Definition

Noun: 1. Fine writing in praise of trivial or base subjects: The art or skill of writing eloquently or in a learned manner about something that is unimportant, foolish, or considered unworthy of praise. It involves using sophisticated rhetoric to treat a trivial subject as if it were grand or serious.

Examples of Usage

• The satirist's essay on the merits of dirty dishes was a brilliant piece of adoxography.
• His speech, which lavishly praised the common paperclip, was an unexpected exercise in adoxography.
• The class assignment in adoxography required students to write a sonnet celebrating dust.

Advanced Usage

• As a rhetorical exercise: Historically, adoxography was practiced as a training tool in rhetoric, teaching students to argue any position with skill, regardless of its inherent merit. This is why it is considered "particularly useful to lawyers," who must often construct compelling arguments for difficult or unpopular positions.
• As a form of satire or humor: Modern adoxography is often used for comic or satirical effect, highlighting the absurdity of a subject by treating it with excessive solemnity and elaborate praise.

Variants and Related Words

• Adoxographer (noun): A person who practices or is skilled in adoxography.
  • The poet was a master adoxographer, finding beauty in the most mundane objects.
• Adoxographic (adjective): Relating to or characteristic of adoxography.
  • The article's adoxographic style made a parking ticket seem like a tragic epic.

Synonyms

• Mock-encomium: A satirical speech or piece of writing that praises a subject, often to ridicule it.
• Ironic praise: Praise that is intended to mean the opposite, often to be humorous or critical.

Related Concepts

• Encomium: A speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly. Adoxography is essentially an encomium applied to an unworthy subject.
• Paradox: A seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement. Adoxography creates a paradox by combining elevated language with a low subject.

Noun

1. fine writing in praise of trivial or base subjects
   • Elizabethan schoolboys were taught adoxography, the art of eruditely praising worthless things
   • adoxography is particularly useful to lawyers