Rhetorical Devices Flashcards
rhetoric
speech or writing that is effective and persuasive
polysyndeton
literary device that used multiple repetitions of THE SAME CONJUNCTION: commonly using “and”
asyndeton
skipping one or more conjunctions which are usually in a phrase
“He crossed the street without looking, without listening, etc.”
understatement
when an author presents a situation or thing as less important or serious in reality
parallelism
(same thing as parallel structure) when phrases or sentences have similar or same grammatical structure - “Almost everything is true; almost nothing is true.”
“Almost everything is true; almost nothing is true.”
anaphora
type of parallelism when the same word is repeated at the beginning of sentences
“If you want to hide from the moon, do not hide from the night. If you want a rose, do not run from the thorns.”
hyperbole
exaggeration
metaphor
comparison without like or as
allusion
a reference to something else
assonance
the repetition of specific sounds in words
“From forth the fatal loins of these two foes”
Notice above that a lot of the words start with the “f” sound.
alliteration
words combined together that begin with the same sound and placed close together
“A pair of star cross’d lovers take their life”
pair, lovers, their; make the same ending sound
oxymoron
two contradictory words placed together
paradox
two seemingly distant things put together to make a point (contradicts itself)
“I went to war, I was a coward”
If you go to war, you are most likely not a coward, but in this case, they were.
juxtaposition
the placement of two or more things to bring out their differences
repetition
the use of the same word over and over throughout a piece
irony
two contradictory meanings of the same situation, event, image, etc.
- verbal irony: unanticipated phrase
- situational irony: unexpected outcome
Verbal: Delivering bad news by saying “the good news is”
Situational: Fahrenheit 451 (an ANTI-CENSORSHIP novel) is one of the most banned books in the USA
hypothesis
guesses or predictions about the future outcome
generalization
speaking about rather large groups or people, trends, broad categories, etc.
cacophony
combination of words with loud and harsh noises
“In a gruff voice said, “Give me that trash and I’ll throw it out!”
Quote: adds a tone of voice to make the reader think more on a phrase
euphemism
a seemingly more light-hearted way to say a phrase less seriously
anecdote
adds personal knowledge to a situation
ambiguity
idea that can be understood in more than one way
The idea of the word “good”
satire
use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity and vices
epigram
a short but insightful phrase, often in verse form
“Thank you. Good night, and God Bless America” George W. Bush 9/11/01
