Juxtaposition

Juxtaposition: Placing two contrasting elements side by side so each sharpens the other.

Juxtaposition argues without commentary: put the mansion beside the ash heap and the reader draws the conclusion the writer never states.

Juxtaposition examples

• "Gatsby's glittering parties sit a short drive from the grey valley of ashes."

  — The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald

• "Dickens opens by setting best and worst, wisdom and foolishness, light and darkness side by side for a full paragraph."

  — A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens

• "The wedding photos hung in the hallway of the house where nobody spoke."

  — original example

• "War photographers' most quoted images pair play with rubble: children's games in bombed streets."

  — common usage

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