It is a figure of speech by which the order of words in one of two of parallel clauses is inverted in the other.
There is another one called antimetabole. It is pronounced as AN-tie-muh-TAB-oh-lee. It is a figure in which the same words or ideas are repeated in inverse order.
One good example is: "All for one, and one for all".
The other day I came across a great book with chiasmus. It is called "Never Let a Fool Kiss You or a Kiss Fool You".
I am sure you will enjoy this collection of my all-time favorite 11 chiasmus quotes and antimetabole.
"Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind." - John F. Kennedy
mankind, war
"We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future" - Franklin D. Roosevelt
future, youth
"You don't write because you want to say something; you write because you've got something to say." - F. Scott Fitzgerald
write, say
"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." - Benjamin Franklin
failure
"You have to put your heart in the business and the business in your heart." - Thomas J. Watson, Sr.
heart, business
"Politics is war carried out without bloodshed, while war is politics carried out with bloodshed." - Mao Zedong
politics, war
"Pleasure's a sin, and sometimes sin's a pleasure’" - Byron
pleasure, sin
"It is the dull man who is always sure, and the sure man who is always dull." - H. L. Mencken
dull, sure
"The superior man is easy to serve, but difficult to please ... The inferior man is difficult to serve, but easy to please." - Confucius
man, please, serve
"If you cannot have what you believe in you must believe in what you have." - George Bernard Shaw
believe
"If your religion does not change you, then you should change your religion." - Elbert Hubbard
religion, change
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