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lang > Rhetorical terms (Summer) > Flashcards

Rhetorical terms (Summer) Flashcards

1
Q

Alliteration

A

Repetition of the same sound beginning several words or syllables in sequence.

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2
Q

Allusion

A

Brief reference to a person, event, or place (real or fictitious) or to a work of art.

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3
Q

Ambiguity

A

The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence or passage.

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4
Q

Analogy

A

A comparison between two seemingly dissimilar things. Often, an analogy uses something simple or familiar to explain something unfamiliar or complex.

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5
Q

Anaphora

A

Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, or lines.

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6
Q

anecdote

A

a brief story used to illustrate a point or claim

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7
Q

annotation

A

the taking of notes directly on a text

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8
Q

antimetabole

A

repetition of words in reverse order

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9
Q

antithesis

A

opposition, or contrast, of ideas or words in a parallel construction.

“W]e shall… support any friend, oppose any foe…” – John F. Kennedy

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10
Q

aphorism

A

a terse statement of known authorship that expresses a general truth and moral principle

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11
Q

archaic diction

A

old-fashioned or outdated choice of words

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12
Q

argument

A

A process of reasoned inquiry. A persuasive discourse resulting in a coherent and consideration movement from a claim to a conclusion.

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13
Q

assertion

A

a statement that presents a claim or thesis

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14
Q

asyndeton

A

omission of conjunction between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words

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15
Q

audience

A

The listener, viewer, or reader of a text. Most texts are likely to have multiple audiences.

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16
Q

claim

A

Also called an assertion or proposition, a claim states the argument’s main idea or position. A claim differs from a topic or subject in that a claim has to be arguable.

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17
Q

closed thesis

A

A closed thesis is a statement of the main idea of the argument that also previews the major points the writer intends to make.

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18
Q

colloquialism/colloquial speech

A

Words or phrases that have a conversational feel and are not generally used in formal written English.

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19
Q

complex sentence

A

A sentence that includes one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.

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20
Q

connotation

A

Meanings or associations that readers have with a word beyond its dictionary definition, or denotation. Connotations are often positive or negative, and they often greatly affect the author’s tone.

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21
Q

context

A

The circumstances, atmosphere, attitudes, and events surrounding a text.

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22
Q

cumulative sentence

A

Sentence that completes the main idea at the beginning of the sentence and then builds and adds on.

But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our present course — both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind’s final war. — John F. Kennedy

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23
Q

denotation

A

The strict, literal dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion, attitude or color.

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24
Q

diction

A

a speaker’s choice of words

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25
Q

emphasis

A

Emphasis allows the writer to place importance on a particular idea. By positioning an idea in a certain place structurally (position), by proportioning a greater amount of words (proportion), by isolating a key word or phrase (isolation), or by repeating the wording (repetition), the writer creates emphasis.

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26
Q

ethos

A

Speakers appeal to ethos to demonstrate that they are credible and trustworthy to speak on a given topic. Ethos is established by both who you are and what you say.

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27
Q

euphemism

A

more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts. May be used to adhere to political correctness or to add humor or ironic understatement

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28
Q

figurative language

A

Nonliteral language, sometimes referred to as tropes or metaphorical language, often evoking strong imagery, figures of speech often compare one thing to another either explicitly (simile) implicitly (metaphor). Other forms of figurative language include personification, paradox, overstatement (hyperbole), understatement, metonymy, synecdoche, and irony.

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29
Q

metonymy

A

Figure of speech in which something is represented by another thing that is related to it or emblematic of it.

e.g. suit for business executive, or in the phrase “the pen is mightier than the sword”, pen is used to refer to writing while sword is used to refer to violence

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30
Q

synecdoche

A

a part is used to refer to the whole

e.g. saying “Cleveland” in reference to Cleveland’s baseball team

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31
Q

hyperbole

A

Deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or to produce a comic or ironic effect; an overstatement to make a point.

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32
Q

imagery

A

A description of how something looks, feels, tastes, smells, or sounds. Imagery may use literal or figurative language to appeal to the senses.

33
Q

imperative sentence

A

Sentence used to command or enjoin

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. — John F. Kennedy

34
Q

inversion

A

Inverted order of words in a sentence. (deviation from normal subject-verb-object order)

e.g. in the forest ran the deer

35
Q

irony

A

A figure of speech that occurs when a speaker or character says one thing but means something else, or when what is said is the opposite of what is expected, creating a noticeable incongruity.

36
Q

jargon

A

Specialized terminology used by a particular group of people. Obscure and often pretentious language.

37
Q

juxtaposition

A

Placement of two things closely together to emphasize similarities or differences.

38
Q

logos

A

Greek for “embodied thought.” Speakers appeal to logos, or reason, by offering clear, rational ideas and using specific details, examples, facts, statistics, or expert testimony to back them up.

39
Q

metaphor

A

figure of speech that compares two things without using like or as

40
Q

modifier

A

An adjective, adverb, phrase, or clause that modifies a noun, pronoun, or verb. The purpose of a modifier is usually to describe, focus, or qualify.

Sprawling and dull in class, he comes alive in the halls and in the cafeteria. — David Denby

41
Q

mood

A

The feeling or atmosphere created by a text.

42
Q

narration

A

In classical oration, the factual and background information, establishing why a subject or problem needs addressing; it precedes the confirmation, or laying out of evidence to support claims made in the argument.

43
Q

nominalization

A

The process of changing a verb into a noun.

e.g. discuss becomes discussion. depend becomes dependence.

