vocab Flashcards
Cogent
Convincing; reasonable
Didactic
Intended to instruct
Arbiter
Judge who decides a disputed issue; mediator
Exculpate
To free from guilt or blame
Incontrovertible
Not able to be denied or disputed
Substantiated
Supported with proof or evidence
Despotic
Exercising absolute power; tyrannical
Imperious
Arrogantly domineering or overbearing
Convoluted
Intricate; complex
Futile
Having no useful purpose; pointless
Rhetoric
Art of effective or persuasive writing and speaking
Context
Events surrounding the text
Purpose
Goal of the speaker
Rhetorical Triangle
Relationship between speaker, audience, and subject
Rogerian Argument
Argumentative reasoning that aims to establish a middle ground between opposing parties
Ethos
Appealing to character
Logos
Appealing to reason
Pathos
Appealing to emotions, values, desires, and hopes
Kairos
Appealing to sense of time
Exigence
The problem or situation that prompts a speaker
Argument
Persuasive, coherent movement from claim to conclusion
Argument of Fact
Involves a statement that can be proved or disproved with specific evidence
Argument of Definition
Involves understanding the definition of an idea or subject
Argument of Evaluation
Presents criteria and measures individuals against those standards
Proposal Argument
Presents an issue so vividly readers want to do something about it
Claim
Argument’s main idea
Claim of Fact
Assert that something is true or not true
Claim of Value
Argue that something is good/bad, right/wrong, desirable/undesirable
Claim of Policy
Proposes a change
Counterargument
Argument that anticipates objections or opposing viewpoints
Syntax
Set of rules in language; how words from different parts of speech are put together to form a complete thought
Parenthetical Aside
Word, phrase, or sentence inserted into a sentence
Repetition
Repeating words or phrases to make an idea clear
Allusion
Brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of significance
Hypophora
Asking a question and then answering it
Restatement
Stating something again, more clearly or convincingly
Rhetorical Question
Question asked only for effect, without expecting a real answer
Anaphora
Repetition of a word/words at the beginning of multiple clauses
Epistrophe
Repetition of a word/words at the end of multiple phrases
Antecedent
The earlier phrase or word a noun or pronoun refers to
Polysyndeton
Use of a conjunction between each word, phrase, or clause
Asyndeton
Omission of a conjunction from a list
Oxymoron
Apparent contradiction of terms (usually two)
Paradox
Apparent contradiction of ideas or statements in an entire sentence
Extended Metaphor
Metaphor that lasts for longer than one sentence
Extended Simile
Simile that lasts longer than one sentence
Understatement
Figurative language that presents the facts in a way that makes them seem less significant
Antithesis
Establishing a clear, contrasting relationship between two ideas by joining or juxtaposing them
Hyperbole
Overstatement or exaggeration
Anadiplosis
Rhetorical trope formed by repeating the last word of a phrase at the beginning of the next
Auditory
Sound images
Tactile
Touch images
Gustatory
Taste images
Olfactory
Smell images
Visual
Sight images
Regional Dialect
Distinct form of language spoken in a certain area
Process Analysis
Rhetorical mode used to explain how to do something or how it was done
Diatribe
Angry and usually long speech or piece that criticizes someone or something
Colloquialism
Informal language, phrases, or slang in a piece of writing
Analogy
Comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared to another thing that is quite different from it
