
Bathos
Unexpected Shift
Bathos is often intentional, creating an abrupt shift from serious to silly to stimulate humor or irony.

The noble speech had bathos when it ended with a joke about chickens.
Literary Device
Authors may use bathos to critique or mock high-minded writing or ideas by contrasting them with the trivial.

His poetic verse fell into bathos with the mention of his lost socks.
Avoid Unintentional
Bathos can be a literary pitfall; avoid unintentional shifts that may undermine serious content.

Her sentimental novel unintentionally reached bathos with its clichéd happy ending.
Compare with
AnticlimaxBanalityDisappointIncongruityRidiculousTrivialityUnderstate
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