Glossary #4 Flashcards
Definition - The art of effective communication.
Rhetoric
The relationships in a piece of writing or a speech among the speaker/writer, the event(s) or experiences that inspired the subject (exigence), the audience, the message, the author’s purpose, and the appeals, tools, and techniques used to achieve that purpose. Context (history, environment, background information, culture) surrounds and influences every part of the triangle.
Aristotle’s Rhetorical Triangle
Definition - Question not asked for information but for effect.
Rhetorical Question
Example - “The angry parent asked the child, ‘Are you finished interrupting me?’”
Rhetorical Question
Impact - Encourages the audience to think more deeply about a topic by posing a question
Rhetorical Question
Definition - Art or literature characterized by an idealistic, perhaps unrealistic view of people and the world, and an emphasis on nature. Does not rely on traditional themes and structures
Romanticism
Example - “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley
Romanticism
Definition - A generally bitter comment that is ironically or satirically worded.
Sarcasm
Example - “Oh, I just LOVE Mondays!”
Sarcasm
Impact - Creates humor using a sense of bitterness
Sarcasm
Definition - A work that reveals a critical attitude toward some element of life to a humorous effect. It targets human vices and follies, or social institutions and conventions. (three layers: serious - humor - serious)
Satire
Example - Saturday Night Live (political ____)
Satire
Impact - Uses humor to mock aspects of society perhaps to provoke thought or inspire change
Satire
Definition - A group of words (including subject and verb) that expresses a complete thought.
Sentence
Definition - A word or group of words placed beside a noun or noun substitute to supplement its meaning.
Appositive
Example - “Bob, the lumber yard worker, spoke with Judy, an accountant from the city.”
Appositive
Impact - Provides additional information or clarification about a noun, enriching the meaning and adding detail without disrupting the flow of the sentence.
Appositive
Definition - A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb.
Clause
Definition - A sentence in which two parallel elements are set off against each other like equal weights on a scale. Both parts are parallel grammatically.
Balanced sentence
Example - “If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.”
Balanced sentence
Impact - It creates symmetry and highlights contrast or comparison between two ideas in a simple way
Balanced sentence
Definition - Contains at least two independent clauses but no dependent clauses.
Compound sentence
Example - “I wanted to go for a walk, but it started raining.” (sentence type)
Compound sentence
Definition - Contains only one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
Complex sentence
Example - “Although it was raining, I decided to go for a walk.”
Complex sentence
Definition - When the writer begins with an independent clause, and then adds subordinate elements.
Cumulative sentence
Example - “He doubted whether he could ever again appear before an audience, his confidence broken, his limbs shaking, his collar wet with perspiration.”
Cumulative sentence
Definition - When the main idea is not completed until the end of the sentence. The writer begins with subordinate elements and postpones the main clause.
Periodic sentence
Example - “His confidence broken, his limbs shaking, his collar wet with perspiration, he doubted whether he could ever again appear before an audience.” (sentence type)
Periodic sentence
Definition - Contains only one independent clause.
Simple sentence
Example - “She reads books.”
Simple sentence
Definition - States an idea. It does not give a command or request, nor does it ask a question.
Declarative sentence
Example - “The ball is round.”
Declarative sentence
Definition - Issues a command. (sentence type)
Imperative sentence
Example - “Kick the ball.”
Imperative sentence
Definition - Sentences incorporating interrogative pronouns (what, which, who, whom, and whose).
Interrogative sentence
Example - “To whom did you kick the ball?”
Interrogative sentence
Definition - The choices in diction, tone, and syntax that a writer makes. ___ may be conscious or unconscious.
Style
Definition - Anything that represents or stands for something else. Usually, a ______ is something concrete such as an object, action, or character…that represents something more abstract.
Symbol
Example - The Raven in “The Raven.”
Symbol
Impact - Uses representation to create layers of meaning
Symbol
Definition - Grammatical arrangement of words.
Syntax/sentence variety
Definition - The central idea or message of a work. The _____ may be directly stated in nonfiction works, although not necessarily. It is rarely stated directly in fiction.
Theme
Example - The power of friendship.
Theme
Definition - The sentence or group of sentences that directly expresses the author’s opinion, purpose, meaning, or proposition. It should be short and clear.
Thesis
Example - “Cats are better pets than dogs.”
Thesis
Definition - A writer’s attitude toward his subject matter is revealed through diction, figurative language, and organization. To identify ____, consider how the piece would sound if read aloud (or how the author wanted it to sound aloud).
Tone
Example - can be: playful, serious, businesslike, sarcastic, humorous, formal, somber, etc.
Tone
Impact - Establishes the writer’s attitude toward the subject, which can affect the audience’s perceptiveness
Tone
Definition - The ironic minimizing of fact, ___ presents something as less significant than it is.
Understatement
Example - “Mary’s a little sick” (Mary’s dying)
Understatement
Impact - Downplays to create irony or emphasize significance through contrast
Understatement
