Here's another piece of gold from our friends at OpenAI: the contrast.

What's that, you ask? It's a fancy way of describing those annoying little rhetorical crutches—“It’s not about X. It’s about Y."

Chances are, you've seen it a bajillion times since AI has sauntered into our lives, like the Joker into the museum in Batman (1989).

Yet, like the curious case of the dashes, no one's really given a thought about contrasting statements. That is, until now.

What are contrasts anyway?

A contrast places two ideas side by side to highlight their differences. For example:

It's not about owning a Birkin. It’s about the status.

In that one line, your attention moves from the bag itself to what it actually represents. That's the beauty of contrasts. Its main purpose is to serve as a mental shortcut.

Instead of making you work hard to understand a new idea from scratch, you're given something you already know (X) and told to look the other way (Y).

It’s the "Negative Space" of writing. Just as an artist uses shadows to show you where the light is hitting, you should use what your idea isn’t to solidify exactly what it is.

The thing is, our brains are actually lazy. According to literary pro Paul Armstrong, we actually navigate the "chaos" of information by looking for binaries, like harmony vs. dissonance. And what research shows is that when contrasts are used well, they can help you understand and remember ideas more effectively.

Apparently, there's more than one type

Thanks to ChatGPT and all the other LLMs that followed, it's likely you've seen one type scattered all over the place. But there are others.

Here's a rundown:

• Simple contrast shows a straightforward, factual difference between two things. Example: A canvas tote bag costs $20; a Birkin costs $20,000.

• Corrective contrast fixes a mistake or a common misunderstanding by saying "not this, but that." Example: It’s not about the leather. It’s about the status.

• Reframing contrast shifts the reader’s perspective to see the same thing in a much deeper way. Example: It’s not a retail purchase. It’s a financial asset.

• Concessive contrast balances two opposing facts by acknowledging a "downside" alongside a "benefit." Example: The bag is wildly expensive, yet it holds its value better than gold.

• Antithetical contrast pairs strong opposites in a perfectly balanced sentence to create drama. Example: It is the most famous bag in the world, and the hardest one to find.

You see, the best contrasts aren’t just clever lines. They help you see things in a new way.

What's so wrong with using antitheses?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing is wrong with using them. But be careful; if you use them too much, your writing starts to feel and sound a little too...fake.

You don't have to go far to see how contrasting statements are being used far more now than they were before. Just take a look at the posts on your LinkedIn feed. Contrasts galore.

And how do you feel when you read them? Tell me if any of these feel true:

• Reading gets exhausting. After the tenth "Not X, but Y," your brain stops processing the content and starts to wonder, "When is this over?"

• You finish the post and realize you didn't actually learn anything. Now you have to go back and read it again.

• You know good and well that no one talks in contrasts all the time, so when it's all over the place, it starts to feel less like a person's thoughts and more like the content's been ChatGPT-ed.

You see, contrasts can help pack a punch in your writing. But when you overdo it, it's kind of like Rosmah having too many Birkins. After a while, it just becomes clutter.

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This article was written with a little help from AI.