Rhetoric

Parallelism

The use of matching grammatical structures to express related ideas.

Parallelism repeats a grammatical shape—phrases, clauses, or sentences built the same way—so ideas line up in balance. Writers use it to create rhythm, clarify relationships, and make prose or verse feel ordered and forceful. The symmetry can build to a satisfying, memorable effect.

Example

The novel’s opening piles parallel clauses of opposites, giving the passage its rolling, incantatory rhythm.

A Tale of Two Cities · Charles Dickens

See it in action

Analyses on StoryBites that use parallelism:

Related terms

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