Part - 5 #121-150 Flashcards
Rhetoric
From the greek for “orator,” this term describes the principles governing the art of speaking or writing effectively, eloquently, and persuasively.
Rhetorical devices
Words or phrases designed to creat a particular effect in a story or drama or to evoke a particular response from a reader, listener, or viewer. These strategies include but are not limited to rhetorical questions, repetition, analogy, anecdote, paradox, irony, humor, and various figures of speech.
Rhetorical modes
This flexible term describes the variety, the conventions, and the purposes of the major kinds of writing. The four most common rhetorical modes and their purposes are as follows: (1) the purpose of exposition (or expository writing) is to explain and analyze information by presenting an idea, relevent evidence, and appropriate discussion. (2) the purpose of argumentation is to prove the validity of an idea, or point of view, by presenting sound reasoning, discussion, and argument that throughly convince the reader. Persuasive writing is a type or argumentation having an additional aim of urging some form of action. (3) The purpose of description is the re-create, invent, or visually present a person, place, event, or action so that the reader can picture that being described. Sometimes an authors engages all five senses in description; good description writing can be sensuous and picturesque. Descriptive writing maybe staight forward and objective or highly emotional and subjective. (4) The purpose of narration is to tell a story or narrate an event or series of events. This writing mode frequently uses the tools of descriptive writing. These four writing modes are sometimes referred to as modes of discourse.
Rhetorical purpose
Writing for scientific reasons–exigence (something that a situation demands)–perhaps to persuade, set forth an argument, to explain or inform, to express feelings or convey emotions, or to entertain. Determining an authors intent or rhetorical purpose is essential in determining the meaning and/or the effect of an essay.
Rhetorical situation
The convergence in a situation of exigency (the need to speak or write): audience, purpose, tone, genre, medium, design.
Sarcasm
From the greek meaning “to tear flesh” -sarcasm involves bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule someone or something. It may use irony as a device, but not all ironic statements are sarcastic, that is, intended to ridicule. When well done, sarcasm can be witty and insightful; when poorly done, it is simply cruel.
Satire
A work that targets human vices and follies or social institutions amd conventions for reform or ridicule. Regardless pf weather or not yhe work aims to reform human behavior, satire is best seen as a style of writing rather than a purpose for writing. It can be recognized by the many devices used effectively by the satirist: irony, wit, parody, caricature, hyperbole, understatement, and sarcasm. The effects pf satire are varied, depending on the writers goal, but good satire, often humorous, is thought provoking and insightful about the human condition.
Secondary sources
Sources that analyze, describe, explain, or restate information from primary sources. Common reference materials such as dictionaries and encyclopedias, textbooks, books/articles in general are all examples of secondary sources. If, for example, a writer is preparing an analysis of a literary text such as a novel or a poem, the text (such as night or mlk’s “I had a dream” speech) is the primary source and any books reviews, websites discussion, critical analysis about the text, or biographies of the author of that text are secondary sources.
Semantics
The branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their historical and psychological development, their connotations, and theft relation to one another.
Support
In any research and/or documented essay, quoted, paraphrased, and/or summarized words of others will be incorporated into the writers own text. To do this smoothly, writers should seamlessly blend or integrate their own words with those of others. This is the “weaving” of source and support material. In other words, if quotation, ect., are integrated, no quotation will stand alone as a sentence. Also, in a text, the material offered to make concrete or to back up a generalization, thesis, claim, or conclusion. See also “synthesis.”
Style
The consideration of a style has two purposes: (1) An evaluation of the sum of the choices an author makes in blending diction, syntax, figurative language, and other literary devices. Some authors styles are so idiosyncratic that we can quickly recognize works by the same author (or a writer emulating that authors style). Compare, for example, jonathan swift to george orwell, or william frank to ernest hemingway. We can analyze and describe an authors personal style and make judgments about how appropriate it is to the authors purpose. Styles can be called flowery, explicit, succinct, rambling, bombastic, commonplace, incisive, or laconic, to name a few examples. (2) Classification of authors to a group and comparison of an authors style reflects and helps to define a historical period, such as the renaissance or the victorian period, or a literary movement, such as the romantic, transcendental or realist movement.
Style manual
A guide for formating citations and for preparing documents and papers. A number of style manuels are recognized and used by different groups for different purposes. Those in the humanities often use the modern language association’s (MLA) stlye manuel. Those in the social sciences such as education or psychology often use the manual from the American Psychology Association.
Subject complement
The word (with any accompanying phrases) or clauses that follows a linking verb and complements, or completes, the subject of the sentence by either (1) renaming it or (2) describing it. The former is technically a predicate nominative, the latter a predicate adjective. Multiple choice questions.
Subordinate clause
Like all clauses, this word group contains both a subject and a verb (plus any accompanying phrases or modifiers), but unlike the independent clause, the subordinate clause cannot stand alone; it does not express a complete thought. Also called a dependent clause, the subordinate clause depends on a main clause, sometimes called an independent clause, to complete its meaning. Easily recognized key words and phrases usually begin these clauses–for example: although, because, unless, even though, since, as soon as, while, who, when, where, how, and that.
Syllogism
From the greek for “reckoning together,” a syllogism (or syllogistic reasoning or syllogistic logic) is a deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises (the first one called “major” and the secind, “minor”) that inevitably lead to a sound conclusion. A frequently cited example proceeds as follows:
Major premise: All men are mortal.
Minor premise: Socrates is a man.
Conclusion: Therefore, socrates is mortal.
A syllogisms conclusion is valid only of each of the two premises is valid. Syllogisms may also present a specific idea first (“socrates”) and the general second (“all men”).