44
Q

occasion

A

the time and place a speech is given or a piece is written

45
Q

open thesis

A

An open thesis is one that does not list all of the points the writer intends to cover in an essay.

46
Q

oxymoron

A

a paradox made up of two seemingly contradictory words.

But this peaceful revolution . . . — John F. Kennedy

47
Q

paradox

A

A statement or situation that is seemingly contradictory on the surface, but delivers an ironic truth.

To live outside the law you must be honest. — Bob Dylan

48
Q

parallelism

A

Similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases, or clauses.
(umbrella term for things like anaphora and etc)

49
Q

pathos

A

Greek for “suffering” or “experience.” Speakers appeal to pathos to emotionally motivate their audience. More specific appeals to pathos might play on the audience’s values, desires, and hopes, on the one hand, or fears and prejudices, on the other.

50
Q

periodic sentence

A

Sentence whose main clause is withheld until the end.

To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Nations, our last best hope in an age where the instruments of war have far outpaced the instruments of peace, we renew our pledge of support . . . — John F. Kennedy

51
Q

persona

A

Greek for “mask”. the face or character that a speaker shows to his or her audience

52
Q

personification

A

Attribution of a lifelike quality to an inanimate object or an idea.

53
Q

polysyndeton

A

The deliberate use of multiple conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words.

I paid for my plane ticket, and the taxes, and the fees, and the charge for the checked bag, and five dollars for a bottle of water.

54
Q

propaganda

A

The spread of ideas and information to further a cause. In its negative sense, propaganda is the use of rumors, lies, disinformation, and scare tactics in order to damage or promote a cause.

55
Q

purpose

A

the goal the speaker wants to achieve

56
Q

rhetoric

A

Aristotle defined rhetoric as “the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.” In other words, it is the art of finding ways of persuading an audience.

57
Q

rhetorical appeals

A

Rhetorical techniques used to persuade an audience by emphasizing what they find most important or compelling. The three major appeals are to ethos (character), logos (reason), and pathos (emotion).

58
Q

rhetorical question

A

Figure of speech in the form of a question posed for rhetorical effect rather than for the purpose of getting an answer.

59
Q

satire

A

The use of irony or sarcasm to critique society or an individual.

60
Q

scheme

A

Artful syntax; a deviation from the normal order of words. Common schemes include parallelism, juxtaposition, antithesis, and antimetabole.

61
Q

simile

A

A figure of speech used to explain or clarify an idea by comparing it explicitly to something else, using the words like, as, or as though.

62
Q

speaker

A

The person or group who creates a text. This might be a politician who delivers a speech, a commentator who writes an article, an artist who draws a political cartoon, or even a company that commissions an advertisement.

63
Q

stance

A

A speaker’s attitude toward the audience (differing from tone, the speaker’s attitude toward the subject).

64
Q

style

A

A writer’s specific way of saying things. Style includes arrangement of ideas, word choice, syntax, and figurative language. We can analyze and describe an author’s personal style and make judgments on how appropriate it is to the author’s purpose.

65
Q

subject

A

what the text is about

66
Q

symbol

A

something that represents or stands for something else. we look at ARCHETYPAL SYMBOLS.
Natural symbols—objects from nature to represent ideas commonly associated with them (dawn symbolizing a new beginning, a tree meaning knowledge).
Conventional symbols—invested meaning by a group (religious symbols such as the cross or Star of David; national symbols such as the eagle or flag; group symbols such as the scales of justice for lawyers).
Literary symbols—found in a variety of works and are generally recognized. Objects that stand for abstract ideas.

67
Q

synechdoche

A

Figure of speech that uses a part to represent the whole. (I think i already put this one In here lololol)

68
Q

syntax

A

The arrangement of words into phrases, clauses, and sentences. This includes word order (subject-verb-object, for instance, or an inverted structure); the length and structure of sentences (simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex); and such schemes as parallelism, juxtaposition, antithesis, and antimetabole.

69
Q

synthesize

A

Combining two or more ideas in order to create something more complex in support of a new idea.

(what the hell)

70
Q

text

A

While this term generally means the written word, in the humanities it has come to mean any cultural product that can be “read”— meaning not just consumed and comprehended, but investigated. This includes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, political cartoons, fine art, photography, performances, fashion, cultural trends, and much more.

71
Q

theme

A

a writer’s thoughts on a topic. It is not JUST the topic, but what the author develops in terms of what he believes about the topic.

72
Q

tone

A

A speaker’s attitude toward the subject conveyed by the speaker’s stylistic and rhetorical choices.

73
Q

trope

A

Artful diction; from the Greek word for “turning,” a figure of speech such as metaphor, simile, hyperbole, metonymy, or synecdoche.

74
Q

understatement

A

A figure of speech in which something is presented as less important, dire, urgent, good, and so on, than it actually is, often for satiric or comical effect. Also called litotes, it is the opposite of hyperbole.

75
Q

vernacular

A

The speech patterns of a particular group of people or region.

76
Q

voice

A

The unique flavor of a piece based upon the author. An author adds his or her voice to a piece by creating a tone with diction, syntax, imagery, etc. The author’s voice is what makes his or her writing personal and unique.

77
Q

wit

A

In rhetoric, the use of laughter, humor, irony, and satire in the confirmation or refutation of an argument.

78
Q

zeugma

A

Use of two different words in a grammatically similar way that produces different, often incongruous, meanings.

e.g. When you open a book, you open your mind.

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