AP Lang & Comp Rhetorical Terms

Active Voice

Subject performs an action (ex: "The dog chased the squirrel" [active] v "The squirrel was chased by the dog" [passive])

Allusion

Indirect reference to something the reader should be familiar with [often religious] (ex: Chocolate is his Kryptonite [Superman])

Alter-ego

Character used by author to speak the author's thoughts (ex: Shakespeare speaks through Prospero in The Tempest)

Anecdote

Brief tale of relevant incident; often used to develop point or inject humor (ex: Talking about training your dog when discussing teaching dogs tricks)

Antecedent

Word, phrase, or clause referred to by pronoun (ex: "Sally walked her dog," with her being Sally)

Classicism

Art or literature with realistic view of people and the world; sticks to traditional themes and structures [ex: Novels such as "Robinson Crusoe," "Gulliver's Travels" and "Don Quixote" center on the hero's journey]

Comic relief

Humorous scene in a serious story that lightens the mood somewhat (ex: When a character slips on a banana peel)

Diction

Word choice, conveys style

Colloquial

Ordinary or familiar conversation (ex: adage or aphorism) [ex: "I ain't done nothing!"]

Connotation

Associations suggested by word; implied rather than literal meaning (ex: She's feeling blue)

Denotation

Literal, explicit meaning of word without its connotations (ex: Blue is a color)

Jargon

Diction used by a group in similar profession or activity (ex: A well-written fictional doctor will use medical lingo)

Vernacular

Language used in an area (ex: Latin)

Didactic

Literature that teaches lesson, moral, or model of correct behavior or thinking (ex: Aesop's fables)

Adage

Folk saying with a lesson; proverb (ex: When in Rome, do as the Romans do)

Allegory

Story where contents represent qualities or concepts; meant to reveal abstraction or truth (ex: The characters of Animal Farm represent the Russian Revolution)

Aphorism

Terse statement that expresses general truth or moral principle (ex: Actions speak louder than words)

Ellipsis

Deliberate omission of word or phrase done for effect by the author (ex: Yuri brought three pencils for the test, and Ricardo brought two)

Euphemism

Less offensive substitute for unpleasant concepts (ex: "vertically challenged" instead of "short")

Figurative Language

Writing not meant to be taken literally (ex: allusion, metaphor, simile, etc.)

Analogy

Comparison of two things for explanation (ex: Raising children is like gardening—nurture them and be patient")

Hyperbole

Exaggeration to make a point or evoke humor or strong emotions (ex: This quizlet takes longer than the SAT)

Idiom

Common, often used expression that doesn't make sense if taken literally (ex: It's all Greek to me)

Metaphor

Implied comparison not using like, as, or other such words (ex: When she's embarrassed, she turns into a tomato)

Extended Metaphor

Metaphor is continued later in story (ex: Romeo comparing Juliet to the sun throughout the play)

Metonymy

Replacing actual word or idea with related word or concept (ex: The pen [words] is mighter than the sword [violence])

Synecdoche

Whole is represented by naming one of its parts, or vice versa (ex: "Wheels" refers to vehicle)

Simile

Sords such as like or as to compare two different things (ex: LIfe is like a box of chocolates-you never know what you're gonna get)

Synthesia

Description involving a "crossing of the senses" (ex: I smell trouble)

Personification

Giving human-like qualities to something that isn't human (ex: The ocean was calling his name)

Foreshadowing

Author hints about what will happen later in story (ex: Rome says "Come, death, and welcome. Juliet wills it so," along with other instances that hint to their deaths)

Genre

Major category where literary work fits; subdivisions include (auto)biography; diaries; criticism; essays; and journalistic, political, scientific, and nature writing

Gothic

Writing that has gloom, mystery, fear and/or death; refers to style of the middle ages (ex: Frankenstein and Dracula)

Imagery

Word or words that create a picture in reader's mind (ex: The sunset was the most gorgeous they'd ever seen; the clouds were edged with pink and gold)

Invective

Emotionally violent attack using strong, abusive language (ex: You dirt-eating piece of slime!)

Irony

Opposite of what you expect to happen does (ex: A fire station burns down)

Verbal irony

Say something and mean the opposite/something different; bitter tone is sarcasm (ex: When there's a hurricane and someone remarks "What lovely weather we're having")

Dramatic irony

Audience knows something a character doesn't and would be surprised to find out (ex: We know Juliet is faking her death but Romeo believes she is dead)

Situational irony

Actions have an opposite effect of what is expected; sometimes funny because of how things turn out (ex: Romeo goes to the ball to see Rosaline since he's in love with her, but while he's there, he falls in love with Juliet)

Juxtaposition

Placing things side by side for comparison; used to make a point (ex: All's fair in love and war)

Mood

Atmosphere created by literature through word choice; often created by syntax (ex: A description of a grim mansion on a rainy day makes a gloomy mood)

Motif

Recurring idea in a piece of literature (ex: the color green in The Great Gatsby symbolizes Gatsby's idea of Daisy)

Oxymoron

Apparently contradictory terms are grouped together and suggest a paradox (ex: Jumbo shrimp)

Pacing

Speed or tempo of an author's writing

Paradox

Seemingly contradictory situation which is actually true (ex: In Animal Farm - All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others)

Parallelism

Sentence construction that repeats or puts equal grammatical structures near each other (ex: That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind)

Anaphora

Repetition of word, phrase, or clause at beginning of sequential sentences or clauses; makes writer's point more coherent (ex: With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right)

Chiasmus

Same words are used twice but are reversed second time; aka antimetabole (ex: Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate)

Antithesis

Two opposite or contrasting words, phrases, or clauses with parallel structure (ex: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times)

Zuegma (Syllepsis)

One word applies to others in different ways, with one use often being literal (ex: She broke his computer and his heart)

Parenthetical Idea

Set off an idea from the rest of the sentence; used sparingly for effect [ex: I bought ice cream last night (and it was really good!)]

