A living corpse is an oxymoron. Use as a means of expression

Oxymoron

OXYMORON (Greek - “sharp stupidity”) is a term of ancient stylistics denoting a deliberate combination of contradictory concepts. Example: “Look, it’s fun for her to be sad / So elegantly naked” (Akhmatova). A special case of O. is formed by the figure contradictio in adjecto, - the combination of a noun with an adjective that has a contrasting meaning: “poor luxury” (Nekrasov).
The figure of O. is characterized by the emphasized inconsistency of the meanings merged into one: in this O. differs both from catachresis (q.v.), where there is no opposition between the contradictory words being connected, and from antithesis (q.v.), where there is no merging of opposing concepts together.
The possibility of realizing the figure of O. and its stylistic significance are based on the traditional nature of the language, on its inherent ability to “denote only the general.” The fusion of contrasting meanings is therefore perceived as the revelation of the contradiction between the name of an object and its essence, between the traditional assessment of the object and its true significance, as the discovery of the contradictions present in the phenomenon, as the transfer of the dynamics of thinking and being. Therefore, some researchers (for example, R. Meyer) not without reason point to O.’s closeness to paradox (see).
The presence of O. as a stylistic figure in itself, of course, does not characterize either the style or the creative method of the writer. True, attempts were made to see in the abundance of O. a typical feature of the romantic and rhetorical styles - styles of eras of special aggravation of social contradictions (R. Meyer). But these attempts can hardly be considered evidence-based. Determining the significance of an image for any stylistic whole is possible, of course, only by analyzing its content and its orientation; only then are significant differences revealed between even verbally close O. - like the above-mentioned O. Nekrasova (“poor luxury”) and Akhmatova (“elegantly naked”). Stylistics.

Literary encyclopedia. - At 11 t.; M.: Publishing House of the Communist Academy, Soviet Encyclopedia, Fiction. Edited by V. M. Fritsche, A. V. Lunacharsky. 1929-1939 .

Oxymoron

Oxymoron (Greek ox?mo-ron - witty-stupid), a stylistic device consisting in the selection of a phrase, the direct meanings of the words of which are logically opposed, but at the same time one of the words is metaphor and its indirect meaning does not contradict the meaning of another word.

Look, she it's fun to be sad,
Such elegantly naked.
(A. A. Akhmatova, “Tsarskoe Selo statue”)

Here epithets“fun” and “elegant” are used in a metaphorical sense.
An oxymoron, not only in literature, but also in everyday speech, is perceived as an exquisite figurative device and therefore is often used by authors in the titles of works (“Living Corpse” by L.N. Tolstoy, “Hot Snow” by Yu.V. Bondareva).

Literature and language. Modern illustrated encyclopedia. - M.: Rosman. Edited by prof. Gorkina A.P. 2006 .

Synonyms:

See what “Oxymoron” is in other dictionaries:

oxymoron- (incorrect oxymoron and oxymoron) ... Dictionary of difficulties of pronunciation and stress in modern Russian language

- [gr. oxymoron lit. witty stupid] philol. a figure of speech consisting of a combination of two antonymic concepts, two words that contradict each other in meaning (for example, “old boy”, “white crow”, “eloquent silence”). Wed. CATACHRESES... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

See Oxymoron... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Noun, number of synonyms: 3 puns (6) oxymoron (7) humor (32) ASIS Dictionary of Synonyms ... Synonym dictionary

Oxymoron, oxymoron (ancient Greek οξύμωρον “smart stupidity”) a stylistic figure or stylistic error, a combination of words with the opposite meaning (that is, a combination of incompatible things). An oxymoron is characterized by intentional... ... Wikipedia

oxymoron- I. OXYMORONE, OXYMORON a, m. oxymorone m. gr. oxymoron wittily stupid. A stylistic turn in which semantically contrasting words are combined to create an unexpected semantic unity, for example: a living corpse, wretched luxury. SIS 1985. From... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language

See Oxymoron. * * * Oxymoron, see Oxymoron. * * * OXYMORON OXYMORON, see Oxymoron (see OXYMORON) ... encyclopedic Dictionary

oxymoron- (from the Greek oxymoron letters: wittily stupid) stylistic figure, a combination of words with opposite meanings. Category: language. Fine expressive means Synonym: oxymoron Gender: antithesis Other associative connections: antonyms... Terminological dictionary-thesaurus on literary criticism

Oxymoron, oxymorons, oxymoron, oxymorons, oxymoron, oxymorons, oxymoron, oxymorons, oxymoron, oxymorons, oxymoron, oxymorons (

Do you know what an oxymoron is? Remember the sensational advertising video “Philologist” from Megafon, in which a small and very smart girl (at the very end) responds to the phrase “cool fall” with an incomprehensible word, from which her dad (E. Stychkin) literally changes his face:

So - this is the very word - "oxymoron". And the phrase “awesome fall” is a typical example of its use or, so to speak, “use” in the Russian language.

