In traditional logic, a contradiction occurs when a statement conflicts with itself or with known facts. It is often used to identify dishonest ideas or unfair opinions. This shows a general pattern in how logic is applied.
Consonance is a type of rhyme where the same or similar consonant sounds are repeated in nearby words, but the vowel sounds are different. For example, “coming/home” or “hot/foot.” Consonance is related to assonance, which involves repeating vowel sounds instead. In poetry, consonance can create sound effects inside lines of verse.
In deductive logic, a consistent theory is one that does not produce a logical contradiction. A theory is consistent if it does not prove both a statement and its opposite. For example, if a theory proves “It is raining” and also proves “It is not raining,” the theory is inconsistent.
A connotation is a shared feeling or idea that a word or phrase carries, in addition to its direct or literal meaning, which is called its denotation. Connotations are often described as positive or negative, based on the feelings they create. For example, the word “stubborn” can be described as “strong-willed” or “pig-headed.” Both phrases have the same literal meaning, but “strong-willed” suggests admiration for someone’s determination (a positive connotation), while “pig-headed” suggests frustration when dealing with someone (a negative connotation).
A confidant (pronounced /ˈkɒnˌfɪdɑːnt/ or /ˌkɒnˈfɪdɑːnt/) is a character in a story who receives secrets and is trusted by the main character. A confidant can be another main character, someone who gains trust because of their job or role, such as a doctor, or a character who is not introduced separately and only serves as someone to share secrets with. The female version of this term is “confidante,” which is pronounced the same way.
Confessional writing is a type of writing that began in American schools after World War II. It became popular in the 1950s and 1960s as a form of confessional poetry. This style is often linked to Postmodernism because both share features such as self-expression and reflection, discussions of topics that are considered taboo in society, and the influence of personal struggles and historical events.
A concordance is an alphabetical list of the main words in a book or group of writings. It shows every place each word appears, along with the words around it. In the past, concordances were made only for important works, like the Vedas, Bible, Qur’an, or writings by Shakespeare, James Joyce, or ancient Greek and Latin authors.
An extended metaphor, also called a conceit or sustained metaphor, is a type of comparison used in literature. It is different from a simple metaphor because it continues for a long time and connects the main subject being described (called the tenor) to the comparison used (called the vehicle) in more than one way. These connections are shown again and again, found, looked at again, and used in new ways throughout the work.
Commonplace books are personal notebooks used to collect information that the owner finds interesting or helpful. These books can include notes, sayings, recipes, quotes, letters, poems, tables of measurements, prayers, legal forms, and other useful information. People have used them for a long time, especially during the Renaissance and in the 1800s.
Common metre, also called common measure, is a type of poetic rhythm made up of four lines. These lines alternate between iambic tetrameter (lines with four pairs of syllables, each pair having an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable) and iambic trimeter (lines with three pairs of syllables, each pair having an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable). The rhythm is shown by the number of syllables in each line, such as 8.6.8.6, 86.86, or 86 86, or by the abbreviation “CM.” Common metre has been used in ballads like “Tam Lin,” hymns like “Amazing Grace,” and Christmas carols like “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Because this rhythm is widely used, the words of one song can often be sung to the melody of another.