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AP English Language-Rhetorical Strategies/Stylistic Devices
Vocabulary Needed To Be Memorized By The First Day Of School
103
English
11th Grade
06/10/2010

Additional English Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term

The word choices made by a writer (can be described as: formal, semi-formal, ornate, informal, technical, etc.).

Definition

Diction

Term

Language employing one or more figures of speech (simile, metaphor, imagery, etc.). 

Definition

Figurative Language

Term

The art of presenting ideas in a clear, effective, and persuasive manner.

Definition

Rhetoric

Term

Literary techniques used to heighten the effectiveness of expression.

Definition

Rhetorical Devices

Term

Format or structure followed by a writer such as comparison/contrast or process analysis.

Definition

Rhetorical pattern

Term

The arrangement or framework of a sentence, paragraph, or entire work.

Definition

Structure

Term

The choices a writer makes; The combination of distinctive features of a literary work (when analyzing style, one may consider diction, figurative language, sentence structure, etc.).

Definition

Style

Term

The manner in which words are arranged into sentences.

Definition

Syntax

Term

A central idea of a work.

Definition

Theme

Term

The primary position taken by a writer or speaker.

Definition

Thesis

Term

The attitude of a writer, usually implied, toward the subject or audience.

Definition

Tone

Term

A word free from limitations or qualifications ("best", "all", "unique", "perfect").

Definition

Absolute

Term

An argument attacking an individual's character rather than his or her position on an issue.

Definition

Ad Hominem Argument

Term

A literary work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions.

Definition

Allegory

Term

A reference to something literary, mythological, or historical that the author assumes the reader will recognize.

Definition

Allusion

Term

A comparison of two different things that are similar in some way.

Definition

Analogy

Term

Repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginning of successive clauses (Richard D. Bury: "In books I find the dead as if they were alive; in books I foresee things to come; in books warlike affairs are set forth; from books come forth the laws of peace."). 

Definition

Anaphora

Term

A brief narrative that focuses on a particular incident or event.

Definition

Anecdote

Term

A figure of reasoning in which one asks and then immediately answers one's own rhetorical questions (or raises and then settles imaginary objections). Reasoning aloud.

Definition

Anthypophora

Term

A statement in which two opposing ideas are balanced.

Definition

Antithesis

Term

A concise statement that expresses succinctly a general truth or idea, often using rhyme or balance. 

Definition

Aphorism

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by reason or logic, and asserts a position, belief, or conclusion.

Definition

Argumentation

Term

Repetition of similar vowel sounds, preceded and followed by different consonants, in the stressed sylables of adjacent words. Ex: The sergeant asked him to bomb the lawn with hotpots.

Definition

Assonance

Term

A construction in which elements are presented in a series without conjunctions ("They spent the day wondering, searching, thinking, understanding.")

Definition

Asyndeton

Term

A sentence in which words, phrases, or clauses are set off against each other to emphasize a contrast (George Orwell: "If thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.").

Definition

Balanced Sentence

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by its analysis of why something happens, in contrast to "process", which describes how something happens. Often links situations and events in time, which causes preceding events. Ex: the cause of a war and its effects on a national economy.

Definition

Cause/Effect

Term

A statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed ("Susan walked in, and out rushed Mary.").

Definition

Chiasmus

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by division, which is the process of breaking a whole into parts, and classification, which is the often subsequent process of sorting individual items into categories.

Definition

Classification/Division

Term

Generally, the arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an order of increasing importance, often in parallel structure ("The concerto was applauded at the house of Baron von Schnooty, it was praised highly at court, it was voted best concerto of the year by the academy, it was considered by Mozart the highlight of his career, and it has become known today as the best concerto in the world.").

Definition

Climax

Term

Informal words or expressions not usually acceptable in formal writing.

Definition

Colloquialism

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by, in its narrowest sense, how two or more things are similar (compare) and/or how two or more things are different (contrast).

Definition

Comparison/Contrast

Term

A sentence with one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.

Definition

Complex Sentence

Term

A sentence with two or more principal clauses and one or more subordinate clauses.

