> I've never heard someone use the "spiraling upwards" analogy. I believe this is the point. The author did not use the phrase in isolation, he used it alongs

> I've never heard someone use the "spiraling upwards" analogy. I believe this is the point. The author did not use the phrase in isolation, he used it alongside the normal usage. It's like the archaic use of "without" in "attacks came from both within and without". Or describing a difference in ambition as "Alice wanted to run a marathon, but Bob wanted to run to the Moon". ChatGPT identified it as a form of semantic inversion, which I think is basically right: > An interesting aspect of this antithesis is the unconventional use of the phrase "spiraling upwards". While "spiraling downwards" is a common phrase used to signify a situation getting out of control or deteriorating, "spiraling upwards" is less common and might seem contradictory because spiraling is usually associated with descent, not ascent. However, this incongruity serves to enhance the impact of the contrast. This can be seen as a form of semantic inversion – using language in a way that is structurally parallel but semantically opposite or unexpected, to underscore a point. More common forms of semantic inversion are oxymorons, irony, and paradoxical phrases.