Techniques Flashcards
Anagnorisis
moment in paly of character makes a critical discovery of self or circumstances
• Ambiguity
when something is not clear or explicit
• Ambiguity
when something is not clear or explicit
• Anaphora
repetition of a word/phrase at the beginning of a sentence.
• Collective pronoun
ie. us, we
• Anecdote
personal story.
• appeals to the writer’s character.
• Asyndeton
no conjunctions only commas
• Cadence
how the text sounds
• Declarative
exclamation mark (high modality)
• Call to Action
used at end) to give audience an action to complete
• Caricature
An exaggerated character or a form of visual exaggeration (e.g. drawing someone with ridiculously large ears)
• Diction
choice of words
• Colloquialisms
slang/conversational language
• Didactic tone:
leads you to agreement with writer
• Digressive punctuation:
Punctuation that marks a digressive and discursive mood, e.g. dashes, brackets and ellipses (three dots…)
• Dichotomy
: contrast between two ideas
• Direct Address:
Speaking to the audience, often using the pronoun “you” or using the imperative mood (eg. Listen to me)
• Discourse
argument/counter argument
• Altruistic nature:
showing selfless concern for others
• Embedded phrases
Afterthoughts and extra details added to main sentence, often bracketed by commas, dashes or brackets
• Enjambment
continuation of flow of thought (no punctuation, adds emphasis)
• Epigraph
short quotation at the beginning that foregrounds or in some way inspires the writing that follows it
• Ethos
emphasises the speaker’s credibility and authority.
• Figurative language
Similes, metaphors, personification and other types of non-literal language
• Folly
Stupid or silly behaviour, e.g. wearing extreme fashions
• Foreboding
fearing that something bad will happen
• Foreshadows
indicates to an event that has not happened yet
• High modality:
uses words to express high probability/obligation which adds to persuasion (must/always etc.)
• Hubris
excessive pride or self-confidence
• Hyperbole
exaggeration of emotion, or description- to add humour/mood
• Idiomatic
using colloquial expressions
• Imagery
Similes/metaphors or sensory imagery
• Imperative mood
A command, plea or exhortation expressed by using the base form of the verb, e.g. Eat your vegetables!
• Imperatives
direct command or strong request
• Inclusive pronouns:
Pronouns such as “we” and “us”, which encourage a sense of alliance between the speaker/writer and the audience.
• Incongruity
Putting a person or thing in an unusual setting to create a sense of absurdity (comic strangeness), e.g. cavemen using an iPad.
• Interrogative words
used in questions e.g. why? How?
• Intertextuality
references to other texts
• Inversion/Reversal
Satirising a situation by reversing it. For example, depicting male superheroes in the sexualised poses that female superheroes are usually drawn in, criticises the sexism of some comic art.
• Irony
something is stated but the opposite is meant- adds humour
• Levity
treatment of serious topic with humour or lack of respect- adds t0 satire
• Logos
appeals to audience’s sense of logic/reason
• Low modality:
low degree of certainty words (might, could etc.)
• Motif
A repeated image or symbol
• Myriad
different perspectives to invite you to think further
• Parody
imitation of the style, appearance of someone/something with exaggeration for comic effect.
• Pathos
appeals to an audience’s emotions
• Personal anecdote
: short personal story within a larger text
• Personal voice
examples of how this is demonstrated and the techniques through which it is constructed
• Point & Counterpoint
argues with itself
• Point of view:
provides several perspectives
• Pun
play on words- a joke where a word is used and has two different meanings e.g a cross-eyed teacher couldn’t control his pupils.
• Rambling
displaying complexity of the subject
• Register
formal / informal
• Religious allusion
• Repetition
: repetition of a word or phrase to emphasise an idea/emotion.
• Rhetoric
speech designed to persuade, invokes emotions; doesn’t reveal motivation, manipulation of language
• Rhetorical question:
A question that is asked to create a persuasive effect on the audience, rather than in search of an answer
• Sarcasm
use of irony to show contempt or humour
• Spatial metaphor
trying to measure the immeasurable
• Sycophantic
behaving in an obedient way in order to get an advantage
• Tripling
to increase in size of three
• Vice
: Morally wrong behaviour, e.g. lying, stealing, corruption
• Vignette
a brief description of something- short account of something (random). Short word pictures or written sketches.
• Volta
shift of one idea to another
Burlesque
ridiculous exaggeration
Parody
a composition imitating / ridiculing another
farce
encouraging laughter through exaggerated improbable situations
Malapropism
deliberate mispronunciation to make fun of
Anachronism
an idea in the wrong time period
Mock epic/heroism
using devices to infer someone is ‘heroic’ for trivial subjects
grotesque
creating tension through dark humour
Assonance
resemblance of words
ie. keep and beep
Consonance
words with repetition of consonants ie. mike likes his bike
Enumeration
counting numbers in a recited list
Hypophora
raise question and then answer it
Polysyndeton
repetition of conjunction ie. and, if
foil
emphasise a characters weakness and strengths
iconography
types of images that convey a specific meaning
monochromatic
one toned, shades of red
Double entendre
duplicitous meaning
Modality
tone of speech
allegory
basically subtext - moral
leitmotif
dominant/recurring theme
anadiplosis
repetition of the last word in the succeeding sentence
