Glossary of Literary and Rhetorical Devices for AP Lang

Active Voice

the subject of the sentence performs the action.
this is a more direct and preferred style of writing in most cases.
- ex. "Anthony drove while Toni searched for the house."
opposite is passive voice

Allusion

an indirect reference to something with which the reader is supposed to be familiar with

Alter-ego

a character that is used by the author to speak the author's own thoughts
when an author speaks directly to the audience through a character
- ex. in "The Tempest", Shakespeare tells the audience about his retirement through the main character in the play, Prospero
DO NOT confuse this with persona

Anecdote

a brief recounting of a relevant episode
often inserted into fictional and non fictional texts as a way of developing a point or injecting humor

Antecedent

the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun
- ex. "If I could command the wealth of all the world by lifting my finger, I would not pay such a price for it."
question on the exam: what is the "it" they are referring to?

Classicism

art or literature characterized by a realistic view of people and the world, sticks to traditional themes and structures

Comic Relief

when a humorous scene is inserted into a serious story, in order to somewhat lighten the mood
- ex. the "gatekeeper scene" in Macbeth

Diction

word choice, particularly as an element of style
different types of words have significant effects on meaning
when talking about this, you should talk about which style of writing it is

Colloquial

ordinary of familiar type conversation

Colloquialism

common or familiar type of saying, similar to an adage or an aphorism

Connotation

rather than the dictionary definition, the associations suggested by a word
implied meaning rather than literal meaning
- ex. "policeman", "cop", and "the man" all denote the same literal meaning of police officer, but they imply different things

Denotation

the literal, explicit meaning of a word, without its connotations

Jargon

the diction used by a group which practices a similar profession or activity
lawyers speak using particular language

Vernacular

language or dialect of a particular country
language or dialect of a regional clan or group
plain everyday speech

Didactic

a term used to describe fiction, nonfiction, or poetry that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking

Adage

a folk saying with a lesson
- ex. "A rolling stone gathers no moss."
similar to aphorism and colloquialism

Allegory

a story, fictional or non fictional, in which characters, things, and events represent qualities or concepts
the interaction of these characters, things, and events is meant to reveal an abstraction or a truth
- ex. "Animal Farm" by George Orwell

Aphorism

a terse statement which expresses a general truth or moral principle
can be a memorable summation of author's point
- ex. "Poor Richards's Almanac" and "God helps them that helps themselves."

Ellipsis

the deliberate omission of a word or phase from prose done for effect by the author
- ex. "The whole day, rain, torrents of rain."

Ellipse

which is the three periods used to show omitted text in a quotation

Euphemism

a more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts
sometimes they are used for political correctness
- ex. "Physically challenged", "in place of 'crippled' "
sometimes a euphemism is used to exaggerate correctness to add humor
- ex. "Vertically short" in place of "short"

Figurative Language

opposite of literal language
writing that is not meant to be taken literally

Analogy

comparison of one pair of variables to a parallel set of variables
when a writer uses this, they argue that the relationship between the first pair of variables is the same as the relationship between the second pair of variables
- ex. "America is to the world as the hippo is to the jungle."

Hyperbole

exaggeration
- ex. "My mother will kill me if I am late."

Idiom

a common, often used expression that doesn't make sense if you take it literally
- ex. "I got chewed out by my coach."

Metaphor

making an implied comparison, not using "like" "as" or other such words
- ex. "My feet are popsicles."

Extended metaphor

when the metaphor is continued later in the written work
- ex. when I continued to call my feet popsicles in the later chapters

Conceit

particularly elaborate extended metaphor

Metonymy

replacing an actual word or idea, with a related word or concept
- ex. "Relations between London and Washington have been strained" does not actually mean that the relationships between the two cities are strained, but the leaders of the US and England
often used with body parts

Synecdoche

a kind of metonymy when a whole is represented by naming one of its parts, or vice versa
- ex. "The cattle rancher owned 500 head." or "Check out my new wheels."

Simile

using words such as "like" or "as" to make a direct comparison between two very different things
- ex. "My feet are so cold they feel like popsicles."

Synesthesia

a description involving a "crossing of the senses"
- ex. "A purplish scent filled the room." ; "I was deafened by his brightly colored clothing."

Personification

giving human-like qualities to something that is not human
- ex. "The tired old truck groaned as it inched up the hill."

Foreshadowing

when an author gives hints about what will occur later in a story

Genre

the major category into which a literary work fits
the basic divisions of literature are prose, poetry, and drama

Gothic

writing characterized by gloom, mystery, fear, and/or
also refers to an architectural style of the middle ages, often seen in cathedrals of this period

Imagery

word or words that create a picture in the reader's mind
usually this involves the five senses
authors often use imagery in conjunction with metaphors, similes, or figures of speech

Invective

a long, emotionally violent, attack using strong, abusive language

Irony

when the opposite of what you expect to happen does

Verbal Irony

when you say something and mean the opposite/something different
- ex. if your gym teacher wants you to run a mile in eight minutes or faster but calls it a "walk in the park" it would be verbal irony

Sarcasm

when your voice tone is bitter

Dramatic Irony

when the audience of a drama, play, movie, etc. knows something that the character doesn't and would be surprised to find out
- ex. in many horror movies, we (the audience) know who the killer is, which the victim to-be has no idea who is doing the slaying. sometimes the character trusts the killer completely (ironically) they shouldn't

Situational Irony

found in the plot (or story line) of a book, story, or movie
sometimes it makes you laugh because it's funny how things turn out
- ex. Johnny spent two hours planning on sneaking into the movie theater and missed the movie. When he finally did manage to sneak inside he found out that kids were admitted free that day

Juxtaposition

placing things side by side for the purposes of comparison
authors use this in order to make a point
- ex. an author might compare the average day of a typical American with that of someone in the third world in order to make a point of social commentary

Mood

the atmosphere created by the literature and accomplished through word choice
syntax is a creator of this since word order, sentence length, and strength complexity also affect pacing and this
setting, tone, and events can all affect this

Motif

a recurring idea in a piece of literature
- ex. in "To Kill a Mockingbird", the idea that "you never really understand another person until you consider things from his or her point of view" is this because the idea is brought up several times over the course of the novel

Oxymoron

when apparently contradictory terms are grouped together and suggest a paradox
- ex. "wise fool"; "eloquent silence"; "jumbo shrimp"