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Types of Chiasmus: Chiastic Shorthand

The Reverse Is True

Another popular way of achieving chiasmus without using the actual words is to simply say, "And the reverse is true" after making a reversible statement. One of the best examples of all time is a joke that emerged in Poland during the Cold War:

The joke, which began making the rounds in the 1950s, became so popular that some quote books of that era called it a "modern Polish proverb." It was a clever way for Polish citizens to snub their noses at the ideology of their Soviet oppressors, and in the process, point out that the exploitation of man will exist regardless of ideological rhetoric.

Another example comes from Karl Marx, in this line from his 1867 classic, Das Kapital:

Marx uses a bit of chiastic shorthand here to express his view about the evils of 19th century capitalism. In his view, the greedy giants of industry had begun to exert an unhealthy and unnatural control over the buying and selling of goods, perverting what he regarded as the natural order of things.

One can achieve the same chiastic result without actually using the exact words "the reverse is true." A few years ago, French writer Joseph Roux said:

Those familiar with developments in the publishing industry in the past few decades can appreciate what Roux is saying, for today it often does seem as if literature has become the trade and finance the art.

In yet another example, Max Baer, the heavyweight boxing champ in the 1930s, said:

"The reverse" in Baer's intriguing observation means that boxing is not good for golf. Why golf is good for boxing and not the reverse I don't know, but it's a good illustration of a variation of the "reverse is true" theme. So is the following observation from the 18th century English poet, William Shenstone:

Shenstone begins by pointing out that all good poets have an internal critic who provides an important quality control function. His second point is one virtually all creative artists would agree with, that every critic does not include a good poet.

One other variation on the "reverse is true" theme is contained in this Bruce Gould observation:

Gould's point, of course, is that America is not exactly a man's world, for there he'd rather be a woman, a dog, a horse, and then a man, in that order.

Shorthand chiastic expressions are a wonderful way to streamline language and make thoughts and ideas flow more smoothly. Take this example from the 19th century German philosopher, Goethe:

Phrased this way, most people immediately "get" Goethe's point: good actions sometimes have bad outcomes, bad actions sometimes good. It's not necessary for Goethe to spell out the entire observation, and it would have been cumbersome if he had done so.

A final example is the German proverb:

As with previous examples, the simple words "in reverse" allow readers to understand the message about the predictable loss of ardor over time in marriage.

The Opposite Is True

Yet another major shorthand way of expressing chiasmus is to say "The opposite is true." In a 1958 interview, French novelist Françoise Sagan said:

By ending her observation this way, Sagan asserts that life is much closer to great literature than great literature is to life. It's an intriguing idea and suggests that, in addition to talking about literature that's true to life, it's also possible to talk about life that's true to literature.

As with our prior example, it's not necessary to use the exact words "the opposite is true" to achieve the desired result. When I first introduced the topic of chiastic shorthand here on "Types of Chiasmus" a few months ago, I mentioned an inscription that Voltaire wrote for a statue of Niobe in Paris:

The point of the inscription is that the sculptor performed the impressive feat of turning a stone into a woman. To fully appreciate the inscription, it's necessary to understand the story behind it. Niobe was the Queen of Thebes in Greek mythology. The mother of numerous children, she made a fatal mistake by disparaging the goddess Leto for having only two children. Leto sought vengeance and, with the assistance of her two children, Apollo and Artemis, killed all of Niobe's children. In despair, Niobe fled to Mt. Sipylus in Asia Minor, where Zeus turned her into a stone that wept perpetually. In one of Shakespeare's most famous allusions, Hamlet described his mother's behavior at his father's funeral by saying, "Like Niobe, all tears."

Edward Albee does something similar in a 1966 Saturday Review article:

That is, a bad writer will accomplish the questionable feat of turning truth into fact.

As with earlier examples of chiastic shorthand, people will sometimes use the "opposite is true" expression and then go on to formally complete the thought, even though it's not completely necessary. The American businessman and philanthropist Alfred P. Sloan once said:

As president and chairman of General Motors, Sloan was a pioneer in the development of modern management methods (the Sloan School of Management at MIT is named after him). In this observation, he takes a totally new look at the American reputation for discarding things so readily.

Newt Gingrich did something similar in a lecture he gave on "History and Leadership" a few years ago:

In both observations, Sloan and Gingrich suggest that the opposite is true, and then go on to formally complete their thoughts, presumably to make sure their point is made.

In a January 1999 article in U. S. News and World Report, John Leo published his annual review of the "best aphorisms and most memorable sayings" of 1998. One memorable observation came from Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel:

By using a language convention that is understood by almost everybody, Wiesel doesn't have to formally complete the thought to describe how much the times have changed.

Other Miscellaneous Methods

Let me bring this discussion to a close by presenting a few more miscellaneous examples of chiastic shorthand. One of the most powerful quotations of all time is this provocative observation by Voltaire:

If Voltaire had explicitly laid out the entire thought, the power of his message would have been diluted. However, by having readers complete the thought on their own, he makes sure they consciously consider what many people at the time considered a heretical notion—that man created God in his own image. It's another example of the power of chiastic shorthand.

Another intriguing example comes from the Roman writer Phaedrus, a freed Roman slave who wrote fables in the manner of Aesop. Many of the most popular fables in Europe in the middle ages can be traced back to him. In one of his fables, he writes:

Again, it's a clever little bit of chiastic shorthand, made all the more profound by its brevity. Not only would it have been cumbersome for Phaedrus to lay out the complete sentiment, it would have weakened his message.

Another example comes from English writer Joseph Addison:

Addison doesn't have to spell out the thought completely, for we immediately understand his point: health leads to cheerfulness and cheerfulness to health.

A final example comes from the French philosopher Blaise Pascal:

Pascal's use of the word "inversion" indicates that his mind is on a chiastic track, since what he means is, "a strange inversion from the way things should be." This observation, then, becomes an example of implied chiasmus, with Pascal suggesting that people would be better off if they showed a sensibility to great things and an insensibility to trifles.

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