AP Lang Rhetorical and Literary Terms Part 2 Flashcards
Casual relationship
A writer asserts that one thing results from another
Common knowledge
Knowledge or beliefs shared by an author and a given audience which do not need backing to be accepted as true
Concrete language
Language that describes specific, observable things, people, or places rather than ideas or qualities
Connotation
Meaning that is implied rather than literal
Consonance
Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity
Conventional
Following certain traditional techniques of writing
Cumulative
A sentence that presents an idea and expands on that idea with a series of details
Deconstruction
A critical approach that debunks single definitions of meaning based on the instability of language (caused by multiple imprecise definitions)
Diction
Word choice as an element of style
Didactic
Fiction or nonfiction that teaches a specific moral lesson
Dramatic irony
When the reader is aware of an inconsistency between a perception and reality. It is NOT simply an opposite
Either/Or Reasoning
A logical fallacy where the author reduces an argument to two polar opposite positions and ignores any other alternatives
Elliptical
Sentence structure that leaves out something in the second half. Clauses can also be elliptical
Emotional appeal (also called pathos)
Writers use language to purposefully shape the emotional response of the reader
Epigraph
A quotation it aphorism at the beginning of a work suggestive of its theme
Equivocation
Words used specifically to create ambiguity, usually by using the same word in two different senses in an argument. This ambiguity is generally used to manipulate a target audience.
