎ (in Hegelian philosophy) the negation of the thesis as the second stage in the process of dialectical reasoning. Compare with synthesis.

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"antithesis." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"antithesis." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-antithesis.html

"antithesis." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-antithesis.html

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ANTITHESIS

Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language | 1998 | | Copyright

ANTITHESIS [Stress: ‘an-TI-the-sis’].
1. In RHETORIC, a construction in which words are opposed but balanced: ‘For many are called, but few are chosen’ (Matthew 22:14); ‘To err is human, to forgive, divine’ (Pope, 1711). Technically, the first part of such constructions is the thesis (‘for many are called’), the second the antithesis (‘but few are chosen’).

2. In general usage, opposite: This policy is the antithesis of everything we believe in. See CHIASMUS.

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TOM McARTHUR. "ANTITHESIS." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

TOM McARTHUR. "ANTITHESIS." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-ANTITHESIS.html

TOM McARTHUR. "ANTITHESIS." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-ANTITHESIS.html

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antithesis

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

antithesis , a figure of speech involving a seeming contradiction of ideas, words, clauses, or sentences within a balanced grammatical structure. Parallelism of expression serves to emphasize opposition of ideas. The familiar phrase "Man proposes, God disposes" is an example of antithesis, as is John Dryden's description in "The Hind and the Panther" : "Too black for heaven, and yet too white for hell."

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"antithesis." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"antithesis." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-antithes.html

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antithesis

The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature | 2003 | | Copyright

antithesis, a figure of speech in which sharply contrasted ideas are juxtaposed in a balanced or parallel phrase or grammatical structure, as in ‘Hee for God only, shee for God in him’ (Milton).

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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "antithesis." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "antithesis." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-antithesis.html

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "antithesis." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-antithesis.html

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antithesis

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | Copyright

antithesis XV. — late L. — Gr. antíthesis, f. ANTI- + tithénai set, place (cf. THESIS).
So antithetic XVII, antithetical XVI. ult. — Gr. antithetikós.

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T. F. HOAD. "antithesis." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "antithesis." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-antithesis.html

T. F. HOAD. "antithesis." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-antithesis.html

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