Definition

Compound Sentence

Term

A sentence with two or more principal clauses and one or more subordinate clauses.

Definition

Compound-Complex Sentence

Term

A fanciful, particularly clever extended metaphor (Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 and John Donne's "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" are examples).

Definition

Conceit

Term

Details that relate to or describe actual, specific things or events.

Definition

Concrete Details

Term

The implied or associative meaning of a word (slender vs. skinny; cheap vs. thrifty).

Definition

Connotation

Term

A sentence in which the main independent clause is elaborated by the successive addition of modifying clauses or phrases (Jonathan Swift, A Modest Proposal: "I have been assured by a very knowing American friend of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee or a ragout.").

Definition

Cumulative Sentence (Loose Sentence)

Term

A sentence that makes a statement or declaration.

Definition

Declarative Sentence

Term

Reasoning in which a conclusion is reached by stating a general principle and then applying the principle to a specific case (The sun rises every morning; therefore, the sun will rise on Tuesday morning.).

Definition

Deductive Reasoning

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which strives to inform the audience of what a term means and how it is different from other terms in its class.

Definition

Definition

Term

The literal meaning of a word.

Definition

Denotation

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by physical descriptions of a person, place or thing. It is a pattern that relies on the five sense to inform it.

Definition

Description

Term

A variety of speech characterized by its own particular grammar or pronunciation, often associated with a particular geographical region ("Y'all" = Southern dialect).

Definition

Dialect

Term

Having the primary purpose of teaching or instructing.

Definition

Didactic Statement

Term

Harsh, inharmonious, or discordant sounds.

Definition

Dissonance

Term

The omission of a or phrase which is grammatically necessary but can be deduced from the context ("Some people prefer cats; others, dogs.").

Definition

Ellipsis

Term

A brief, pithy, and often paradoxical saying.

Definition

Epigram

Term

A saying or statement on the title page of a work, or used as a heading of a chapter or other section of a work.

Definition

Epigraph

Term

The persuasive appeal of one's character or credibility.

Definition

Ethos

Term

An indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant.

Definition

Euphemism

Term

A sentence expressing strong feeling, usually punctuated with an exclamation mark.

Definition

Exclamatory Sentence

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by using one or more particular cases, or examples, to illustrate or explain a general point or an abstract concept.

Definition

Exemplification

Term

Intentional exaggeration to create an effect.

Definition

Hyperbole

Term

An expression in a given language that can not be understood from the literal meaning of the words in the expression; or, a regional speech or dialect ("fly on the wall", "cult to the chase", etc.).

Definition

Idiom

Term

The use of figures of speech to create vivid images that appeal to one of the senses.

Definition

Imagery

Term

A sentence that gives command.

Definition

Imperative Sentence

Term

A suggestion an author makes (implies) without stating it directly. NOTE: The author/speaker implies; the reader/audience infers.

Definition

Implication

Term

Deriving general principles from particular facts or instances ("Every cat I have ever seen has four legs; cats are four-legged animals.").

Definition

Inductive Reasoning

Term

A conclusion on draws (infers) based on premises or evidence.

Definition

Inference

Term

A sentence that asks a question.

Definition

Interrogative Sentence

Term

An intensely vehement, highly emotional verbal attack.

Definition

Invective

Term

A sentence constructed so that the predicate comes before the subject (Ex: In the woods I am walking).

Definition

Inverted Syntax

Term

The use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning; or, incongruity between what is expected and what actually occurs (situational, verbal, dramatic).

Definition

Irony

Term

The specialized language or vocabulary of a particular group or profession.

Definition
Jargon
Term

Placing two elements side by side to present a comparison or contrast.

Definition

Juxtaposition

Term

A type of understatement in which an idea is expressed by negating its opposite (describing a particularly horrific scene by saying, "It was not a pretty picture.")

Definition

Litotes

Term

Appeal to reason or logic.

Definition

Logos

Term

The mistaken substitution of one word for another word that sounds similar ("The doctor wrote a subscription.").

Definition

Malapropism

Term

A concise statement, often offering advice; an adage.

Definition

Maxim

Term

A direct comparison of two different things.

