Hoagland's Antithesis

The figure of speech known as Antithesis is one of the most commonly found in political discourse. The figure entails juxtaposing contrasting ideas or words, often in a parallel structure. Jim Hoagland provides an effective example in his recent WAPO article entitled "Shunning Sinn Fein".

Criticizing Clinton for extending his embrace too soon and too warmly to Adams or Arafat, or Bush for withholding his, misses that point. Fate has given Bush a chance to push the peace process forward in the Middle East, and cause to pull it back in Northern Ireland. Leadership is about making distinctions in hard cases. Even politicians from heavily Irish communities have been doing that this St. Patrick's Day. They must not relapse once the spotlight leaves them or the IRA.

Several things are contrasted here: Clinton and Bush, extending and withholding, push and pull, forward and back, the Middle East and Northern Ireland, Adams and Arafat. What makes this a particularly effective use of Antithesis is how these contrasts are used to underscore the undeniable fact asserted in the next sentence- that "leadership is about making distinctions in hard cases." Thus, we don't have contrast or antithesis just for its own sake. Instead, we see the figure of speech used in the supporting role and the logic, the propositional content of speech, in the leading role. Just as it should be.