as the turning point or climax or highlight of the piece (e.g., a-b-c-d-c′-b′-a′). Thus in the symmetrically arranged Book of Amos the central unit (Amos 5:1–17) features Amos’s call to repentance; in the Song of Songs the center (Song 3:6–5:1) serves as the book’s climax, celebrating the lovers’ wedding; and in Ruth the center (chap. 2) represents the story’s turning point—the meeting of Ruth and Boaz. Therefore, if a composition is found to have a symmetric configuration, the central unit’s key
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