AP Test Terms

Question 1

Ad Hominem

Answer 1

A fallacy attached to a person, not on issues or assertions; “against the man”

Question 2

Bandwagon

Answer 2

A fallacy of “everyone is doing to”; to side with a popular opinion over your own

Question 3

Begging the Question

Answer 3

Claim includes a word or phrase that needs proving before argument can proceed; a conclusion is true based on a claim that needs evidence; “begging” you to accept the conclusion and assume every point is true

Question 4

Deductive Reasoning

Answer 4

A logical argument; syllogism; two premises lead to a truth; general statements followed by specific examples lead to conclusion

Question 5

Hasty Generalization

Answer 5

Fallacy of manipulation; drawing a hasty conclusion about a population; the size of the sample is too small to support the conclusion

Question 6

Inductive Reasoning

Answer 6

Based on examples; moves from a series of specifics to a generalization; starts with observations/examples and then reaches a general conclusion

Question 7

Non Sequitur

Answer 7

“It does not follow”; making a statement that does not make sense or follow logic

Question 8

Poisoning the Well

Answer 8

A person or character is introduced with language that suggests they are not reliable before the audience knows anything about them; commuting a preemptive ad hominem attack against an opponent; provide bias opinion if speaker before they ever speak

Question 9

Post Hoc

Answer 9

“After this, therefore because of this”; A must have caused B because A happened before B

Question 10

Red Herring

Answer 10

An argument that distracts the audience by raising issues/topics irrelevant to the case; distraction tactic; diverts attention from he real issue

Question 11

Slippery Slope

Answer 11

Domino theory; one thing leads to another; usually negative; an idea or action will lead to something terrible

Question 12

Fallacy

Answer 12

Failure of logical reasoning; appears reasonable, but it false; causes arguments to be invalid

Question 13

Straw Man

Answer 13

A person in an argument defines his opponents position when the opponent is not around in a way that is easy to attack; opponents argument it overstated/misrepresented so that he can be refuted more easily

Question 14

Parable

Answer 14

A story which teaches a moral or a lesson

Question 15

Burlesque

Answer 15

Ludicrous parody; grotesque caricature; to mock

Question 16

Vignette

Answer 16

Brief sketch or narrative; (very) short story

Question 17

Didactic

Answer 17

A work intended to teach

Question 18

Parody

Answer 18

A composition designed to ridicule a style or author; mocking

Question 19

Bildungsroman

Answer 19

Coming of age; development of a young person usually from adolescence to maturity

Question 20

Eulogy

Answer 20

A dignified, formal speech or writing which praises dead or alive

Question 21

Elegy

Answer 21

Poem of tribute or mourning about someone who has died

Question 22

Lament

Answer 22

Poem expressing grief, mourning

Question 23

Romanticism

Answer 23

Began in late 18th century; imagination and emotion are superior to reason; poetry is superior to science; distrust of industry and city life and idealization of rural life and of the wilderness; interest in the more natural past and the supernatural

Question 24

Transcendentalism

Answer 24

Every individual can reach ultimate truths through spiritual intuition which transcends reason and sensory experience; Emerson and Thoreau

Question 25

Realism

Answer 25

Style of writing developed in 19th century that attempts to depict life without idealization or romanticizing it

Question 26

Naturalism

Answer 26

19th century literary movement; extension of realism that claimed to portray life exactly as it was; believed heredity and environment determined human behavior; humans are subject to laws or nature beyond their control

Question 27

Surrealism

Answer 27

Attempt to reproduce and interpret the visions and images or the unconscious mind as manifested in dreams; characterized by an irrational arrangement of bizarre experiences

Question 28

Verisimilitude

Answer 28

Quality of realism in a work which persuades the audience that he is getting a vision of life; “true to life”

Question 29

Modernism

Answer 29

Bold experimental styles that swept arts during beginning of 20th century; aimed to rid poetry of 19th century “prettiness” and sentimentality; call for change

Question 30

Stream of Consciousness

Answer 30

An attempt on the part of the author to reproduce the embellished flow of thoughts on the human mind works feelings, judgments, associations, and memories; a flow of thoughts in literature