LessonsSupplementary Practice 20: Comparative Rhetorical Study of Sūrat al-Humazah and al-FīlQuiz

يَحْسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُ أَخْلَدَهُ
He supposes his wealth has made him last forever. (الهمزة: 3)

أَلَمْ يَجْعَلْ كَيْدَهُمْ فِي تَضْلِيلٍ
Did He not bring their plot to failure? (الفيل: 2)

Al-Humazah portrays misplaced confidence in wealth, whereas al-Fīl recalls a group whose plan failed. Both expose false security, but the first uses an explicit kallā while the second makes the audience acknowledge the failure through a rhetorical alam yajʿal.

This comparison shows how related meanings can employ different discourse devices. The responsible analyst asks how the particular audience is addressed and how the result is brought into focus, rather than forcing the same device onto every passage.

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Comparing false security and defeated plotting

Supplementary Practice 20: Comparative Rhetorical Study of Sūrat al-Humazah and al-Fīl

يَحْسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُ أَخْلَدَهُ
He supposes his wealth has made him last forever. (الهمزة: 3)

أَلَمْ يَجْعَلْ كَيْدَهُمْ فِي تَضْلِيلٍ
Did He not bring their plot to failure? (الفيل: 2)

Al-Humazah portrays misplaced confidence in wealth, whereas al-Fīl recalls a group whose plan failed. Both expose false security, but the first uses an explicit kallā while the second makes the audience acknowledge the failure through a rhetorical alam yajʿal.

This comparison shows how related meanings can employ different discourse devices. The responsible analyst asks how the particular audience is addressed and how the result is brought into focus, rather than forcing the same device onto every passage.