Merism (Latin: merismus, Ancient Greek: μερισμός, romanized: merismós) is a rhetorical device (or figure of speech) in which a combination of two contrasting parts of the whole refer to the whole.: 10
For example, in order to say that someone "searched everywhere", one could use the merism "searched high and low". Another example is the sword-and-sandal movie genre, a loose term for a genre of movies made principally in Italy in the 1950s and 1960s set in classical antiquity.
Merisms are common in the Old Testament. For example, in Genesis 1:1, when God creates את השמים ואת הארץ (Modern pronunciation: et hashamaim ve-et haarets) "the heavens and the earth" (New Revised Standard Version), the two parts (heavens and earth) do not refer only to the heavens and the earth. Rather, they refer to the heavens, the earth and everything between them: God created the entire world, the whole universe.: 10 Other famous examples of Biblical merisms are Genesis 1:5 in which "evening" and "morning" refer to "one day" (including noon, afternoon etc.) and Psalm 139 in which the psalmist declares that God knows "my downsitting and my uprising": God knows all of the psalmist's actions.: 10
Etymology
The term entered English in 1894 in the biological sense but had appeared earlier in rhetorical contexts in which it denoted "'synecdoche in which totality is expressed by contrasting parts' (such as high and low, young and old)". It derives from Modern Latin merismus, from Greek μερισμός merismos 'a dividing or partitioning', ultimately from merizein 'to divide', from meros 'part, share'.
Biological usage
In biology, a merism is a repetition of similar parts in the structure of an organism (Bateson 1894). Such features are called meristic characters, and the study of such characters is called meristics. An example is in flowers in considering the number of parts in each whorl of organs from which they are constructed.: 30, 31
Legal usage
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This section possibly contains original research. (July 2020) |
Merisms frequently figure in the writing of lawyers and are a hallmark of legal style. The two parts of the legal merism "Last Will and Testament" at one time referred to two documents, which were enforced in two separate courts. The will disposed of a decedent's real property, and the testament disposed of chattels. It became customary to combine the instruments in a single dispositive document, and the name has continued long after the doctrines that had required its use became obsolete in common law.
A lawyer who writes a will typically includes a residuary clause that disposes of any property not covered by a prior section. The weight of tradition is such that the lawyer writing such a document will often phrase it something like this:
I bequeath, convey, and devise the rest, residue, and remainder of my property, whether real or personal, and wheresoever it may be situated, to...
Traditionally, a gift of real property was called a "devise", and a gift of other property was a "bequest". Nowadays, the words "bequeath" and "devise" are synonymous in most jurisdictions and so "I bequeath the rest of my property to..." is enough in both law and logic to achieve the same result. Many deeds frequently contain a traditional clause that says that the grantee is "to have and to hold" the property conveyed. That usage goes back to the days in which the instruments were drawn up in Latin, and is sometimes called a "habendam et tenendam" clause. The use of legal merisms seldom, if ever, adds legal effect to the documents that contain them, but it frequently increases their reading difficulty. However, the weight of tradition and the fear of a deviation from the established formula having unintended legal consequences make lawyers reluctant to revise the traditional formulae, and their clients, seeing them, at least draw the satisfaction of knowing that their documents appear to be written by a lawyer.
In some cases, the doubling (or even tripling) of constituent parts in the meristic constructions arose as a result of the transition of legal discourse from Latin to French and then from French to English. During such periods, key terms were paired with synonyms from multiple languages in an attempt to prevent ambiguity and ensure hermeneutic consistency.: 164–65
See also
- Synecdoche, referring to a whole by the name of one of its parts (or vice versa):
- Pars pro toto, where the part is used to refer to the whole.
- Totum pro parte, where the whole is used to refer to a part.
- Lock, stock, and barrel
- Dvandva
- Hendiadys – Conjunction for emphasis
References
- Zuckermann, Ghil'ad (2020). Revivalistics: From the Genesis of Israeli to Language Reclamation in Australia and Beyond. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199812790. ISBN 9780199812776
- Bruce K Waltke (2007). A commentary on Micah. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. pp. 456–. ISBN 978-0-8028-4933-5. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
- Adele Berlin; Marc Zvi Brettler; Michael A. Fishbane; Jewish Publication Society (2004). The Jewish Study Bible. Oxford University Press. p. 2134. ISBN 978-0-19-529751-5. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
- Harper, Douglas. "Online Etymology Dictionary". Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- "Online Dictionary of Language Terminology". Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- Louis P. Ronse De Craene (4 February 2010). Floral Diagrams: An Aid to Understanding Flower Morphology and Evolution. Cambridge University Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-1-139-48455-8.
- Espenschied, Lenné Eidson (2010). Contract Drafting: Powerful Prose in Transactional Practice. American Bar Association.