Parody

Exaggerated imitation of serious work for humor; borrows words or phrases from original and pokes fun at it (ex: Austin Powers imitates James Bond)

Persona

Fictional mask or narrator that tells story

Poetic device

Used in poetry to manipulate the sound of words, sentences or lines (ex: meter, repetition, rhyme, etc)

Alliteration

Repetition of same consonant sound at the beginning of words (ex: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers)

Assonance

Repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds (ex: Go slow over the road)

Consonance

The repetition of the same consonant sound at the end of words or within words (ex: Mike likes his new bike)

Onomatopoeia

Use of a word which imitates or suggests the sound something makes (ex: boom, crash)

Internal rhyme

Line of poetry contains a rhyme within a single line (ex: I lost my dog in the midst of fog. / He found his way home, he doesn't like to roam)

Slant rhyme

Rhyme where words sound similar but do not rhyme exactly; (ex: worm and swarm)

End rhyme

Last word of two different lines of poetry rhyme (ex: Off in the distance, a cowbell sounds,/ and an old tomcat sits and frowns)

Rhyme scheme

Pattern of a poem's end rhymes (ex: abab, abcb, etc)

Stressed and unstressed syllables

Word with more than one syllable has one said with more force than the other syllable(s) [ex: about - a BOUT; doctor - DOC tor, etc)

Meter

Regular pattern of syllables in lines of poetry (specifics include iambic pentameter, rhyming, etc.)

Free verse

Poetry that doesn't have much meter or rhyme (ex: The fog comes/ on little cat feet. It sits looking/ over harbor and city/ on silent haunches/ and then moves on)

Iambic pentameter

Poetry in lines of 10 syllables, alternating stressed and unstressed syllables (ex: Shakespeare's writing)

Sonnet

14 line poem written in iambic pentameter; usually divided into three quatrains and a couplet (ex: often Shakespeare)

Polysyndeton

Writer creates a list of items which are all separated by conjunctions (FANBOYS) [ex: Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers]

Pun

Word that has two or more meanings is used in a humorous way (ex: Denial is a river in Egypt)

Rhetoric

Art of effective communication (ex: appeals, ethos, logos, pathos, etc)

Aristotle's Rhetorical Triangle

Relationships between writer, audience, and subject (ex: ethos, logos, pathos)

Rhetorical Question

Question not asked for information but for effect (ex: Do you want to be a failure for the rest of your life?)

Romanticism

Literature with idealistic view of people and the world and an emphasis on nature; doesn't rely on traditional themes and structures (ex: Pride and Prejudice, Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights)

Sarcasm

Generally bitter comment that is ironically or satirically worded (ex: Yes, well, in that respect and many others, American high schools do rather resemble prisons)

Satire

Use of devices to ridicule people's stupidity or vices (ex: political cartoons)

Sentence

Group of words that expresses a complete thought (ex: This test is going to be hard)

Appositive

Word or group of words placed next to noun to add to its meaning (ex: Mrs. Severance, the English teacher)

Clause

Grammatical unit that has both subject and verb (ex: She drove to school)

Independent clause

Expresses complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence (ex: My cat attacks the tree)

Dependent (subordinate) clause

Can't stand alone as sentence and must be with independent clause (ex: During Christmas)

Balanced sentence

Sentence where two parallel elements are set like equal weights on a scale (ex: Buy a bucket of chicken and have a barrel of fun)

Compound sentence

Has at least two independent clauses but no dependent clauses (ex: This house is too expensive, and that house is too small)

Complex sentence

Has one independent clause and at least one dependent clause (ex: Although he was wealthy, he was still unhappy)

Cumulative sentence

When the writer begins with an independent clause, then adds subordinate elements; aka loose sentence (opposite of periodic sentence) [ex: I could tell my father is mad from his silence and indifference towards us]

Periodic sentence

Main idea is not completed until the end of the sentence; writer begins with subordinate elements and ends with the main clause (ex: In spite of heavy snow and cold temperatures, the game continued)

Simple sentence

Has only one independent clause (ex: She was on her phone all day)

Declarative sentence

States an idea; does not give a command or request, nor does it ask a question (ex: The sky is blue)

Imperative sentence

Issues a command (ex: Turn left at the next light)

Interrogative sentence

Asks a question with what, which, who, whom, and whose (ex: When are you going to study?)

Style

Choices in diction, tone, and syntax a writer makes

Symbol

Represents or stands for something else; usually concrete that represents abstract idea (ex: Four-leaf clovers represent good fortune or good luck)

Syntax/sentence variety

Grammatical arrangement of words

Theme

Central idea or message of a work; (ex: Power tends to corrupt those who hold it)

Thesis

Sentence(s) that expresses the author's stance on a subject

Tone

A writer's attitude toward his subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language and organization

Understatement

Ironic minimizing of fact used for humor; presents something as less significant than it is (ex: Upon seeing a red stain on a white shirt: "Really, it's hardly noticeable")

Litotes

Denying the opposite of the statement which otherwise would be used; retains effect of understatement or becomes intensifying expression (ex: That wasn't a bad performance v That was a good performance)

Apostrophe

Address to an absent or imaginary person (ex: Juliet's soliloquy to Romeo on her balcony when he wasn't there)