Isocolon is a rhetorical term for a successive group of phrases, clauses, or sentences with relatively equal length and corresponding structure. The similarities also include sound, meter, and rhythm. Basically, isocolon refers to an almost perfect repetition of similar grammatical forms. Remember the familiar sentence in many promotional advertisements: buy one, get one free. That's an isocolon. Another famous example is Julius Caesar's “veni, vidi, veci,” meaning, “I came, I saw, I conquered.”

In this article, we discuss the three types of isocolon and the effects this device can create. 

Types of isocolon

There are three types of isocolon:

1. Bicolon: A bicolon is an isocolon with two phrases, clauses, or sentences. Prevalent examples are: "Roses are red, Violets are blue..." from Gammer Gurton's Garland 1784 collection of English Nursery Rhymes. "Thy kingdom come; thy will be done..." from the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:10). “But let judgment run down as waters and righteousness as a mighty stream.” from Amos 5:24. “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” from Mohammed Ali's press statement in 1964.

2. Tricolon: A tricolon is an isocolon with three phrases, clauses, or sentences. A famous example is Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, in which he said: “government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth.” Another good example is in Lincoln's second inaugural address: “With malice toward none with charity for all with firmness in the right...” An extra example is from the sermon of Jesus in Matthew 10:8, “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils...”

3. Tetracolon: A tetracolon refers to an isocolon with four phrases, clauses, or sentences. Shakespeare's works contain many examples of tetracola. A good example is in Richard II: “I’ll give my jewels for a set of beads, My gorgeous palace for a hermitage, My gay apparel for an almsman’s gown, My figured goblets for a dish of wood…” 

Examples of Isocolon in Literature

James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916). “Pity is the feeling which arrests the mind in the presence of whatsoever is grave and constant in human sufferings and unites it with the sufferer. Terror is the feeling which arrests the mind in the presence of whatsoever is grave and constant in human sufferings and unites it with the secret cause…”

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (1859). “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair…”

William Blake, The Tyger (1794)

“What the hammer? What the chain?

In what furnace was thy brain?

What the anvil? What dread grasp?

Dare its deadly terrors clasp?”

Effects of Isocolon

An isocolon seems to establish a rhythm that possesses a visual and aural appeal. It also creates parallelism in structure and content that displays good artistry in both the written and spoken word. You shouldn't set out to write an expression as an isocolon or aim for it at the beginning of your writing. Instead, insert it when an opportunity presents itself in your prose or essay. This way, your expression will have its desired effect, rather than sound forced and unnatural. Using an isocolon can help keep consistency and form balanced ideas in your work, making it a very persuasive device. 

Effects of Isocolon

An isocolon seems to establish a rhythm that possesses a visual and aural appeal. It also creates parallelism in structure and content that displays good artistry in both the written and spoken word. You shouldn't set out to write an expression as an isocolon or aim for it at the beginning of your writing. Instead, insert it when an opportunity presents itself in your prose or essay. This way, your expression will have its desired effect, rather than sound forced and unnatural. Using an isocolon can help keep consistency and form balanced ideas in your work, making it a very persuasive device.