Further reading
- William Bateson, Materials For The Study Of Variation: Treated With Especial Regard To Discontinuity In The Origin Of Species (Macmillan and Co., 1894)
- Bryan A. Garner, The Elements of Legal Style. (Oxford, 2001. ISBN 0-19-514162-8)
- Calvert Watkins, How to Kill a Dragon: Aspects of Indo-European Poetics (Oxford, 2001. ISBN 0-19-514413-9)
Merism Latin merismus Ancient Greek merismos romanized merismos is a rhetorical device or figure of speech in which a combination of two contrasting parts of the whole refer to the whole 10 For example in order to say that someone searched everywhere one could use the merism searched high and low Another example is the sword and sandal movie genre a loose term for a genre of movies made principally in Italy in the 1950s and 1960s set in classical antiquity Merisms are common in the Old Testament For example in Genesis 1 1 when God creates את השמים ואת הארץ Modern pronunciation et hashamaim ve et haarets the heavens and the earth New Revised Standard Version the two parts heavens and earth do not refer only to the heavens and the earth Rather they refer to the heavens the earth and everything between them God created the entire world the whole universe 10 Other famous examples of Biblical merisms are Genesis 1 5 in which evening and morning refer to one day including noon afternoon etc and Psalm 139 in which the psalmist declares that God knows my downsitting and my uprising God knows all of the psalmist s actions 10 EtymologyThe term entered English in 1894 in the biological sense but had appeared earlier in rhetorical contexts in which it denoted synecdoche in which totality is expressed by contrasting parts such as high and low young and old It derives from Modern Latin merismus from Greek merismos merismos a dividing or partitioning ultimately from merizein to divide from meros part share Biological usageIn biology a merism is a repetition of similar parts in the structure of an organism Bateson 1894 Such features are called meristic characters and the study of such characters is called meristics An example is in flowers in considering the number of parts in each whorl of organs from which they are constructed 30 31 Legal usageThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed July 2020 Learn how and when to remove this message This section possibly contains original research Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations Statements consisting only of original research should be removed July 2020 Learn how and when to remove this message Merisms frequently figure in the writing of lawyers and are a hallmark of legal style The two parts of the legal merism Last Will and Testament at one time referred to two documents which were enforced in two separate courts The will disposed of a decedent s real property and the testament disposed of chattels It became customary to combine the instruments in a single dispositive document and the name has continued long after the doctrines that had required its use became obsolete in common law A lawyer who writes a will typically includes a residuary clause that disposes of any property not covered by a prior section The weight of tradition is such that the lawyer writing such a document will often phrase it something like this I bequeath convey and devise the rest residue and remainder of my property whether real or personal and wheresoever it may be situated to Traditionally a gift of real property was called a devise and a gift of other property was a bequest Nowadays the words bequeath and devise are synonymous in most jurisdictions and so I bequeath the rest of my property to is enough in both law and logic to achieve the same result Many deeds frequently contain a traditional clause that says that the grantee is to have and to hold the property conveyed That usage goes back to the days in which the instruments were drawn up in Latin and is sometimes called a habendam et tenendam clause The use of legal merisms seldom if ever adds legal effect to the documents that contain them but it frequently increases their reading difficulty However the weight of tradition and the fear of a deviation from the established formula having unintended legal consequences make lawyers reluctant to revise the traditional formulae and their clients seeing them at least draw the satisfaction of knowing that their documents appear to be written by a lawyer In some cases the doubling or even tripling of constituent parts in the meristic constructions arose as a result of the transition of legal discourse from Latin to French and then from French to English During such periods key terms were paired with synonyms from multiple languages in an attempt to prevent ambiguity and ensure hermeneutic consistency 164 65 See alsoLook up merism in Wiktionary the free dictionary Synecdoche referring to a whole by the name of one of its parts or vice versa Pars pro toto where the part is used to refer to the whole Totum pro parte where the whole is used to refer to a part Lock stock and barrel Dvandva Hendiadys Conjunction for emphasisReferencesZuckermann Ghil ad 2020 Revivalistics From the Genesis of Israeli to Language Reclamation in Australia and Beyond New York Oxford University Press ISBN 9780199812790 ISBN 9780199812776 Bruce K Waltke 2007 A commentary on Micah Wm B Eerdmans Publishing pp 456 ISBN 978 0 8028 4933 5 Retrieved 19 May 2013 Adele Berlin Marc Zvi Brettler Michael A Fishbane Jewish Publication Society 2004 The Jewish Study Bible Oxford University Press p 2134 ISBN 978 0 19 529751 5 Retrieved 25 September 2013 Harper Douglas Online Etymology Dictionary Retrieved 25 September 2015 Online Dictionary of Language Terminology Retrieved 25 September 2015 Louis P Ronse De Craene 4 February 2010 Floral Diagrams An Aid to Understanding Flower Morphology and Evolution Cambridge University Press p 23 ISBN 978 1 139 48455 8 Espenschied Lenne Eidson 2010 Contract Drafting Powerful Prose in Transactional Practice American Bar Association Further readingWilliam Bateson Materials For The Study Of Variation Treated With Especial Regard To Discontinuity In The Origin Of Species Macmillan and Co 1894 Bryan A Garner The Elements of Legal Style Oxford 2001 ISBN 0 19 514162 8 Calvert Watkins How to Kill a Dragon Aspects of Indo European Poetics Oxford 2001 ISBN 0 19 514413 9
