Rhetorical Terms Flashcards
Allegory
A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.
A poem analogy with a hidden meaning of morals or political meanings
Synonym: analogy
Ad hominem
Direct against a person rather than the position they are maintaining
Alliteration
The repetition of consonant words.
Anaphora
The deliberate repetition of the first part of the sentence I’m order to achieve artistic effect.
Aphorism
A brief sentence that makes a statement of wisdom.
Example: life’s tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.
Antecedent
A word or phrase that is followed by another word(such as pronoun).
Apostrophe
A device in which the writer detaches himself from the reality and addresses an imaginary character in his speech.
Example:
“Is this a dagger which I see before me,
the handle toward my hand?
Come, let me clutch thee!
I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.”
Assonance
Takes place when two or more words close together repeat the same vowel with different consonant sounds
Example “men sell wedding bells”
Asyndeton
The device that eliminates using conjunctions
Example: “without looking, without making a sound, without talking”
Colloquial diction
Slang diction
Example: “Wanna”
“What’s up”
Didactic
Device that intends to teach and inform the audience morals.
Epistrophe
Like anaphora but in this device the repeated phrase or word is the end part of the sentence.
Euphemism
Substituting an impolite statement to be polite.
“You are becoming more thin on top” (you are becoming bald)
Loose sentence
A sentence in which the main clause is being modified by a following phrase, or clause.
“I went to the movies yesterday, bought candy, and shopped at the mall.”
Invective
Insulting language or a sentence that is insulting
