chandlerism means A passage of writing or dialogue that uses vivid and lyrical metaphors or similes, characteristic of the work of writer Raymond Chandler. It carries an Arena rating of 1507, earned across 61 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, chandlerism ranks #323 of 17,151 for The Improbable, #3,576 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words, #4,079 of 17,163 for Funniest Words, #4,417 of 17,149 for Most Exacting Words.
Why “chandlerism” is a great word
CHANDLERISM — [Noun] A passage of writing or dialogue that employs a hard-boiled, lyrical, and often cynical metaphor or simile, characteristic of the work of Raymond Chandler. From the surname Chandler (Raymond Chandler) + the suffix -ism, denoting a distinctive style or doctrine. Unlike "purple prose," which is overly ornate and sentimental, or "naturalism," which strives for detached scientific observation, chandlerism is a deliberate stylistic intrusion that finds brutal poetry in the urban gutter. It is the rain falling like a beaten dog on an office window, a blonde to make a bishop kick a hole in a stained-glass window, or a voice like ice cubes dropped in a sink—a transient gleam of unlikely beauty cast across a world of perpetual corrosion.
Etymology
From Chandler + -ism, after writer Raymond Chandler.
noun
- A passage of writing or dialogue that uses vivid and lyrical metaphors or similes, characteristic of the work of writer Raymond Chandler.e.g.“As Rigby Reardon, Steve Martin easily mimics the patented Hollywood tough guy of the period, dangling a cigarette from one side of his mouth while distorting a Chandlerism from the other.” — 1982, The Review of the news, volume 18:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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