The parallelism is a literary device is to organize sequentially and repetitively the elements of a sentence or phrase. At the same time that this is done, the possibility of alternating some of the components of the sentence is generated. A calembour example is: I who was restless, I who was restless and barefoot. Parallelism characteristics uses and examples

The dictionary of the Royal English Academy defines parallelism as ‘the even organization of similar components that make up a syntactic sequential unit’. Etymologically, the word comes from the Greek language parallelos , which translates as ‘similarity that links two elements’.

On the other hand, since parallelism is a figure of repetition, it opens the way to the intensification and strength of the message expressed in the statement. This literary element is presented in the following ways: parison, semantic, correlational, isocolon, synonymic, antithetical, and synthetic. Parallelism is commonly used in poetry.

Characteristics of parallelism

The parallelism is characterized by the following aspects:

– Organization

Parallelism is mainly characterized by the symmetrical and equitable organization of the successive components that make up the structure of a statement. In this sense, the text maintains coherence and logical meaning. Parallelism characteristics uses and examples

Example:

She goes to the sea, she goes with her wave body to the origin.

– Repetition

Parallelism is a literary figure of repetition, by virtue of the fact that it continuously uses the same or similar elements within a text. This is applied to give more force to what is expressed.

Example:

Life hits hard, life hits and you have to go on living.

– Expressiveness

An outstanding feature of the parallelism is the expressive force that it contributes to the texts in what it is used. This is due to the way in which the syntactic components of the sentences are distributed and at the same time to the repetitive quality of the elements of the sentences.

Example:

Where does so much living tear go? Where does so much loose misery go?

– Rhythm

The parallelism enjoys rhythm and sonority, which occurs due to the repetition of words and the symmetric distribution of the linguistic components. For this reason, this literary figure is widely used in poetry, by virtue of the fact that it gives the verses beauty, musicality, depth and intensity.

Example:

I loved you in the North of life,

I loved you and it was early, like to die twice. (Juan Ortiz)

Applications

Parallelism is a rhetorical figure that is used to give texts force of expression and rhythmic dynamism, as mentioned in previous lines. At the same time, this literary element allows to capture the attention of the receiver through the repetition of the components that make up the sentences and paragraphs.

In short, the parallelism brings intensity, dynamism and sound to the writings. Hence, it is used in poems, songs, stories and novels. Some of the authors who made use of this technique were: Garcilaso de la Vega, Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Lope de Vega and Luis de Góngora.

Now, once the concept, characteristics and uses of parallelism are known, the most common types are described below:

Types of parallelism

Isocolon parallelism

This kind of parallelism refers to the similarity that exists in the length of the syllables in the terms that are repeated within a sentence in a prose text. In poetry it is known as ‘isosyllabism’.

Example:

I was that night, went with them m isms ,

I was walking between shadows and abysms .

It was all arid and deserted ,

each one looked different, like dead .

Parison parallelism

This kind of parallelism refers to the similarity that exists between two phrases or sentences belonging to a poem or prose. The resemblance occurs in the metric and in the logic of its syntactic structure. It is also known as syntactic parallelism. Parallelism characteristics uses and examples

Example:

Where are you going with your life in tow?

Where am I going with this wound of mine?

She doesn’t know what love costs

He did not know what love would be.

Semantic parallelism

This variety of parallelism is based on repeating the same ideas and thoughts, but using different words and phrases. It is frequently seen in biblical poems and psalms.

Example:

Man seeks good and does not find it,

and he flees him for his human caste.

Correlation parallelism

Correlation parallelism is based on symmetrically placing words within a sentence to create a uniform structure.

Example:

The wild sea touches the siren,

its strong waves dance in the wind,

the woman with salt kisses her mouth,

and immediately fills all your breath.

Synonymic parallelism

This is characterized by repeating almost in its entirety the idea of ​​the original phrase.

Example:

The evil cat fled in the cold night,

The evil man to the cold soul, at night he fled with the cat.

Synthetic parallelism

In this case, the resemblance between the statements occurs in a structural way. There is not, in reality, a direct relationship of meanings. However, it is possible that the second sentence strengthens the idea of ​​the first.

Example:

Every person is a world.

And the world, many times, is nothing.

Antithetical parallelism

This type of parallelism has the peculiarity that its parts are opposed to each other, that is, they contradict or are contrary.

Example:

In the cold night life waits

also death with its deceptions.

