ap lang rhetorical terms #3

aesthetic reading

Reading to experience the world of the text.

complex sentence

a sentence with one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses

compound-complex sentence

A sentence with two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clause

compund sentence

A sentence with two or more independent clauses

compound subject

The construction in which two or more nouns, noun phrases or noun clauses the grammatical subject of a clause

conflict

the struggles of characters within themselves with others or with the world around them 

connotation

the implied meaning of a word in contrast to its directly expressed dictionary meaning

context

the convergence of time, place, audience, and motivating factors in which a piece of writing is situated

contradiction 

one of the types of rhetorical invention included under the common topic of relationships. Contradiction urges the speaker or writer to invent an example or a proof that is counter to the main idea or argument 

data ( as evidence )

facts, statistics and examples that a speaker or writer offers in a support claim, generalization or conclusion

deductive reasoning

reasoning that begins with a general principle and concludes with a specific instance that demonstrates the general principle

delivery

the presentation or format of a composition

denotation

the “dictionary definition” of a word, in contrast to its implied meaning 

diction

word choice, which is viewed on scales of formality/informality, concreteness/abstraction, derivation, and denotative/connotative value 

double entendre

the double ( or multiple ) meanings of a group of words that the speaker or writer has purposely left ambiguous

effect

the emotional or psychological impact a text has on its reader or listener

efferent reading 

reading to garner information from a text,. reading to “take away “ particular bits of information. here, the reader is not interested in the rythems of the language or the prose style but is focused obtaining a piece of information 

allegory

A piece of visual or narrative media uses one thing to “stand in for” a different hidden idea. It’s a little bit like an algebraic equation like y=2x but in the form of art. Like in algebra, when we talk about meaning in allegory, we have two different variables we’re thinking about but we dont call them x and y. instead we call them the tenor and the vehicle…e

alliteration 

the repition of constant sounds at the beginning or middle of two or more adjacent words 

allusion

a reference to a written or spoken text to another text or to some particular body of knowledge

anadiplosis

the repetition of the last word of one clause at the beginning of the following clause

anaphora

The repetition of a group of words at the beginning of successive clauses

anacedote

a brief narrative offered in a text to capture the audiences attention or to

anticipated objection

The technique a writer or speaker uses in an argumentative text to address and answer objections even though the audience hasn not had the opportunity to voice these objections 

antimetabole

the repetition of words in successive clauses in reverse grammatical order for example “youcan take the boy out of the country but you cant take the country out of the boy”

antithesis

he juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas, often in parallel structure for example "“place your virtues on a pedestal ; put your virtues under a rock”

anthimeria

the substitution of one part of speech for another - for example “ the poet says we milestone our lives

apologist

a person or character who makes a case for something controversial even contentious position

apology

an elaborate statement justifying some controversial even contentious position

appeal to authority

in a text the reference to words, actions or beliefs of a person in authority as a means of supporting a claim, generalization or conclusion 

appositive 

a noun or noun phrases that follows another noun immediately or defines or amplifies its meaning 

argument

a carefully constructed, well representation of how a writer sees and issue, problem or subject

arrangement 

In a spoken or written text, the placement of ideas for effect

assonance

the repetition of vowel sounds in the stressed syllables of two or more adjacent words

assumption

An opinion, a perspective, or a belief that a writer or speaker thinks the audience holds

asyndeton 

The omission of conjunctions between related clauses for example “ I came, I saw, I conquered”

attitude

he manner in which an action is carried out.

audience

The person or persons who listen to a spoken text or read a written one and are capable of responding to it

claim

The ultimate conclusion, generalization, or point that a syllogism or enthymeme expresses, the point, backed up by the support ,of an argument

begging of the question 

The situation that results when a writer or speaker constructs an argument on an assumption that the audience does not accept 

Ellipsis

The omission of words, the meaning of which is provided by the overall context of the passage

enthymeme

Logical reasoning with one promise left unstated

Epistrophe

The repetition of a group of words at the end of successive clauses for example, they saw no evil, they spoke no evil, and they heard no evil”

epithet

A word or phrase adding a characteristic to a persons name for example “Richard the lion-hearted”

Ethos

The appeal of a text to the credibility and character of the speaker, writer or narrator

Euphemism

An indirect expression of unpleasant information in such a way to lessen its impact for example, saying a persons position was eliminated rather than say the person was fired.