I can imagine how risky it was to launch this video, because half the country, firstly, did not hear what the smart girl said, and secondly, if they heard it, the reaction was something like this: “Who, who? Oxymoron? - I hear it for the first time!" It’s gratifying that the video demonstrated not only the authors’ desire to draw attention to the brand, but also a useful component. Philological.

And who would have thought that the real battle between domestic mobile operators would begin with the video “Philologist” and the word “Oxymoron”. And if Megafon had a ready-made feature - Oxymoron + media person in the person of Stychkin, then MTS had banal “dance lessons”, which they sponsored. Having woken up from a hard knockdown, the MTS PR department went all-in, inviting heavy artillery in the person of Dmitry Nagiyev. This is how several solid promo videos were born: “Nagiyev is tired of dancing”, “Guess what track Nagiyev is dancing to”, “Masha, this doesn’t count!”, but all this was no good - the feature was never born.

Then, obviously, the MTS creatives figured out what was really going on. It turned out that it was simply necessary to combine the two most important components of success: the bulk of Nagiyev with the great and powerful Russian language. So, the tip of the iceberg of all torment was born - “UNLIMITED”, and with it - a feature!

This is what the edifying lesson of the “philologist” and the “oxymoron” led to. I can imagine how many zeros were spent from the MTS budget in search of a truly Russian video...

So that the reader does not think that the magazine “sympathizes” exclusively with Megafon:

So, an oxymoron. What does it mean and what examples can you find in Russian?

For a more precise definition, let's turn to Wikipedia:

Oxymoron, oxymoron, as well as oxymoron, oxymoron (German: Oxumoron< др.-греч. οξύμωρον, букв. - остроумно-глупое) - стилистическая фигура или стилистическая ошибка - сочетание слов с противоположным значением, that is, a combination of incompatible things.

An oxymoron is characterized by the deliberate use of contradiction to create a stylistic effect. From a psychological point of view, an oxymoron is a way of resolving an inexplicable situation.

Classic examples oxymoron actually a lot. But the most interesting example paradoxically connects several great singers of the Russian word: Pushkin, Gogol, Tolstoy.

Did Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol think about deliberately creating a stylistic effect by calling his novel two incompatible words: “Dead Souls”? Of course I did! Or, perhaps, the cunning Gogol stole his name from the same Pushkin, on whose idea and advice, in fact, the famous work was published. The fact is that in 1828 Alexander Sergeevich wrote the famous poem “Poltava”, in which he used for stylistic effect oxymoron :

And the day has come. Gets up from his bed
Mazepa, this frail sufferer,
This corpse alive, just yesterday
Moaning weakly over the grave.

Later, already in 1842, the first volume of Dead Souls was published. Pushkin’s “living corpse” and Gogol’s “dead souls” are a paradoxical coincidence.

Oxymoron - Leo Tolstoy - “The Living Corpse”, Photo: books-audio.in

But we must give credit to the mystical Gogol, he at least somehow tried to hide his “little hooliganism.” The same cannot be said about Count Tolstoy. Lev Nikolaevich really was original when he wrote the play “The Living Corpse” in 1900. The work was published posthumously. Count Tolstoy's play was very successful. In 1911 it was staged at the Moscow Art Theater. The main directors were Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko and Konstantin Stanislavsky.

Soon the production took place in St. Petersburg. Since the text was translated into many languages, productions also took place in Berlin, Vienna, Paris and London. By the way, the pedantic English abandoned the usual title and translated the play as: “The Man Who Was Dead.” The play took place in London at the end of 1912. Apparently, they have difficulty understanding the stylistic effect oxymoron.

Throughout her life, the play was filmed 9 times! In 1918, The Living Corpse was adapted into a silent film. The main female role was played by the “queen of the screen” of Russian cinema at the beginning of the 20th century - silent film actress Vera Kholodnaya. This was one of the actress's last roles. In February 1919, the actress caught a cold and fell ill with a severe form of influenza with pulmonary complications, better known as “Spanish flu.” It took only a few days for a terrible disease to kill the greatest star of Soviet cinema...

By the way, in this classic combination: Pushkin-Gogol-Tolstoy, you can safely squeeze in another lover of beautiful effects - I.S. Turgenev and his story “Living Relics”, 1874. As an epigraph to his “living relics”, Turgenev took the words of the Russian poet F. I. Tyutchev - “The native land of long-suffering - the land of the Russian people!”

