11th Grade ELA: Early American Literature & Rhetoric Flashcards

Vocabulary study cards reviewing key concepts, literary terms, rhetorical devices, key figures, and texts across Early American Literature and Rhetoric movements.

Puritan Plain Style

A style of writing characterized by short, direct statements, simple everyday vocabulary, and references to ordinary household objects, while avoiding overly ornate or decorative language.

Inversion (Syntax Alteration)

Changing the standard grammatical order of words in a sentence or poetic line to fit meter or rhyme scheme (e.g., "In love let's so persevere").

Conceit (Extended Metaphor)

An elaborate, far-fetched comparison between two vastly different things that is developed over several lines or an entire poem.

Aphorism

A brief, memorable statement that expresses a general truth or moral principle about life.

Allusion

An indirect reference to a famous person, event, literary work, myth, or biblical passage used to build meaning.

Mythological Allusion

An indirect reference to classical mythology, such as referencing the "song of the siren" lulling listeners.

Biblical Allusion

An indirect reference to scripture, such as warning against being "betrayed with a kiss."

Logos

A rhetorical appeal to logic, reasoning, facts, and structured evidence, such as detailed lists of grievances.

Pathos

A rhetorical appeal to emotions, fears, or desires through vivid imagery and passionate language.

Ethos

A rhetorical appeal to moral character, credibility, or shared ethical values.

Native American Perspective on Nature

A worldview that saw humans as deeply interconnected parts of a living, sacred natural world rather than as owners of land.

European Colonial Perspective on Land

A view focused on land ownership, wilderness transformation, and establishing permanent settlements.

William Bradford

Author of Of Plymouth Plantation who wrote historical accounts in the third-person point of view ("they," "them") to create an authoritative, objective record of colonial struggles and inspire future generations to maintain religious values.

Anne Bradstreet

Puritan poet who used domestic themes and paradoxes in her poetry to explore deep human love combined with belief in eternal life.

Edward Taylor

Puritan poet who used elaborate conceits, such as textiles and weaving, to reflect spiritual devotion.

Jonathan Edwards

A prominent preacher during The Great Awakening who used intense emotional appeals (pathos) and vivid imagery—such as sinners dangling like spiders over hellfire—to move listeners to repentance.

The Great Awakening

A religious revival in the $1730\text{s}-1740\text{s}$ led by prominent preachers focusing on spiritual devotion and intense emotional appeals.

The Enlightenment (Age of Reason)

An intellectual movement that moved focus away from strict religious dogma toward human logic, scientific inquiry, individual rights, and political freedom.

Patrick Henry

Author of Speech in the Virginia Convention who used powerful classical and biblical allusions to warn colonists against false hope and urge immediate revolutionary action.

Benjamin Franklin

American literary and political figure who promoted self-improvement, diplomacy, and practical wisdom through aphorisms in Poor Richard's Almanack, and urged unity through humility at the Constitutional Convention.

Thomas Jefferson

Author of The Declaration of Independence who used structured logos (listing factual proofs) and Enlightenment philosophy (John Locke's social contract) to justify separation from Great Britain.

Thomas Paine

Author of The American Crisis who used strong metaphors like "summer soldier" and "sunshine patriot" to criticize those who only support liberty during easy times.

Gothic Literature & Dark Romanticism

A movement focused on psychological torment, macabre events, remote/bleak settings, and the human capacity for evil or guilt.

Single Effect Principle

A principle established by Edgar Allan Poe stating that every descriptive detail in a story works to produce one unified emotional impact (such as dread or terror).

Edgar Allan Poe

Author of "The Fall of the House of Usher" who established the Single Effect Principle in literature.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Author influenced by ancestral guilt surrounding the Salem Witch Trials who used ambiguity and symbolic parables to explore hidden sin.

Washington Irving

Author of "The Devil and Tom Walker" who used satire and humor to critique human greed and superficial religiosity.

Transcendentalism

A core philosophy asserting that ultimate truths lie beyond basic sensory experience, emphasizing individual intuition, self-reliance, and a spiritual connection with nature.

"Transparent Eyeball" Metaphor

A metaphor introduced by Ralph Waldo Emerson in Nature that describes losing self-centered vanity to achieve total spiritual perception.

Self-Reliance (Emerson)

A work by Ralph Waldo Emerson arguing that envy is ignorance and "imitation is suicide", noting that great nonconformists (Socrates, Jesus, Galileo) are often misunderstood at first.

Concord Hymn

A work by Ralph Waldo Emerson that commemorated the early battle of the Revolutionary War.

Walden

A work by Henry David Thoreau about simplifying life to "live deep and suck out all the marrow of life".

Civil Disobedience

An essay by Henry David Thoreau comparing government to a "wooden gun," showing that government lacks real power without the moral backing of individual citizens.

Walt Whitman

Poet who captured the broad, energetic spirit of American expansionism and diverse democracy through expressive, bold poetry.