AP Lang terms

Allusion

Brief reference to a person place or event.

Analogy

A comparison between two seemingly dissimilar things

Anaphora

A device in which the writer repeats a word or phrase at the beginning of multiple clauses or sentences.

Anecdote

A short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person that speakers use to illustrate a point

antanagoge

 A way of ordering points to downplay negative points, so the reader feels less strongly about them. This is done by placing a negative point next to a positive one.

antimetabole

Repetition of words in reverse order. 

antithesis

Opposition, or contrast, of ideas or words in a parallel construction.

Aphorism

These are short, concise, and memorable statements that express a wise idea or truth. They motivate people to action and create the impression that the issues at stake are not necessarily tied to the exact circumstances but that they imply a greater truth.

apostrophe

A rhetorical device in which the writer breaks out of the flow of the writing to directly address a person or personified object.

Call to Action

Conclude any piece of persuasive writing with a call to action.  Ask your audience to do something.  Ask them to write to their congressman, to boycott a product, to disseminate information

Climax

Organizing single words, to short clauses, to longer sentences, to entire paragraphs so they proceed from the least to the most important to slowly build your reader up to a state of excitement, then deliver your crowning statements.

concession to the opposition

 Concedes a point or two to win over opponents and to show the speaker is open-minded.  The speaker is able to prove his argument is valid despite these concessions.  In a strong argument, concessions are usually accompanied by a refutation challenging the validity of the opposing argument.

distinctio

The writer elaborates on the definition of a word to make sure there is no misunderstanding.