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Difficulty: EasyDiction and Poetic Syntax

Read the extract below and answer the question that follows.

"Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd."

In the first line, the alteration of standard word order ("too hot the eye of heaven shines") demonstrates which syntactic device?

  1. InversionAnswer
  2. B
    Oxymoron
  3. C
    Assonance
  4. D
    Simile

Answer

Inversion
Inversion occurs when conventional word order is inverted to emphasize specific words, maintain meter, or achieve a desired rhyme scheme. In 'too hot the eye of heaven shines', the modifier precedes both the subject and the verb, creating a clear example of poetic inversion.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Examine standard English prose word order for the clause.
Standard syntax would be 'The eye of heaven shines too hot'.
Comparing standard syntax with the poet's arrangement reveals structural modifications.
2
Identify the specific syntactic transformation used.
The predicate adjective phrase 'too hot' is shifted ahead of the subject 'the eye of heaven'.
Reversing traditional word order for emphasis or rhythm defines poetic inversion.

Key Concept

Poetic Inversion (Anastrophe)
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Topics

Diction and Poetic Syntax

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