Oxymoron, examples from fiction. Means of Expression

Means of speech, such as metaphor, absurdity, paradox, irony, become especially relevant in difficult periods of social upheaval. An important place among them is oxymoron. It is still a little studied phenomenon.

Mutually exclusive terms

The combination of mutually exclusive independent concepts forms an oxymoron. Examples from fiction confirm this: “non-obvious obvious” (Goethe), “smartly naked” (A. Akhmatova), “joy of suffering” (A. Fet), “unbearable ease of being” (M. Kundera).

Oxymoron represents two concepts located nearby, where one of them defines the other. They mutually repel, contradict and logically exclude each other: “low skyscraper”, “unbearable charm”, “uncontrollable quiet”, “turn to hell”. Oxymoron in the Russian language was initially perceived as “the wrong combination of ideas into one whole” (N. Ostolopov, 1821). But he was independently present in literature, although his interpretations in dictionaries appeared only at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Bright art revolution

By putting together two events that deny each other, which is not easy to do because of psychological inertness, we can create an oxymoron. A text containing only 2 words reveals the internal contradictions between the phenomena, combining the incompatible.

Oxymoron is a wonderful and thoughtful artistic movement. The names of classics often use oxymoron. Examples from fiction: Endless Dead End, Hot Snow, End of Eternity. For poets it sounds unusual and bright: “I was bitter with delight” (A. Akhmatova), “sad joy” (S. Yesenin). The deliberate combination in it of concepts that are opposite in meaning is obvious, but a new semantic unity is revealed. In this case, the effect of collocation is significantly enhanced.

Fighting Definitions

In oxymorons, the semantic content is suppressed by the emotional. For example, in the combinations “charming freak”, “wretched luxury”, the second concept decreases its significance due to the first. The word "wretched" has a weak objective logical meaning, and to a greater extent is a subjective assessment of luxury. But the assessment may have a purely emotional connotation, for example, in the expression “Awfully glad!”. And in combination “little great man” the epithet completely changes the meaning of the compound word following it to the opposite. Without this emotional assessment, the phrase will not sound so impressive. The combination of opposites creates a certain stylistic effect. An emotional definition is often used as a metaphor, for example, in the expression "fun to be sad."

Intentionally creating an internal contradiction

In oxymorons, the concepts are mutually exclusive, but at the same time they are in harmony and highlight internal semantic contradictions. If in a combination of two components at the same time there are no two different types of meanings: emotional and objective-logical, then this turns out to be a logical mistake, and not the realization of an artistic goal. Their inappropriate use also cannot create oxymoron. Its main function is to express an attitude towards the event. It is impossible to explain the essence of the interpretation if the author does not understand what he is talking about.

The deliberate creation of an internal contradiction gives rise to an oxymoron. The combination of “a white crow” is a katahreza - a stylistic mistake, since there is no contradiction in it. Most likely, this is the wrong combination of incompatible concepts. The word “shoot” previously meant that a bow or crossbow was used as a weapon. No one says: "Release a bullet from a gun" - although this will be more correct. The expression "colored linen" became familiar, but at first it was only white.

Not every pair of incompatible concepts form an oxymoron. Examples from fiction show that even the great classics, like L. Tolstoy, could be mistaken: "... with their elbows resting on their hands ... their heads ...". There is a common stylistic mistake.

Means of expressiveness in Russian

In contrast to catachrez, oxymoron is paradoxical. They try to find a solution through it, combining “smart with stupid”, creating “intentional randomness” or moving “back to the future”. In a psychological sense, this is the only way to resolve a situation where "water and flame must exist together."

Oxymoron contains a whole set of artistic and expressive means of speech: irony, metaphor, paradox, allusion. The most common environment for his "habitat" are poetry. Oxymoron is found there most of all to create a comic effect. This is natural, since paradoxical information provokes a reaction in the form of laughter.

At the first perception, due to the emphasized illogicality, the importance that oxymoron has is especially high. Examples from fiction: “wild, formidable affection full of” (E. Baratynsky), “innocent passion” (F. Tyutchev). Having come into use, oxymorons lose their sharpness and turn into ordinary metaphors. Some of them are dynamic in time, can be reborn again, overcoming stereotyping in new forms. Others remain firmly in the role of metaphors: “the blue blizzards have burned out”, “the blue sea is boiling” (S. Yesenin).

Thus, the means of expression in the Russian language can change roles.

Where is the oxymoron hidden?

Oxymoron can be found in the most unexpected cases, for example, in genre notations: "tragicomedy", "romance in verse." Paradoxically sounds "unpaid salary." Artists often use the combination of the incongruous. Other means are used for this: aspect ratios, sharpness of silhouettes, intensity of colors and lines, caricatures.

Conclusion

Oxymoron is based on a two-pronged opposition, creating from a relationship of opposites a single integral phenomenon. It can be a simple use of word usage, as well as one of the ways to understand and display reality.