What is juxtaposition?

Think about the famous adage, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” What is clear in that saying is some kind of contrast and comparison. Probably a dog owner long ago had an old dog; he tried to teach it new things but he realized it was a waste of time. Now as much as that makes sense literary, it also has a deeper meaning. But let’s focus on the contrast and comparison we are seeing in the saying; it is what we call juxtaposition.

The definition of juxtaposition

Juxtaposition is a literary device in which two things are placed side by side or close together to compare or contrast them. By things, I mean objects, places, characters, anything that can be compared or contrasted to another.

Examples of juxtaposition instances:

Light and darkness

Familiar and strange

Good and evil

Modern and antiquated

Forgiveness and revenge

Courage and cowardice

Male and female

Virtue and vice

Passion and apathy

Wisdom and foolishness

Examples of the use of juxtaposition in literature:

Therefore our sometime sister, now queen,

Th’ imperial jointress to this warlike state,

Have we - as ‘twere with a defeated joy,

With an auspicious and a dropping eye,

With mirth in funeral and with dirge in marriage,

In equal scale weighing delight and dole -

Taken to wife.

(William Shakespeare, Hamlet)

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Claudius murders his brother in secret, then marries Gertrude, his widowed sister-in-law. However, Claudius admits to the discomfit in their marriage. Claudius brings forth a juxtaposition of a “mirth in funeral” with a “dirge in marriage.”

Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray. / Do

not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against

the dying of the light. / Do not Go Gentle into that.

(Dylan Thomas, Good Night)

Dylan Thomas in Good Night addresses the difficulty of accepting death. He indirectly refers to death as darkness, “the dying of the light.” Thomas juxtaposes the harsh reality between the struggle to live and the acceptance of death.

Merry and tragical? Tedious and brief?; That is hot ice,

and wondrous strange snowl; How shall we find the

concord of this discord?

(William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream)

William Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night’s Dream juxtaposes a lot of things. Some of the examples are: “Merry and tragical,” “Tedious and brief,” and the words “hot ice” are also a juxtaposition.

The difference between juxtaposition and foil

While foil is limited to the comparison and contradiction of characters, juxtaposition applies to a wider scope, including objects, places, concepts, and more. It is often hard to tell between foil and juxtaposition because they essentially work on the same principle (comparing and contrasting two things). It is right to say all foils are juxtapositions but not all juxtapositions are foils.

The importance of juxtaposition

Juxtaposition is important because the contradictions and comparisons can serve to highlight different concepts, behaviors, or ideas in society. Writers can use this technique to approach and drive conversations or even address important themes in our society.

Writers can also enhance the dramatic effect in their work using juxtaposition. This will help to intrigue their audiences.

Sources

https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/juxtaposition
https://writingexplained.org/grammar-dictionary/juxtaposition

https://literarydevices.net/juxtaposition
https://examples.yourdictionary.com/juxtaposition-examples.html