Rhetorical devices Flashcards
concrete nouns
definable noun - physical things
abstract nouns
cannot appeal to the 5 senses
ex: love
rhetoric
technique of using language effectively and persuasively in speaking/writing
author, audience, text, setting
voice
the unique personality of a text
thesis
statement in a work that a writer intends to support/prove
extended metaphor
hidden comparison that continues throughout a series of sentences/longer piece/poem
connotation
tone/feel of a wordtat
denotation
definition/meaning of a word
conflict
struggle between 2 opposing forces in text
Aristotelian triangle
Aristotle’s idea that all communication is trilateral
Pathos, ethos, logos
audience: pathos
speaker: ethos
ethos
appeal to authority/honesty, presenter’s credibility
pathos
appeal to emotions of audience: fear, imagination, hopes
logos
logical appeal: data
analogy
comparison in which an idea or thing is compared to another thing that is quite different
anecdote
short story/event proposed to support or demo some point
mood/atmosphere
what tone CREATES
allegory
abstract ideas or principles are described terms of characters, figures, events
ambiguity
word, phrase, statement that has more than one meaning/interpretation
prose
type of writing that is close to everyday speech patterns and language
ad hominen
personal attack
polemic
written or verbal attack on something
allusion
brief or indirect references
archetype
typical character, action, situation that seems to represent universal patterns of human nature
ex: the mentor
paradox
a statement that appears to be self-contradicting but may include a truth
ex: to prepare for peace we must prepare for war
hyperbole
exaggeration
exposition
used to introduced bg info about events, characters, setting
synecdoche
parts of something that represents the whole
ex: “the suits” = boss
motif
object or idea that rep itself throughout a literary work
oxymoron
2 opposite ideas are joined to create an effect
onomatopoeia
a word that imitates the natural sound of a thing
trope
reoccurring theme
conceit
when 2 vastly different object are likened together with similes/metaphors
inventive
speech or writing that attacks/insults
–> character of a polemic
sarcasm
verbal irony WITH malicious intent
satire
to expose or criticize foolishness and corruption using humor, exaggeration, irony, or ridicule
euphemism
terms to replace harsh and impolite words
parody
imitations of a particular writer, artist, genre; exaggerated for comedic effect
dramatic irony
characters within a story are unaware of a situation, but audience is aware
ex: Truman show
situational irony
when something happens to someone that is contradictory to expectations
ex: karma
verbal irony
what one said is the opposite of what one means
regionalism
linguistic feature peculiar to a particular region apart of the standard language
hamartia
tragic flaw
apostrophe
when writer or speaker addresses an object or imaginary being
parallelism
use of components in a sentence match grammatically
parable
figure of speech that presents a short story with a moral story at the end
ex: boy who cried wolf
rhetorical question
asked for effect: no real answer exist or expected
in media res
starts in the middle of action
expletive
grammatical construction that starts w/ words like “it, here, there” etc
jargon
use of specific phrases and words by writers in situations
epigraph
literary device in the form of a poem, quotation, or sentence at the beginning of a document/novel
ex: in TTTC
epitaph
writing on grave
explication
making something clearer
oversimplification
an explanation that excludes important info for brevity
generalization
general statement/concept obtained by inference from specific cases
understateent
intentionally make situation seem less than
zeugma
blending grammar and logic
ex: he opened his mind and his wallet
isocolon
succession of sentences, phrases, clauses of grammatically equal lengtha
anadipolis
repetition of a word/words in successive clauses so the 2nd clause starts w/ the 1st clause’s ending
ex: when I give, I give myself
chiasmas
2+ clauses are balanced against each other by the reversal of their structures in order to produce an artistic effect
antimetabole
phrase is repeated but with the order of words reversed
ex: all for one & one for all
metonymy
replaces the name of a thing with the name of something else w/ a closely related meaning
ex: pen = writing: the pen is mightier than the sword
straw man fallacy
refuting opponent’s argument, while refuting an argument that was literally not the correct one
antithesis
2 opposite ideas are put together to achieve contrast
ex: speech is silver, but silence is gold
syllogism
conclusion is drawn from 2 given or assumed propositions, each shares a term with the conclusion and a common middle term not present in the conclusion
ex: all dogs are animals; all animals have four legs; therefore all dogs have four legs