The Russian region, according to the writer, is a special region, and it is inhabited by special people endowed with unprecedented spiritual strength...

The work is very autobiographical. I like Turgenev. His author's vision is captivating. And “Living Relics” was read with interest...

More examples of oxymorons

Surprisingly, the word “oxymoron” itself (lit. “witty-stupid”) is an oxymoron. But in relation to Russian classics, it is appropriate to consider not the use of “witty-stupid” connectives on their part, but still the creation of beautiful stylistic effects, combinations of two opposite words. Let us turn to Russian poetry for examples.

I love the lush decay of nature. (A.S. Pushkin)

But their beauty is ugly
I soon comprehended the mystery. (M.Yu. Lermontov)

And the wretched luxury of the outfit -
Everything is not in her favor. (N.A. Nekrasov)

Look, she has fun being sad
So elegantly naked. (A.A. Akhmatova)

Oxymoron - “An Ordinary Miracle”, Photo: kinopoisk.ru

An oxymoron can be found very often in cinema. This technique is actively and intentionally used as a way to attract attention, interest, make the viewer surprised, think... We remember: “true lies”, “ordinary miracle”, “old New Year”, “back to the future”, “tomorrow there was a war”...

There are many oxymorons in everyday life. For example, when describing the qualities of people: “courageous woman”, “feminine boy”. Phrases that evoke unexpected associations, as disconcerting as extraordinary personalities, arouse special interest and attract attention.

More phrases from everyday life: “long moment” or “complex simplicity”...

Oxymorons, as we have already found out, are very often and intentionally used in advertising, but not always in good faith. For example, the expression “investing in the Forex market” is an example of a professional oxymoron, but also an example of classical speculation with this beautiful term. The Forex market itself is also distinguished by speculative actions, since the private foreign exchange market by its nature cannot be an object of investment, only speculation. However, today it is very fashionable to use the connective “investing in the stock market”...

You should also distinguish between oxymorons and stylistic combinations of words. For example, the phrase “sweet bitterness” is an oxymoron, and “poisonous honey”, “found loss”, “sweet torment” are stylistic combinations.

And many, many more interesting examples of oxymorons from everyday life:

BIG half
-terribly handsome
-sad joy
- eloquent silence
-liquid Nails
-dry water
-Old New Year
-sad laughter
-sweet bitterness
-heat of cold
-sweet tears
-afterlife
-a virtual reality
-deafening silence
- ringing silence
- powerful impotence
-dull shine
-long moment
-original copies
-eyes wide closed
-loud silence
-summer fur coat
-possessed angel
- sincere liar
- insolent modesty
-voluntary violence
-drink to your health
-unanimous disagreements
- benevolent enemy
-infinite limit
-well-mannered boor
-little giant
- a clever bungler
-married bachelor
-flame ice
- silent scream
-fall up
-it's fun to be sad
-chilling ardor
- screaming silence
-long moment
-complex simplicity
- sworn friend
-wavy surface
- awkward grace
- powerful impotence
-public secret
- affectionate bastard
-stubborn agreement
-happy pessimist
-soft rigidity
-amorphous activist
- cloudy clarity
- bitter happiness
- unbearable beauty
-unstoppable quiet
-low skyscraper
-Swiss refugee
- frank politics
-honest politician

This is what it is - the great and mighty Russian language!

*Examples of oxymoron taken from the site: ktonanovenkogo.ru

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Oxymoron(ancient Greek οξύμωρον - acute stupidity) - a stylistic figure or a stylistic error - a combination of words with the opposite meaning, that is, a combination of the incongruous. An oxymoron is characterized by the deliberate use of contradiction to create a stylistic effect. From a psychological point of view, an oxymoron is a way of resolving an inexplicable situation.
Sometimes it is born spontaneously, and even takes root for a long time due to its brightness.

Examples of oxymorons:
add by minus
do some good
intelligent bandit
honest swindler
merciful flayer
friends terrarium
pack of comrades

Uncertificated securities
Endless dead end
Cheerful sadness
Hot Snow
Dialectics of tautology
Life-giving euthanasia
Living Dead
Yawning Peaks
Courageous woman
People's oligarchy
Dressy nudity
Unpaid salary
Innovative traditions
An ordinary miracle
Urbanism of nomadic tribes

Oxymoron examples from literature

· An oxymoron is often used innamesprose literary works (“Dead Souls", "The Unbearable Lightness of Being ", "Endless dead end», « End of Eternity"), films (" An ordinary miracle», « With eyes wide shut», « True lies ", " Dead Poets Society", "Back to the Future "),musical groups (Led Zeppelin - “lead airship”, Blind Guardian - “blind guardian”, Orgy of the Righteous).

