1.1 AICE English Test Study Guide

Text

anything that conveys a set of meanings to the person who examines it

context

the situation or background to a text or its author

social context

all about society and what you need to know about your society in a situation.

society has rules around behavior and interaction

historical context

all about what was unique or specific about a certain time in history

includes cultural and social contexts that are now in the past

cultural context

all about understanding cultural expectations and norms.

different from social context because its specific to cultures or subcultures values, not the values of your society as a whole

economic context

describe what you need to know about the economics of a situation

audience

the single person or group of people for whom the piece was written. audience can be determined at least to some extent, by the looking and the language of the piece.

it may be important to differentiate between the intended audience and the eventual audience when determining the meaning of a text

purposes for writing

personal writing

writing to review and comment

writing to persuade and advice

writing to argue and discuss

writing to narrate and describe

purpose

the reason why a text has been written and what the writer is seeking to achieve.

register

the particular language and grammar usage appropriate to a group of people, role, or situation

speech communities

groups that share values and attitudes about language use, varieties and practices

scale of formality/register continuum

five degrees of formality in language; intimate, casual, consultative, formal, frozen

colloquialism

everyday language used by people of a certain region

slang

words that are non-standard in a given language and is generally spoken to show inclusion in certain social groups

jargon

specialized or technical language that is only understood by those who are members of a group

lexis

designates the complete set of all possible words in a language

diction

refers to the choice of words and phrases in speech or writing

denotation

dictionary defintion

connotation

emotion or human reaction to a word

tone

the stylistic means by which an author conveys their attitude in a text

mood

the way someone feels about the context that they are reading

a temporary state of mind or feeling