Examples

– What will it be now that nothing is known? What will it be now that the world escapes us? (Synonymic).

– The dog walks that barks to see if it bites, but when it shuts its mouth it is a knife. (Atitético).

– If he goes and throws himself, he surely wins; If she goes and throws herself, he sure loses. (Syntactic). Parallelism characteristics uses and examples

– Tomorrow the gannet leaves in flight, it leaves with its wings at ground level. (Correlation).

– You learn a lot from walking so much. Mistrust comes from so much walking. (Synonymic).

Examples of parallelism

Below are the examples of parallelism.

1. Help me, for whatever you want! Help me out of compassion!
2. We had won! We managed to disarm the enemy and seize his password. At the end of the day, we could hardly believe it. We had won!
3. How are we going to remedy this? When are we going to fix this?
4. Do you think you will run away? Do you think we will allow this?
5. Why aren’t you honest? Why don’t you lie to me?
6. Who’s with me? Who has the truth?
7. Did you know that people are watching you? Did you know they are everywhere?
8. Do you think I’m stupid, that I’m an idiot who doesn’t understand anything?
9. A god begging and with the hammer giving.
10. Sometimes he dreams of being someone else. Sometimes he dreams of being someone else.
11. Apparently it is possible to call yourself men. It seems feasible to say no.
12. New Year New Life.
13. Just as he loves his mother, he hates his father.
14. Yesterday we cried for your absence. Today we cry for your return.
15. How it hurts to be humble, how it hurts to be like that.
16. How can you be so cruel, tell me, how can you.
17. How I would like to live without air. / How I wish I could live without you.
18. When the boss comes, we shut up. When the boss leaves, we dance.
19. When they saw what was done, they paled. They couldn’t believe that all this had happened in so few minutes. When they saw what was done, they thought they were going to die.
20. Give me back my fantasy / give me back my life
21. Two different people, a similar fate.
22. Two different beings a similar fate.
23. The dirty heat of the stars / it burns me / the dirty heat of the sparks
24. The brave die once. The coward dies a thousand times over.
25. She looks at him again, fixes her eyes on him again.
26. Let’s sing the anthem with enthusiasm, with enthusiasm.
27. The wrong guides the way The wrong guides the guide
28. Today we give power to the people. Today we deliver to you.
29. The broken bottle, the broken table, the broken desire too.
30. The galaxy and its mysteries, its secrets, its darkness.
31. The moon and its perfect symmetry / the moon and its imperfect deformity.
32. The light took me to unsuspected lands. The light forced me to stay in my seat.
33. The earth is the mother of man, the mother of evil.
34. Life came / life passed.
35. Old parrot, new tricks.
36. The strong and courageous men, the foolish and manipulative men.
37. Tomorrow we set out to face the enemy. Tomorrow we will fight for what we love most. Tomorrow we will make history.
38. Beyond life I want to say to you with death; In addition to love, I want to tell you with oblivion
39. Many years will pass, many more.
40. I don’t want food, I don’t want drink, I don’t want anything.
41. Deep black eyes, fleeting blue eyes
42. May man’s groans of pain overwhelm him with stories, may man’s groans clog him with stories.
43. That I love you with my soul, that I love you with my heart
44. We’ll be free like the wind / sovereign like the sun
45. If when you rock the blue bells of your porch you think the wind passes sighing, whisperer knows it, hidden among the green leaves, I sigh
46. If you feel like dancing / Dancing / If you feel like screaming / Screaming
47. If you come with good, pass. If you come angry, leave.
48. We are the youth of this country. We are the future of these lands.
49. Let us be patient, let us be wise.
50. Her serene and firm forehead… Her soft, tranquil laugh
51. You are not honest, you are not sincere.
52. Her complexion firm and serene, her smile soft and silent.
53. One ring to rule them all. A ring to find them, a ring to attract them all and in the darkness bind them.
54. A legion of my best men. A legion of my best soldiers.
55. The mother is an ally. The mother is a natural force.
56. Old are the roads, old are the years traveled.
57. We meet again, Mr. Rodrigues. We meet again, who knew.
58. We got home and there was nothing to eat. We feel miserable. What was the point of all the effort if we came home and there was nothing to eat?
59. Vote for the Green Party. Vote for the sensible party.
60. I who loved you so much / I who loved you to death.

We hope you have understood the examples of parallelism.