Rhetorical/Literary Devices

Rhetorical Situation

The what, who, purpose, and setting of rhetoric

Ethos

Appeal to credibility/beliefs

Pathos

Appeal to emotion

Logos

Appeal to logic

Analogy

A comparison of two different things that are similar in some way

Anaphora

the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of consecutive lines or sentences

Analysis

The process or result of identifying the parts of a whole and their relationships to one another.

Anecdote

A brief narrative (story) that focuses on a particular incident or event.

Alliteration

Repetition of consonant sounds

Allusion

A reference to a well-known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art

Allegory

A longer story that reveals a moral or political meaning.

Chiasmus

a reversal in the order of words in two otherwise parallel phrases that reveal a deeper meaning when crisscrossed.

Connotation

All the meanings, associations, or emotions that a word suggests

Denotation

the literal meaning of a word

Diction

A writer's or speaker's choice of words

Explicit

definite, clearly stated

Implicit

implied though not plainly expressed

Juxtaposition

placing two elements side by side to present a contrast

Metaphor

comparison not using like or as

Simile

A comparison using "like" or "as"

Repetition

Repeated use of sounds, words, or ideas for effect and emphasis

Satire

the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices.

Symbolism

the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities

Syntax

Formulating clear sentences OR mixing up the normal order of English.

Tone

Attitude a writer takes toward the audience, a subject, or a character

Motif

(n.) a principal idea, feature, theme, or element; a repeated or dominant figure in a design

Assonance

Repetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity

Antithesis

the direct opposite, a sharp contrast

Metonymy

substituting the name of one object for another object closely associated with it

Paradox

A statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.