Evidence

The facts, statistics, anecdotes and examples that a speaker or writer offers in support of a claim, generalization or conclusion

Extended analogy

An extended passage arguing that if two things are similar in one or two ways, they are probably similar in other ways as well

Extended example

An example that is carried through several sentences or paragraphs

Fable

A narrative in which fictional characters often animals take actions that have ethical or moral significance

Generalization

A point that a speaker or writer generates on the basis of considering a number or particular examples

Genre

A piece of writing classified by type for example, letter, narrative, eulogy, or editorial

Heuristic

A systematic strategy or method for solving problems

Hyperbole

An exaggeration for effect

Image

A passage of text that evokes sensation or emotional intensity

Imagery

Language that evokes particular sensations or emotionally rich experiences in a reader

Implied metaphor

A metaphor embedded in a sentence rather than expressed directly as a sentence. For example “his voice cascaded through the hallways” contains an implied metaphor “his voice was a cascade of emotion” contains a direct metaphor

Inductive reasoning

Reasoning that begins by citing a number of specific instances or examples and then shows how collectively they constitute a general principle

Inference

A conclusion that a reader or listener reaches by means of their own thinking rather than by being told directly by a text

Irony

Writing or speaking that implies the contrary of what is actually written or spoken

Jargon

The specialized vocabulary of a particular group

litotes

understatement—- for example, “ Her performance ran the gamut of emotion from Ato B “

logic

the art of reasoning

logos

the appeal of a text based on the logical structure of its argument or central ideas

loose sentence

a sentence that add modifying elements after the subject verb and complement

metonymy

An entity referred to by one of its attributes or associations, for example “ the admissions offices claims applications have risen”

mnemonic device 

A systematic aid to memory

mood

the feeling that a text is intended to produce in the audience

narrative intrusion

a comment that is made directly by the reader by breaking into the forward plot movement

oxymoron

juxtaposed words with seemingly contradictory meanings- for example, “jumbo shrimp”

paradox

a statement that seems untrue on the surface but it is true neverless

parallelism

a set of similarly structured words or phrases or clauses that appears in a sentence or paragraph. parallelism is the repetition of grammatical elements in a piece of writing to create a harmonious effect. Sometimes, it involves repeating the exact same words, such as in the common phrases “ easy come, easy go” and “veni,vidi,vici” ( I camr , I saw, I conquered".” other times , it involves echoing the pattern of construction, meter or meaning

pathos

the appeal of a text to the emotions, values, or interests of the audience

periodic sentence

a sentence with modifying elements included before the verb_verb and/or complement

periphrasis

the substitution of an attributive word or phrase for a proper name, or the use of a proper name to suggest a personality characteristic. For example, “Pete Rose-better known as Charlie Hustle” or “That young pop singer thinks shes a real Madonna, doesn’t she?”

persona

The Character that a writer or speaker conveys to the audience

purpose

The goal a writer or speaker hopes to achieve with the text-for example, to clarify difficult material, to inform, to convince , and/ or persuade. Also called aim and intention

recursive 

referring to the moving back and forth from invention to revision in the process of writing

refutation

the part of a speech in which the speaker would anticipate objections to the point being raised and counter them

repetition

a text repeated use of sounds, words, phrases, or clauses to emphasize meaning or achieve effect

rhetoric

the art of analying all the choices involving language that a writer, speaker, reader, or listener might make in a situation so that the text becomes meaningful, purposeful and effective; the specific features of texts, written or spoken, that cause them to be meaningful purposeful and effective for readers or listeners in a situation