Litotes

In rhetoric, litotes (/ˈlaɪtətiːz/,^[1] US /ˈlɪtətiːz/ or /laɪˈtoʊtiːz/) is a figure of speech that uses understatement to emphasize a point by stating a negative to further affirm a positive, often incorporating double negatives for effect.^[2][3][4] For example, "She's not bad looking" could express that someone is gorgeous—or could convey that she's neither particularly ugly or attractive. The degree of emphasis depends on context. For instance, the commonly used phrase "not bad" can indicate that something is either average or excellent.^[5] Along the same lines, litotes can be used to diminish the harshness of an observation; "He isn't the cleanest person I know" could be used as a means of indicating that someone is a messy person.^[6]

The term is generally synonymous with meiosis, which means to diminish the importance of something, often at the expense of something else.

Litotes is a form of understatement, always deliberate and with the intention of emphasis.^[7] However, the interpretation of negation may depend on context, including cultural context. In speech, it may also depend on intonation and emphasis; for example, the phrase "not bad" can be said in such a way as to mean anything from "mediocre" to "excellent". It can be used to soften harsher expressions, similar to euphemism.

The use of litotes is common in English, Russian, German, Dutch, Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, Ukrainian and French. It is a feature of Old English poetry and of the Icelandic sagas and is a means of much stoical restraint.^[8]

The word litotes is of Greek origin, meaning "the property of being light (as opposed to heavy)", and is derived from the word litos meaning "plain, small or meager".^[9]

George Orwell complained about overuse of the 'not un...' construction in his essay "Politics and the English Language".

Biblical litotes

• Isaiah 55:11 "My word...it shall not return unto Me void," meaning "My word...will have meaning and be important"
• Jeremiah 30:19 "I will multiply them, and they shall not be few; I will make them honored, and they shall not be small," meaning "they shall be very many" and "they shall be very great"
• Jeremiah 23:32 "They do not profit this people at all," meaning "they lead these people astray"
• Jeremiah 7:31 “They have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command," meaning "I have directly forbidden this atrocious practice"
• Leviticus 10:1 "And they offered strange fire which he did not command" meaning "contrary to my express command"
• Hebrews 7:14 "...and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests," meaning, "Moses has spoken of a tribe to set apart as holy from the rest, and Judah was not it."

Classical litotes

The first known mention of this word is in a letter from Cicero in 56 B.C. Cicero uses the word to mean simplicity (or frugality) of life. Over time, the meaning and the function of the word changed from 'simple' to the idea of understatement that involves double negatives. Early litotes began with two words, mainly a positive and a negative connected by a particle. This gave the word two meanings. After the redundancy, the positive part can be omitted. Due to the feeling of the phrase the reader must then work with the author or speaker to understand the meaning.

Old Norse had several types of litotes. These points are denied negatives, denied positives (probably the most used ), creating litotes without negating anything, and creating litotes using a negative adjective.^[10]

Litotes and ethos

Litotes can be used to establish ethos, or credibility, by expressing modesty or downplaying one's accomplishments to gain the audience's favor. In the book Rhetorica ad Herennium litotes is addressed as a member of The Figures of Thought known as deminutio, or understatement. It is listed in conjunction with antenantiosis and meiosis, two other forms of rhetorical deminutio.^[9] For example, a very accomplished artist might say "I'm not a bad painter," and by refraining from bragging but still acknowledging his skill, the artist is seen as both talented, modest, and credible.

Examples

Other languages

In Classical Greek, instances of litotes can be found as far back as Homer. In Book 24 of the Iliad, Zeus describes Achilles like this: "οὔτε γάρ ἔστ᾽ ἄφρων οὔτ᾽ ἄσκοπος …" (line 186), "he is neither unthinking, nor unseeing", meaning that he is both wise and prudent.

In French, "pas mal" (not bad) is used similarly to the English, while "il n'est pas antipathique" ("he is not disagreeable") is another example, actually meaning "il est très sympathique" ("he is nice"), though you don't want to admit it. Another typical example is "Ce n'est pas bête!" ("It's not stupid"), generally said to admit a clever suggestion without showing oneself as too enthusiastic. (As with all litotes, this phrase can also be used with its literal meaning that the thing is not stupid but rather may be clever or occupy the middle ground between stupid and clever.)

One of the most famous litotes of French literature is in Pierre Corneille's Le Cid (1636). The heroine, Chimène, says to her lover Rodrigue, who just killed her father: "Va, je ne te hais point" ("Go, I hate you not"), meaning "I love you".

In Chinese, the phrase "不错" (pinyin bù cuò, traditional characters 不錯, literally "not wrong") is often used to present something as very good or correct. In this way, it is distinct in meaning from the English "not bad" or the general use of the French "pas mal". Also, the phrase "不简单" (pinyin bù jiǎn dān, traditional characters 不簡單, literally "not simple") is used to refer to an impressive feat. Similarly, in Dutch, the phrase "niet slecht" (also literally meaning "not bad") is often used to present something as very good or correct, as does German.

In Italian, meno male (literally "less bad") is similar to the English expression, "So much the better" – used to comment that a situation is more desirable than its negative (cf. Winston Churchill's comment, since transformed into a snowclone, that "democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others").

In Latin, an example of litotes can be found in Ovid's Metamorphoses: "non semel" (bk. 1 ln. 692, "not one occasion"), meaning "on more than one occasion". Some common words are derived from litotes: "nonnulli" from "non nulli" ("not none") is understood to mean "several", while "nonnumquam" from "non numquam" ("not never") is used for "sometimes".

In Spanish, it is usual to say "No es nada tonto" ("It's not at all foolish"), as a form of compliment (i.e., to say something was smart or clever). Another common Spanish phrase is "menos mal" (cf. Italian "meno male" above), meaning literally "less bad," but \used in the same way as the English phrase "Thank goodness!"

In Turkish, it is quite common to say "Hiç fena değil!" ("Not so bad") as a form of compliment.

In Welsh, "Siomi ar yr ochr orau" ("To be disappointed on the best side") means "to be pleasantly surprised".

In Swedish it is quite common to use litotes. For example, when one chances to meet someone after a long time it is usual to say: "Det var inte igår." (It wasn't yesterday). Descriptions in conversation are often expressed by litotes. "Det var inte världens minsta bil direkt." (That's not exactly the smallest car in the world.) "Det var ingen dålig väg." (This isn't a bad road.)

See also

• Double negative
• Meiosis (figure of speech)
• Antiphrasis
• Understatement
• Euphemism
• Hyperbole

Notes

References

• Smyth, Herbert Weir (1920). Greek Grammar. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press. p. 680. ISBN 0-674-36250-0. 
• Hollander, Lee M. (1938). "Litotes in Old Norse". 53.1. PMLA. pp. 1–33. 
• Lanham, Richard A. (1991). A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms (2nd. ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 95–96. ISBN 0-520-07669-9. 

External links

Look up litotes in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Biblical Litotes
• Definition and examples
•  "Litotes". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.