Rhetorical Terms (Allegory - Pun) Flashcards
Allegory
The device of using character and/or story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literal meaning.
Alliteration
The repetition of sounds, especially initial consonants or more neighboring words.
Allusion
A direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art.
Analogy
A similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them. An analogy can explain something unfamiliar by associating it with or pointing out its similarity to something more familiar.
Anecdote
A short, simple narrative of an incident.
Connotation
The nonliteral, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning.
Denotation
The strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion attitude, or color.
Diction
Related to style, diction refers to the writer’s word choices, especially with regard to their correctness, clearness, or effectiveness.
Extended metaphor
A metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout the work.
Figurative language
Speech or writing that departs from literal meaning to achieve a special effect or meaning.
Flashback
A device by which the writer presents scenes or incidents that occurred prior to the opening scene of the work.
Hyperbole
A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement.
Imagery
The sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions.
Irony/ironic
The contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant. The difference between what appears to be and what actually is true.
Metaphor
A figure of speech using implied comparison of seemingly unlike things or the substitution of one for the other, suggesting some similarity.
Mood (atmosphere)
The prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work.
Personification
A figure of speech in which the author presents or describes concepts, animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions.
Oxymoron
A figure of speech composed of contradictory words or phrases.
Point of view
In literature, the perspective from which a story is told.
Pun
A play on words. A pun either plays on multiple meanings of a word or replaces the word with another that is similar in sound but very different in meaning.
