Hyperbaton

Definition of Hyperbaton

Hyperbaton is derived from a Greek word meaning "transposition" and refers to an inversion in the arrangement of common words. It can be defined as a rhetorical device in which writers play with the normal positions of words, phrases, etc. Hyperbaton is also known as a broader version of hypallage. The arrangement of words, in a sentence with the aim of creating a rhetorical effect. Anastrophe is also considered a simile of hyperbaton.

The characteristics of Hyperbaton
The words are not arranged in their normal order
It is classified as the figure of disorder.
Rhetorical effect
Interrupts the natural flow of sentences
It is used a lot as inflected language.
Examples of hyperbaton in literature
Example 1: Wasteland (by T.Eliot)
“Winter kept us warm,
Earth covered with forgetful snow,
fed a little life with dried tubers… .
where the sun beats,
And the dead Tree gives no protection, the cricket no relief,
And the dry stone no sound of water.Only
There are shadows under this red rock,
(Come in under the shadows of this red rock) ... “

The previous extract is one of those considered perfect Examples of hyperbaton can be viewed. Here the natural order has been changed throughout the text. This inflected language interrupts the flow of sentences.

Example 2: Measure for Measure (by William Shakespeare)
"Some rise through sin, others fall through virtue ..."

This is just one of the many examples of hyperbaton in Shakespeare's works. Here he uses the unexpected word order "some fall by virtue" instead of "some fall" because of. This clutter of words helps to emphasize the phrase "fall from virtue".

Example 3: Everyone who lived in a pretty town (by E. Cummings)
“Everyone lived in a pretty town
(with so many bells down)
spring Summer Fall Winter
er sang his not he danced his did.

Women and men (both small and small)
Cared for someone who didn’t seed at all4040 They did not harvested the same
sun moon stars. Rain

children suspected (but only a few
and down they forgot as they grew ...) their

someones married all their
laughed at their screams and danced
(sleep awake hope and then) they
told their Nevers they were asleep their dream ... ”

This is a dream very good example of hyperbaton. It creates complex structures of sentences and an aesthetic of ambiguity.

Example 4: A Midsummer Night's Dream (By William Shakespeare)
“The human eye has no ear, the human ear has not seen the human hand can't taste, can't understand his tongue or his heart can tell what my dream was ... ”

Here Shakespeare used an unusual and complex word structure. He transposed the normal word order, such as “his tongue to receive” and “what my dream was”.

Example 5: Julius Caesar (by William Shakespeare)
“His cowardly lips made their color fly
And the same eye whose curve arouses awe The world has lost its luster. I heard him groan,
Ay, and his tongue that commanded the Romans. Tag him and write his speeches in your books. “

Here Shakespeare plays with the natural position of words and adds depth to the structure of the sentence. The purpose is to emphasize the phrase as there is a sudden turn in the sentence.

Function of Hyperbaton
Hyperbaton is used in literary writings, poems, films and all other media of visual or textual form. It creates startling and sometimes confusing effects even though it is used as curved language.

In rhyming and measured poetry, hyperbaton is used to properly fit a sentence into the structure of a poem. Besides that, when used correctly in sentences, hyperbaton can lead to an accent in the desired place. The unconventional placement of words and phrases also leads to fascinating and complex sentence structures.

Humor Hyperbole