AP Terms Flashcards
1
Q
Ad Hominem
A
An ad hominem (Latin for “to the man” or “to the person”[1]), short for argumentum ad hominem, is a form of criticism directed at something about the person one is criticizing, rather than something (potentially, at least) independent of that person. When used inappropriately, it is a fallacy in which a claim or argument is dismissed on the basis of some irrelevant fact or supposition about the author or the person being criticized.[2] Ad hominem reasoning is not always fallacious, for example, when it relates to the credibility of statements of fact or when used in certain kinds of moral and practical reasoning.[3]
Fallacious Ad hominem reasoning is normally categorized as an informal fallacy,[4][5][6] more precisely as a genetic fallacy,[7] a subcategory of fallacies of irrelevance.[8]
Ad hominem arguments are the converse of appeals to authority, and may be used in response to such appeals, for example, by pointing to the feet of clay of the authority being pointed to.
2
Q
Allegory
A
A sustained metaphor continued through whole sentences or even through a whole discourse.
3
Q
Alliteration
A
Repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of 2 or more neighboring words.
4
Q
Allusion
A
A passing reference, without explicit identification, to a literary or historical person/place/event, or literary work.
5
Q
Ambiguity
A
Intentional or unintentional multiple meaning of a word/phrase/etc (usually bad,but can definitely be used rhetorically sometimes to deceive a reader.)
6
Q
Anachronism
A
A thing belonging to a different time period (esp.something that is conspicuously old fashioned.)
7
Q
Analepsis
A
Flashing back to an earlier point in the story.
8
Q
Prolepsis
A
“flashing forward” to a moment later in the chronological sequence of events
9
Q
Anadiplosis
A
repetition of the last word of a preceding clause
10
Q
Anology
A
Comparing similarities.
11
Q
Anaphora
A
parallel structure starting with the same words
12
Q
Antecedent
A
a word, phrase, or clause, to which another word refers
13
Q
Aphorism
A
a pithy and pointed statement of a serious maxim, opinion, or general truth.
14
Q
Aporia
A
An expression of doubt or perplexity; placing a claim in doubt by developing arguments on both sides of an issue.
15
Q
Aposiopesis
A
an unfinished thought or broken sentence.
16
Q
Appositive
A
two units that are grammatically parallel
17
Q
Apostrophe
A
In literature, apostrophe is a figure of speech sometimes represented by exclamation “O.” A writer or a speaker, using an apostrophe, detaches himself from the reality and addresses an imaginary character in his speech.
18
Q
Assonance
A
repetition of vowel sounds; non-rhyming
19
Q
Asyndeton
A
A writing style that omits conjunctions between words, phrases, or clauses.
20
Q
Atmosphere
A
Emotion created by an entire work, including setting and authorial tone.
21
Q
Mood
A
The emotions elicited in the reader as a result of reading a text.
22
Q
Attitude
A
Approach, disposition, stance
23
Q
Audience
A
- Readers or listeners of a “text” * Note different audiences: intended/target; primary and secondary
24
Q
Autotelic
A
Having a purpose in and not apart from itself.
25
Bathos
An insincere and excessively sentimental appeal to emotion, or an abrupt transition in style from elevated to ordinary.
26
Begging the Question
Premises of the conclusion are presumed; circular argument.
27
Caesura
“rhetorical break in the, sound of flow in the middle, of a line of verse.”
A pause in writing in a line of poetry to add rhythm is indicated by / and is called (CAESURA)
28
Cannon (Literary and Fiction)
a collection or list of books
29
Catharsis
the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions
30
Chiasmus
a rhetorical or literary figure in which words, grammatical constructions, or concepts are repeated in reverse order, in the same or a modified form
31
Clause
a unit of grammatical organization next below the sentence in rank and in traditional grammar said to consist of a subject and predicate.
32
Cliché
trite; overly familiar
33
Colloquial / colloquialism
(of language) used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary.
34
Comparison and Contrast
Bringing together two things in order to emphasize similarities or differences
35
Conceit
Fanciful writing; elaborate metaphor.
| Far-fetched simile or metaphor
36
Connotation
an idea or feeling that a word invokes in addition to its literal or primary meaning
37
Denotation
Literal or explicit meaning.