Definition

Metaphor

Term

Substituting the name of one object for another object closely associated with it ("The pen [writing] is mightier than the sword [war/fighting].").

Definition

Metonymy

Term

The emotional atmosphere of the work.

Definition

Mood

Term

A standard theme, element, or dramatic situation that recurs in various works.

Definition

Motif

Term

A dominant pattern of writing or speaking which strives to tell a story by presenting events in an orderly, logical sequence. Conventionally utilizes the first or third person perspective.

Definition

Narration

Term

An inference that does not follow logically from the premises (literally, "does not follow").

Definition

Non Sequitur

Term

An apparently contradictory statement that actually contains some truth ("Whoever loses his life, shall find it.").

Definition

Paradox

Term

The use of corresponding grammatical or syntactical forms.

Definition

Parralelism

Term

A humorous imitation of a serious work (Wierd Al Yankovich's songs, and the Scary Movie series are examples).

Definition

Parody

Term

A comment that interrupts the immediate subject, often to quality or explain.

Definition

Parenthetical Comment

Term

The quality in a work that prompts the reader to feel pity.

Definition

Pathos

Term

Often used to describe a writing style, characterized by excessive display of learning or scholarship, characterized by being narrowly, stodgily, and often ostentatiously learned.

Definition

Pedantic

Term

Endowing non-human objects or creatures with human qualities or characteristics.

Definition

Personification

Term

A strong verbal denunciation. The term comes from the orations of Demosthenes against Philip of Macedonia in the fourth century.

Definition

Philippic

Term

The use, for rhetorical effect, of more conjunctions than is necessary or natural (John Henry Newman: "And to set forth the right standard, and to train according to it, and to help forward all students towards it according to their various capacities, this I conceive to be the business of a University.").

Definition

Polysyndeton

Term

A pattern of writing or speaking which is characterized by it's explanation of how to do something or how something occurs. It presents a sequence of steps and shows how those steps lead to a particular result (Can be seen often in recipes or directional manuals, a discussion of steps).

Definition

Process (a.k.a. Process Analysis)

Term

A question asked merely for rhetorical effect and not requiring an answer.

Definition

Rhetorical Question

Term

Harsh, cutting language or tone intended to ridicule.

Definition

Sarcasm

Term

The use of humor to emphasize human weaknesses or imperfections in social institutions (Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, The Simpsons, etc.).

Definition

Satire

Term

An artful deviation from the ordinary arrangement of words (anaphora, anastrophe, antithesis are some examples of themes).

Definition

Scheme

Term

Having, containing, or producing the sound of or a sound resembling that of the s or the sh in sash. "And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain."

Definition

Sibilance

Term

A comparison of two things using "like", "as", or other specifically comparative words.

Definition

Simile

Term

A sentence consisting of one independent clause and no dependent clause.

Definition

Simple Sentence

Term

Nonstandard grammatical usage; a violation of grammatical rules (Ex: unflammable; they was).

Definition

Solecism

Term

A technique characterized by the continuous unedited flow of conscious experience through the mind recorded on paper. Often used in "interior monologue," when the reader is privy to a character or narrator's thoughts.

Definition

Stream of Conciousness

Term

A construction in which one word is used in two different senses ("After he threw the ball, he threw a fit.").

Definition

Syllepsis

Term

A three-part deductive argument in which a conclusion is based on a major premise and a minor premise ("All men are mortal; Socrates is a man; therefore, Socrates is mortal.").

Definition

Syllogism

Term

Using one part of an object to represent the entire object (for example, referring to a car simply as "wheels").

Definition

Synecdoche

Term

Describing one kind of sensation in terms of another ("a loud color" or "a sweet sound"). 

Definition

Synesthesia

Term

Needless repetition which adds no meaning or understanding ("Widow woman", "free gift").

Definition

Tautology

Term

An artful deviation from the ordinary or principal signification of a word (hyperbole, metaphor, and personification are some examples of tropes).

Definition

Trope

Term

The deliberate representation of something as lesser in magnitude than it.

Definition

Understatement

Term

The everyday speech of a particular country or region, often involving nonstandard usage.

Definition

Vernacular

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