Inopinatum (in-o-pi-na’-tum): The expression of one’s inability to believe or conceive of something; a type of faux wondering. As such, this kind of paradox is much like aporia and functions much like a rhetorical question or erotema. [A paradox is] a statement that is self-contradictory on the surface, yet seems to evoke a truth nonetheless.
I can’t imagine what the world would be like without the internet–if John Lennon were still alive I bet he could write a song about it–
“Imagine there’s no email, push notifications, tweets, or chats:
No emoticons or Facebooks, no stupid threaded gmail spats.
Imagine all the people living face-to-face:
Smelling and touching each other, dancing, and hugging and actually being some place.
I know I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one:
If we shut down the internet the world would be more fun.”
- Post your own inopinatum on the “Comments” page!
Definition courtesy of “Silva Rhetoricae” (rhetoric.byu.edu). Bracketed text added by Gorgias.
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Posted in inopinatum
Tagged aporia, elocutio, emoticons, erotema, example, Facebook, figures of speech, imagine, inopinatum, John Lennon, paradox, philosophy, rhetoric, rhetorical question, technology