38
Deductive Reasoning
general --> specific
39
Inductive Reasoning
specific case --> generalization
(starts from “inside”)
Think about “I” --> I/me = my experience but reveal truth about all experiences
40
Diction
the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing
41
Didantic
moral lesson
42
Pedantic
shallow
43
Either/Or Fallacy
Two alternative points of view are presented as the only options; there really exists one or more than one additional possibilities.
44
Elipses
the omission from speech or writing of a word or words that are superfluous or able to be understood from contextual clues
45
Epic
a long poem, typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the deeds and adventures of heroic or legendary figures or the history of a nation
46
Epigram
Brief, pithy, clever statement or poem.
| (compared to aphorism): An epigram is a short, rhyming poem while an aphorism is a witty remark about life
47
Epigraph
a short quotation or saying at the beginning of a book or chapter, intended to suggest its theme
48
Epiphany
A moment of sudden revelation or insight
49
Epistolary Novel
A novel comprised of journal entries or letters
50
Epithet
A characterizing word or phrase accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a person or thing
51
Epizeuxis
The repetition of a word with no others between for emphasis
52
Euphemism
a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing
53
Periphrasis
Use of a longer phrasing in place of a possible shorter form of expression
54
Circumlocution
The use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect language to avoid getting to the point.
55
Exposition / Setting
Exposition is a literary device used to introduce background information about events, settings, characters etc. to the audience or readers.
56
Figurative Language / Figure of Speech
Yes.
57
Frame Story
Story within a story.
58
Genetic Fallacy
Origin of the claim is used as evidence to discredit or credit claim itself.
59
Genre/ Generic Conventions
a category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter
60
Homily
a religious discourse that is intended primarily for spiritual edification rather than doctrinal instruction; a sermon
61
Hyperbole
exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally
62
hypotactic sentence
the subordination of one clause to another
63
paratactic
the placing of clauses one after another without the use of words to indicate coordination or subordination
64
image/ imagery
visually descriptive / figurative language
65
Inference/infer
a conclusion reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning
66
Invective
insulting, abusive, or highly critical language
67
Inversion
a literary technique in which the normal order of words is reversed in order to achieve a particular effect of emphasis or meter
68
verbal irony
A trope in which the intended meaning of a statement differs from the meaning that the words appear to express.
It's not what you say, it's how you say it.
69
situational irony
irony involving a situation in which actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was expected
70
dramatic irony
The audience knows something the character does not.
71
structural irony
Pervasive irony created by a structural feature such as a naive protagonist whose viewpoint is consistently wrong, shared by neither author nor reader.
72
romantic irony
The narrator of a literary work creates an illusion of reality but then destroys the illusion by revealing that he is arbitrarily making up the story as he goes.
73
Socratic irony
a pose of ignorance assumed in order to entice others into making statements that can then be challenged
74
Jargon
a use of specific phrases and words by writers in a particular situation, profession, or trade; or context/situation
75
Jumping to a conclusion
Drawing a conclusion without taking the needed time to reason through the argument
76
Lampoon
publicly criticize (someone or something) by using ridicule, irony, or sarcasm
77
Literal
Exact and absolute meaning.
78
Loaded Question
a question that contains a controversial or unjustified assumption
79
Metaphor
a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable
80
Metonomy
A figure of speech consisting of the use of the name of one thing for that of another of which is an attribute or with which it is associated.
Metonymy (from the Greek, "change of name") simply means substituting one word for another with which it is closely associated/related. Synecdoche (si'-nek-doh-kee) is a form of metonymy; it is a specific term employed when you use a part of the thing to mean the whole thing itself.
81
Narrative Devices
Point of view; to whom one speaks; tense; omniscience; dialogue.
82
Non-sequitur
A jump in logic; lack of a logical connection.
83
Novella
a short novel or long short story
84
Objectivity
not influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering and representing facts
85
subjectivity
based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions
86
onomantopoeia
A formation of a word from a sound associated with what it is named
87
oxymoron
a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction
88
parable
a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, as told by Jesus in the Gospels
89
paradox
a statement or proposition that, sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless or self-contradictory
90
paraphrase
(v) to express the meaning of something (said or written) using different words, especially to achieve greater clarity
91
Parallel construction / parallelism
the use of successive verbal constructions in poetry or prose that correspond in grammatical structure, sound, meter, meaning, etc.