· Oxymorons are used to describe objects that combine opposite qualities: “masculine woman”, “feminine boy”.

· In the novel "Foucault's Pendulum" the characters of Umberto Ecofantasizing about a “university of comparative irrelevance” with a department of oxymorism. As subjects of study of this department, the author cites “urban studies of nomadic tribes”, “folk oligarchy”, “innovative traditions”, “dialectics of tautology”, etc.

· In the name of the holiday« old New Year» .

It is necessary to distinguish between oxymorons and stylistic combinations of words that characterize different qualities: for example, the phrase “sweet bitterness” is an oxymoron, and “poisonous honey”, “found loss”, “sweet torment” are stylistic combinations.

Oxymoronclassics of literature used it as a stylistic device, and modern writers also use it. An oxymoron allows you to enhance the emotionality of artistic speech and reveal the unity of opposites.
Often, authors of literary works and films use an oxymoron in their titles: “Dead Souls” by N.V. Gogol, "Living Relics" by I.S. Turgenev, “The Living Corpse” by L.N. Tolstoy, “Honest Thief” by F.M. Dostoevsky, "Optimistic Tragedy" by V.V. Vishnevsky, “The Rich Beggar” by L.N. Martynov, “Fierce Paradise” by P.G. Antokolsky, "Endless Dead End" by Dmitry Galkovsky, "An Ordinary Miracle" by Evgeniy Schwartz, "Eyes Wide Shut" by Arthur Schnitzler (the novel on which the famous film by Stanley Kubrick was based).

And Daria Dontsova has dozens of such titles: “Checkered Zebra”, “Quasimodo in Heels”, “Fig Leaf Haute Couture”, “Cancan at a Wake”, “The Invisible Man in Rhinestones”, “Angel on a Broom”, “Ardent Love” snowman", "Winter summer of spring", "This bitter sweet revenge", "Test kiss", "Beloved bastard", "Viper in syrup", "Hocus Pocus from Vasilisa the Terrible", "Monsters from a good family", "Diamond muddy water”, “Chinese-made British”, “Madame Pompadour’s torn felt boots”, “Grandfather of marriageable age”, “Mistress of the Egyptian mummy”.

Beginning of the form

End of form

Oxymoron is often found in poetry.

And the day has come. Gets up from his bed
Mazepa, this frail sufferer,
This corpse alive , just yesterday
Moaning weakly over the grave.
A. S. Pushkin

I love the lush decay of nature.
A.S. Pushkin

Oxymoron is a trope that implies a deliberate combination of the incongruous, a deliberate mistake. The term comes from the ancient Greek word οξύμωρον, which translated into Russian means “acute stupidity.”

History of the origin and function of the oxymoron.

There is an assumption that the first oxymorons appeared as a consequence of illiteracy and a violation of the lexical combination of words. But it was precisely the unexpectedness of the result that was highly appreciated by writers. Many authors adopted a deliberate violation of the compatibility of a word and its definition, which is how “cold fire” and “hot ice” appeared - perhaps the most common oxymorons in literature.

Oxymoron: examples.

Oxymoron in literature

For oxymorons In russian language The author is characterized by a purposeful, conscious, intentional use of contradiction in a phrase in order to enhance the stylistic effect of speech. They often become very vivid and unexpected expressions, so they attract attention and are remembered.

Examples of an oxymoron:

add by minus,
noble bandit,
honest swindler
friends terrarium,
endless dead end
hot Snow,
fried ice cream,
courageous woman.

Examples of oxymorons from fiction.

Anna Akhmatova’s oxymoron: “Look, it’s fun for her to be sad so elegantly naked.” In the poems of Alexander Pushkin: “Mazepa, this frail sufferer, this living corpse, just yesterday moaning weakly over the grave.”

Oxymorons helped science fiction writers a lot in creating dystopian realities. For example, in George Orwell’s novel “1984” the characters of the “future” are characterized by such slogans as:

"War is peace"
"Freedom is slavery"
“Ignorance is strength.”

The oxymoron in the title is intended to attract the reader's attention. For example, we find it in the titles of such works as:

“Running on the Waves” by Alexander Green;
"The Living Corpse" by Leo Tolstoy;
“Dead Souls” by Nikolai Gogol;
“Tomorrow there was war” by Boris Vasiliev.

Oxymorons in headlines are often used by the media.