APL Rhetorical Terms Flashcards
Abstract
refers to language that describes concepts rather than concrete images.
allegory
an extended narrative in prose or verse in which characters, events, and settings represent abstract qualities and which the writer intends a second meaning
anecdote
a short simple narrative of an incident; humorous point or to make a prior
annotation
explanatory notes added to a text to explain, cite sources, or give bibliographical data
anatithesis
the presentation of two contrasting things
aphorism
a short often witty statement of a principle or truth about life
apostrophe
usually in poetry but sometimes in phrase; the device of calling out to an imaginary, dead, or abstract person or to a place,thing, or personified abstraction
argumentation
writing that attempts to prove the validity of a point of view or an idea by presenting reasoned arguments
cacophony; dissonance
harsh awkward, or dissonant sounds deliberately in poetry
caricature
descriptive writing that greatly exaggerates a specific feature of a person’s appearance or a fact of personality
colloquialism
a word or phrase used in everyday conversation and informal writing but that is often inappropriate in formal writing
coherence; unity
quality of a piece of writing in which all the parts contribute to the development of the central idea, theme, or organizing principle
concrete language
language that describes specific things, people, or phrases rather than ideas
connotation
implied or suggested meaning of a word because of its association in the readers mind
consonance
repetition of identical consonant sounds within two or more words in close proximity, as in boost/best; it can also be seen within several compound words
conundrum
a riddle whose answer is or involves a pun
deducation
the process of moving from a general rule to a specific example
denotation
literal meaning of a word ad defined
description
the picturing in words of something or someone through detailed observation of color, motion, sound, taste smell,and touch; one of the four modes of discourse
diction
word choice, an element of style, it creates tone, attitude, and style, as well as meaning. different types and arrangements of words have significant effects on meaning. an essay written in academic diction would be much less colorful, but more precise than street slang
didactic
writing whose purpose is to teach. its works is usually formal and focuses on moral or ethical concerns. may be fiction or nonfiction that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking
discourse
spoken or written language, including literary works; the four traditionally classified modes of discourse are description, exposition, narration and persuasion
emotional appeal
when a writer appeals to reader’s emotions to excite and involve them in an acquirement
epigraph
the use of quotation at the begging of a work that hints at its theme
ethical appeal
when a writer tries to persuade the audience to respect and believe him/her based on a presentation of image of self through the text
euphemism
a more accepted and usually more pleasant way of saying something that might be inappropriate
euphony
a succession of humorous sounds in poetry or prose; the opposite of cacophony
emaple
an individual instance taken to be representative of a general pattern
explication
the art of interpreting or discovering the meaning of a text
exposition
the immediate revelation to the audience of the setting and other background info necessary for understanding the plot
generalization
when a writer bases a claim upon an isolated ex. or assents that a claim is certain rather than probable.
Genre
a type of literary work, such as a novel or poem
humor
anything that causes laughter or amusment
hyperbole
deliberate exaggeration in order to create humor or emphasis
image
a word/words, either figurative or literal, used to describe a season experience or an object perceived by the sense
imagery
words or phrase that use a collection of images to appeal to one or more of the five senses in order to create a mental picture
induction
the process that moves from a given series of specific to a generalization
inference
a conclusion one can draw from the presented details
invective
a vertically abusive attack
inversion
reversing the customary order of elements in a sentence or phrase
jargon
the special language of a profession or group. the term usually has pejorative associations with the implication that jargon is evasive, tedious, and unintelligible to others.
logical appeal; Logo
when a writer tries to persuade the audience based on statistics, facts, and reason
lyrical
song like; characterized by emotions, subjectivity, and imagintaton
mode
the method or form of a literary work; the manner in which a work of literature is written
mood
similar to tone, mood is the primary emotional attitude of a work
narration
the telling of a story in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or drama
objectivity
an impersonal presentation of events and characters. it is a writers attempt to remove himself/herself from any subjective, personal involvement in a story
paradox
a statement that seems to contradict itself but that turns out to have a rational meaning
parallesim
the technique of arranging words, phrases, clauses or larger structures by placing them side by side and making them similar in form
parody
a work that ridicules the style of another work by imitating and exaggerating its elements
pathetic appeal
when a writer tries to persuade the audience by appealing to their emotions. seeks pity
pedantic
a term used to describe writing that borders on lecturing
persuassion
a form of argumentation; language intended to convince through appeals to reason of emotion
regionalism
an element in literature that conveys a realistic portrayal of a specific geographical locale, using the local and its influences as a major part of the plot
repetition
word or phrase used two or more times in close proximty
rhetorical modes
exposition, description, narration, argumentation
rhetorical question
one that does not expect an explicit answer. it is used to pose an idea to be considered by the speaker or audience
sarcasm
harsh, caustic personal remarks to or about someone
satire
a work that reveals a critical attitude toward some element of human behavior or portraying it in an extreme way.
speaker
the voice of the work
stereotype
a character who represents a trait that is usually attributed to a particular social or racial group and who lacks individuality
style
an authors characteristic manner of expression
subjectivity
a personal presentation of events and characteristics
syllogism
a form of reasoning in which two statements are made and a conclusion is drawn from them
synecdouche
a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to represent a whole, such as using “boards” to mean a stage
syntactic fluency
ability to create a variety of sentence structures, approximately complex and/or simple and varied in length
syntactic permutation
sentence structures that are extraordinary complex and involved
syntax
the grammatical structure of a sentence; arrangement of words in a sentece
theme
the central idea or “message” of a literary work
thesis
the main idea of a piece of writing
tone
the characteristic emotion or attitude of an author toward the characters, subject, and audience
transition
a word or phrase that links one idea to the next and carries the reader from sentence to sentence paragraph to paragraph
understatment
the opposite of exaggeration technique for developing irony and humor where one writes an essay or says less than intended
voice
refers to two different areas of writing.