92
Parody
A text that imitates the characteristic style of an author or a work for comic effect.
93
periodic sentence
A complex sentence, especially one consisting of several clauses, constructed as part of a formal speech or narration.
*main point is at the end of a long sentence
94
loose sentence (or cumulative)
A(n) __________ makes its major point at the beginning and then adds subordinate phrases and clauses that develop or modify the point. It could end at one or more points before it actually does.
*main point is at the beginning of a long sentence
95
persona
the aspect of someone's character that is presented to or perceived by others
96
personification
the attribution of human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form
97
Persuasion / persuasive essay
yes
98
point of view
yes
99
premise
An assertion or proposition that serves as the basis of a work or theory.
100
prose
No metric structure.
101
pseudonym
yes
102
pragmatic theory
Literary theory that regards the literature as is deliberately designed to achieve certain effects in the reader.
* emphasizes the audience
103
objective theory
Emphasizes the perspective of the reader or audience perceiving the poem ‘as a given object’.
* poem = object
* emphasis on the poem
104
mimetic theory
The literary theory that literature reflects the universe.
Key idea: ‘the tendency to look to the nature of the given universe as the clue to the nature of poetry’.
Key words: imitation, image, reflection, feigning, counterfeiting, copy, representation.
105
expressive theory
emphasizes the poet
| the POET and then the reader are carried away with the poem
106
red herring
Distracter that draws attention away from the real issue.
| When something draws the attention away from the issue being discussed
107
rhetoric
yes
108
rhetorical mode
A strategy, way, or method of presenting a subject through writing or speech. rhetorical mode
109
exposition (rhetorical mode)
yes
110
argumentation (rhetorical mode)
yes
111
description (rhetorical mode)
Re-creates, invents, or visually presents a person, place, event, or action so that the reader can picture that which is being described.
112
narration (rhetorical mode)
One of the traditional modes of discourse that recounts an event or a series of related events.
113
rhetorical question
yes
114
sarcasm
*yes*
115
satire
Often funny, it is a style of writing that targets human vices and follies, or social institutions and conventions.
116
simile
like, yes
117
straw opponent
The fallaciously-created distortion of one’s true stance.
118
spacial structure
Arranges information according to how things fit together in physical space.
119
sequential structure
yes, yes, yes
120
style
yeeeeeees
121
subplot
yes, ye, y, y, ye
122
Syllogism vs. enthymeme
Syllogism:
A form of deductive reasoning consisting of a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion.
Enthymemes
When a premise in a syllogism is missing, the syllogism becomes an enthymeme. Enthymemes can be very effective in argument, but they can also be unethical and lead to invalid conclusions. Authors often use enthymemes to persuade audiences.
123
symbol
a thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract
124
synecdoche
A figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole.
Synecdoche (si'-nek-doh-kee) is a specific term employed when you use a part of the thing to mean the whole thing itself.
125
synaesthesia
When the senses get mixed up.
126
syntax
In linguistics, the study of the rules that govern the ways in which words combine to form phrases, clauses, and sentences.
127
theme
The universal truth of a work that applies to the human condition.
128
thesis
a statement or theory that is put forward as a premise to be maintained or proved
129
antithesis
* a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else
* A balanced sentence that makes a contrast is called antithesis.
130
synthesis
combination or composition.
131
tone
yes. yes! yes?
132
transition
yes -> ye
133
understatement
A writer or speaker deliberately makes a situation seem less important or serious than it is.
134
verisimilitude
the appearance of being true or real
135
voice/speaker
The attitude and style a writer has to convey his/ her thoughts is often referred to as his/ her
136
wit
(to wit) that is to say (used to make clearer or more specific something already said or referred to)
137
litotes
An ironical understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative as its contrary.
138
roman a clef
A novel in which real people or events appear with invented names.
A text that is fictional but based on actual events
139
zeugma
a figure of speech in which a word applies to two others in different senses (e.g., John and his license expired last week ) or to two others of which it semantically suits only one (e.g., with weeping eyes and hearts ).
