1 objective correlative | Definition of objective correlative
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objective correlative

noun

Definition of objective correlative

: something (such as a situation or chain of events) that symbolizes or objectifies a particular emotion and that may be used in creative writing to evoke a desired emotional response in the reader

Examples of objective correlative in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

 Saturday’s march is the objective correlative of that. — David Zurawik, baltimoresun.com, "Expect wall-to-wall coverage of March for Our Lives, Stoneman Douglas student protesters," 23 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'objective correlative.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of objective correlative

1919, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for objective correlative

Note: As a literary term introduced by T. S eliot in the essay "Hamlet and His Problems," The Athenaeum, no. 4665, September 26, 1919, p. 941. In a more general philosophical sense the phrase was used by Washington allston in a posthumously published "Lecture on Art" (Lectures on Art, and Poems, New York, 1850, p. 16).

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More from Merriam-Webster on objective correlative

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about objective correlative

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