Sentence:  As Bakhtin points out, the "classical Christian dialogic syncrises" (dyads) of the tempted and the tempter, the believer and the nonbeliever, the righteous and the sinner, the beggar and the rich man, etc., as well as the "corresponding <WSD>anacrises</WSD>" ("provocations through discourse or plot situation") are familiar to literature developed "within the orbit of menippea." 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A dialog or plot event that causes a character to reveal his or her beliefs and motivations.