A-Z: General definitions
- Paean
- Paeon
- Pagan
- Pagan gods
- Paganism
- Palatine Hill
- Palestine
- Palimpsest
- Palindrome
- Pall
- Palliate
- Palm Sunday
- Palmer
- Pamphlet
- Pan
- Pandemonium
- Pander
- Pandora
- Panentheism
- Panentheistic
- Pantalone
- Pantheist
- Pantheon
- Pantomime
- Papacy
- Papal
- Papal bull
- Paphos
- Parable
- Parade
- Paradise
- Paradise Lost
- Paradox
- Parallelism
- Paraphrase
- Pararhyme
- Pard
- Pardon
- Pardoner
- Parenthesis
- Paris
- Parish
- Parish Church
- Parish priest
- Parishes
- Parishioner
A-Z: General definitions: Parallelism
Definition
A linguistic device whereby an idea, image, sentence is paralleled by another in a repeating pattern. The poetry of the Old Testament is largely constructed in this way: one line being followed by a second or even third line constructed in a similar way, containing a similar idea or image. At one extreme, rhyme itself could be seen as a parallelism, being repeating sounds.1. Imitation, copy, likeness, statue, picture in literature, art or imagination.
2. A figure of speech in which a person or object or happening is described in terms of some other person, object or action (i.e. as a metaphor or simile)
The device, frequently used at the ends of lines in poetry, where words with the same sound are paired, sometimes for contrast ' for example, 'breath' and 'death'.
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