Welcome! I’m participating in the #BlogchatterA2Z challenge where I’ll share 26 posts on the theme “The Poet’s Alphabet: 26 Secrets for Crafting Beautiful Poetry”. In each post, I’ll offer bite-sized tips and tricks for crafting and perfectly editing poetry. Today’s tip is:
Juxtapose Unexpected Ideas or Images for Added Impact

Juxtaposition is a literary device that involves placing two contrasting or unexpected things side by side in order to create a dramatic effect or make a point. By bringing together two contrasting ideas, images, or objects, the writer is able to emphasize their differences and create a sense of tension or surprise for the reader.
By pairing unexpected ideas or images together, you can create poems that surprise, delight or at times shock your readers. For example, you could write a poem about love that compares it to a thunderstorm – unexpected, but powerful. Combining two seemingly unrelated ideas or images can create a sense of surprise and wonder in the reader. Another example would be, “The moon was a pale, distant eye watching over the city.”
Juxtaposition can be used in many different ways in poetry, such as contrasting light and dark imagery, pairing together seemingly opposite emotions or ideas, or bringing together unexpected metaphors or similes. This technique can be used to create a variety of effects, from creating a sense of irony or humour to highlighting social or political issues.
Some of my favourite juxtaposed images are as follows:
From Kamala Das’s poem “An Introduction”: “I am sinner, I am saint. I am the beloved and the betrayed.” Here, Kamala Das juxtaposes the ideas of sin and sainthood, as well as love and betrayal, to convey the complexities of her identity.
From Nissim Ezekiel’s poem “Night of the Scorpion”: “May the poison purify your flesh of desire, and your spirit of ambition, they said.” Here, Ezekiel juxtaposes the idea of poison as a purifying agent with the traditional values of spirituality and detachment, highlighting the cultural beliefs and superstitions of the villagers in the poem.
Here are some lines with juxtaposed images which you may try using in your poems:
- The moon wept tears of silver on the battlefield of love.
- The morning sun revealed the broken bones of the city.
- The rose bloomed in the shadow of the thorn.
- The laughter of children echoed through the halls of death.
- The sky was a canvas of fire and ice.
- The ocean waves whispered secrets to the stars.
- The wind carried the scent of jasmine and decay.
- The silence of the night was shattered by the screams of the day.
- The butterfly danced with the shadows of the dead.
- The river flowed with the blood of the earth.
Hope you found this tip useful.
See you with another tip, tomorrow.
This post is a part of the #BlogchatterA2Z 2023 challenge.