Rhetorical Terms for Reading and Writing Flashcards
An extended narrative in prose or verse in which characters, events, and settings represent abstract qualities and in which the writer intends a second meaning to be read beneath the surface of the story; the underlying meaning may be moral, religious, political, social, or satiric
Allegory
Reference typically brief, to a person, place, thing, event, or other literary work with which the reader is presumably familiar
Allusion
A short, simple narrative of an incident; often used for humorous effect to make a point
Ancedote
Is a rhetorical device that features the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive sentences, phrases, or clauses. Works as a literary device to allow writers to convey, emphasize, and reinforce meaning. (Take “Tale of two cities” as an example “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of darkness…” Even “Go big or Go home”)
Anaphora
A stylistic device used in literature and poetry to intentionally eliminate conjunctions between the phrases, and in the sentence, yet maintain grammatical accuracy. (I came, I saw, I conquered)
Asyndeton
It rather connects the clauses with a conjunction. “I came AND I saw AND I conquered.” (In other words, whereas the first one is marked by the insertion of commas, the second one shows the omission of commas and the use of conjunctions.)
Polysyndeton
Syndeton includes the addition of multiple conjunctions, such as in this example: “He eats AND sleeps AND drinks.”
Syndeton
Indicates the same word returns at the end of each sentence. Epistrophe is a stylistic device that can be defined as the repetition of phrases or words at the end of the clauses or sentences. (It is also called “EPIPHORA”. Epistrophe examples are frequently found in literary pieces, in persuasive writing, and in speechesl
Epistrophe
Is a combination of two words, “snide” and “remark”, which means a sarcastic comment. (It is a literary device that is meant to be sarcastic speech. Depending on the subject, the audience, and the speaker, snark can be taken as sophisticated, witty, or asinine.
Snark
The presentation of two contrasting images. The ideas are balanced by word, phrase, clause, or paragraphs. “To be or not to be…” “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country…”
Antithesis
Is a rhetorical device that starts an argument with a reference to something general, and from this it draws a conclusion about something more specific. (We start with a general argument “All men are mortal.” We know that John is a man, so John is mortal.” It is a deductive approach to reason and is based on deducing specific conclusions from general facts.)
Syllogism
A word or phrase (including slang) used in everyday conversation and informal writing but that is often inappropriate in formal writing (y’all, ain’t)
Colloquialism
