Rhetorical Vocab #2

appeal to authority

In a text, the reference to words, action, or beliefs of a person in authority as a means of supporting a claim, generalizing, or conclusion

appositive

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

argument

carefully constructed, well-supported representation of how a writer sees an issue, problem, or subject 

arrangement 

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

assonance

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

assumption

an option, 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 

the 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

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

claim 

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

Alliteration

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

allusion 

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

anadiplosis

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

anaphora 

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

anecdote 

brief narrative offered in a text to capture the audience’s attention or to support a generalization or claim 

anticipated objection

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

antimetabole

repetition of words in successive clauses in reverse grammatical order- for example, “You can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy”

antithesis 

Juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas, often in parallel structure- for example, “Place your virtue on a pedestal; put your vices under a rock”

Anthimeria

The substation of one part of speech for another-for example, “the poet says we ‘milestone our lives.” or “the little old lady turtled down the road”

apologist

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

apology

an elaborate statement justifying some controversial position