I have to make a confession. My name is Miranda, and my son’s name is Moses. Now, do you see how amazing it was when I stumbled across the literary concepts of miranyms and Moses illusions? Of course, you do! So here we have two of the most interesting literary terms you’ll read about today. Make miranym and Moses illusion an active part of your writer toolbox.
Miranyms
One of the most obscure literary devices on the market today is the miranym. In fact, trying to figure out a definition is just as difficult. According to some obscure site called Quizlet, a miranym is, “Between hot and cold, the miranym would be room temperature.”
A miranym is any word that falls in between the polar opposites. It is the equator of literary terms. A cool example of a miranym in action, as noted by Thought Co. is translucent, which is a miranym of opaque and transparent.
Moses Illusion
This concept is a lot more, dare I say, transparent, than the use of miranym. In a Moses illusion you find yourself saying the wrong word when you and everyone know the actual word. How many days until Santa Claus brings you your Easter present? If you start counting to December 25th, then you have fallen for the Moses illusion.
In 1981 researchers actually studied this actual fact. Thomas D. Erickson and Mark E. Mattson went on pursuit of the “tendency to overlook distortions in statements,” which is defined as a Moses illusion. The original Moses illusion is as follows: “How many animals of each kind did Moses take on the Ark?” When you say, “two,” this is the Moses illusion at play. You know it’s Noah. Moses wouldn’t have needed the ark when he could have just parted the waters for 40 days and nights.
Spin your verbiage on its top today with more cool writing tips from the Grammar & Wordsmithing blog.
“Welcome. I’m the Whispering Wordsmith of the Woods, An Old Man Willow type cunning the lit forest, Disrupting textbookish writers with grammar snaps and cracks.” As a professional web content writer for small-to-medium businesses, Miranda B understands how to effectively balance technical jargon and personal brand messaging. Her content is sticky, evergreen when expected to be, and always creative. Keep ’em coming back for more, that’s Miranda’s motto.
