| E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898. |
| | | Bathos [Greek, bathos, depth]. | | |
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A ludicrous descent from grandiloquence to commonplace. A literary mermaid. | 1 |
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| “Humano capiti cervicem pictor equinam |
| Jungere si yelit … ut turpiter atrum |
| Desinat in piscem mulier formosa superne.” |
| “Parturiunt montes, nascetur ridiculus mus.” | |
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Horace: De Arte Poetica, line 139. |
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A good example is the well-known couplet: | 2 |
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| “And thou, Dalhousie, the great god of war, |
| Lieutenant-general to the earl of Mar.” | |
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