Rhetorical Devices: Anagnorisis

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Device: Anagnorisis (pronounced anag-no-ree-sis)

Origin: From the Greek ἀναγνώρισις (anagnorisis), meaning “recognition”.

In plain English: A moment of insight in a play, movie or story when a character – usually the protagonist – makes an important discovery and moves from ignorance to awareness.

Effect:

• Anagnorisis is the “Aha!” moment and usually takes place at a pivotal point in the story.
• It is often a powerful, emotional turning point for the audience.
• The insight drives a change in the story, from negative to positive or vice versa.

Notes:

• Anagnorisis is similar to an epiphany, which is a sudden realization.
• It can occur in the middle of a story or at the end.
• There can be more than one anagnorisis in a story.
• Two or more characters can experience an anagnorisis at the same time.
• Aristotle considered anagnorisis to be critical in Classical Greek tragedies such as Oedipus Rex by Sophocles. In that play, the anagnorisis occurs when Oedipus (the main character) learns that he has unwittingly killed his father and married his mother.
• The character experiencing an anagnorisis might realize something about himself, his situation, or something about another character.
• When telling a personal story, anagnorisis is a powerful technique to make the story – and the point behind the story – memorable for the audience.

Examples (Spoiler alert! Movie plots revealed below.)

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout (Mary Badham) realizes that Boo Radley (Robert Duvall) was good and had protected her.

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In The Princess Bride, Buttercup (Robin Wright Penn) realizes that the person whom she thought was the Dread Pirate Roberts is actually her true love Westley (Cary Elwes).

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In Fight Club, Jack (Ed Norton) realizes that he is the same person as Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt).

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In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) realizes that Professor Snape (Alan Rickman) was good and was protecting him all along.

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In Bohemian Rhapsody, Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek) and Mary Austin (Lucy Boynton) realize that Freddie is gay.