AP Lang Rhetorical Terms

Alliteration

Repetition of the same sound beginning several words or syllables in sequence. 

Allusion

Brief reference to a person, event, or place (real or fictitious) or to a work of art

Ambiguity (Ambiguous)

The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence or passage

Analogy

A comparison between two seemingly dissimilar things. Often, an analogy uses something simple or familiar to explain something unfamiliar or complex

Anaphora

Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, or lines

Anecdote

A brief story used to illustrate a point or claim

Annotation

The taking of notes directly on a text

Antimetabole

Repetition of words in reverse order

Antithesis

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

Aphorism

A short/abrupt statement of known authorship that expresses a general truth and moral principle

Archaic Diction

Old-fashioned or outdated choice of words

Argument

A process of reasoned inquiry. A persuasive discourse resulting in a coherent and consideration movement from a claim to a conclusion

Assertion

A statement that presents a claim or thesis

Asyndeton

Omission of conjunction between coordinate phrases, clauses, or word

Audience

The listener, viewer, or reader of a text. Most texts are likely to have multiple audiences

Claim

Also called an assertion or proposition, a claim states the argument’s main idea or position. A claim differs from a topic or subject in that a claim has to be arguable

Closed Thesis

 A closed thesis is a statement of the main idea of the argument that also previews the major points the writer intends to make

Colloquialism (Colloquial Speech)

 Words or phrases that have a conversational feel and are not generally used in formal written English

Complex Sentence

A sentence that includes one independent clause and at least one dependent clause

Connotation

Meanings or associations that readers have with a word beyond its dictionary definition, or denotation. Connotations are often positive or negative, and they often greatly affect the author’s tone

Context

 The circumstances, atmosphere, attitudes, and events surrounding a text

Cumulative Sentence

Sentence that completes the main idea at the beginning of the sentence and then builds and adds on

Denotation

The strict, literal dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion, attitude or color

Diction

A speaker’s choice of words. Analysis of diction looks at these choices and what they add to the speaker’s message

Emphasis

Emphasis allows the writer to place importance on a particular idea. By positioning an idea in a certain place structurally, by proportioning a greater amount of words, by isolating a key word or phrase, or by repeating the wording, the writer creates emphasis. The ideas that the author emphasizes creates meaning in the piece. (types include Position,
Proportion, Isolation, Repetition)

Ethos

Greek for “character.” Speakers appeal to ethos to demonstrate that they are credible and trustworthy to speak on a given topic. Ethos is established by both who you are and what you say

Euphemism

Greek for “good speech,” euphemisms are a more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts. May be used to adhere to political correctness or to add humor or ironic understatement

Figurative Language (figure of speech)

Nonliteral language, sometimes referred to as tropes or metaphorical language, often evoking strong imagery, figures of speech often compare one thing to another either explicitly (simile) implicitly (metaphor). Other forms of figurative language include personification, paradox, overstatement (hyperbole), understatement, metonymy, synecdoche, and irony

Hyperbole

Deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or to produce a comic or ironic effect; an overstatement to make a point

Imagery

A description of how something looks, feels, tastes, smells, or sounds. Imagery may use literal or figurative language to appeal to the senses

Imperative sentence

Sentence used to command or instruct

Inversion

 Inverted order of words in a sentence (variation of the Subject-Verb-Object order).

Irony

A figure of speech that occurs when a speaker or character says one thing but means something else, or when what is said is the opposite of what is expected, creating a noticeable incongruity

Jargon

Specialized terminology used by a particular group of people. Obscure and often pretentious language

Juxtaposition

Placement of two things closely together to emphasize similarities or difference

Logos

Greek for “embodied thought.” Speakers appeal to logos, or reason, by offering clear, rational ideas and using specific details, examples, facts, statistics, or expert testimony to back them up

Metaphor

Figure of speech that compares two things without using like or as

Metonymy

Figure of speech in which something is represented by another thing that is related to it or symbolic of it

Modifier

An adjective, adverb, phrase, or clause that modifies a noun, pronoun, or verb. The purpose of a modifier is usually to describe, focus, or qualify

Mood

The feeling or atmosphere created by a text

Narration

 In classical oration, the factual and background information, establishing why a subject or problem needs addressing; it precedes the confirmation, or laying out of evidence to support claims made in the argument

Nominalization

The process of changing a verb into a noun. 

Discuss becomes discussion. Depend becomes dependence

Occasion

The time and place a speech is given or a piece is written

Open thesis

An open thesis is one that does not list all of the points the writer intends to cover in an essay

Oxymoron

A paradox made up of two seemingly contradictory words

Paradox

A statement or situation that is seemingly contradictory on the surface, but delivers an ironic truth

Parallelism

Similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases, or clauses

Pathos

Greek for “suffering” or “experience.” Speakers appeal to pathos to emotionally motivate their audience. More specific appeals to pathos might play on the audience’s values, desires, and hopes, on the one hand, or fears and prejudices, on the other

Periodic sentence

Sentence whose main clause is withheld until the end

Persona

Greek for “mask.” The face or character that a speaker shows to his or her audience

Personification

Attribution of a lifelike quality to an inanimate object or an idea

Polysyndeton

The deliberate use of multiple conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words

Propaganda

The spread of ideas and information to further a cause. In its negative sense, propaganda is the use of rumors, lies, disinformation, and scare tactics in order to damage or promote a cause

Purpose

The goal the speaker wants to achieve.

Rhetoric

Aristotle defined rhetoric as “the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.” In other words, it is the art of finding ways of persuading an audience

Rhetorical Appeals

Rhetorical techniques used to persuade an audience by emphasizing what they find most important or compelling. The three major appeals are to ethos (character), logos (reason), and pathos (emotion)

Rhetorical Question

 Figure of speech in the form of a question posed for rhetorical effect rather than for the purpose of getting an answer.

Satire

The use of irony or sarcasm to critique society or an individual.

Scheme

Artful syntax; a deviation from the normal order of words. Common schemes include parallelism, juxtaposition, antithesis, and antimetabole

Simile

A figure of speech used to explain or clarify an idea by comparing it explicitly to something else, using the words like, as, or as though

Style

 A writer’s specific way of saying things. Style includes arrangement of ideas, word choice, syntax, and figurative language. We can analyze and describe an author’s personal style and make judgments on how appropriate it is to the author’s purpose

Synecdoche

Figure of speech that uses a part to represent the whole

Syntax

The arrangement of words into phrases, clauses, and sentences. This includes word order (subject-verb-object, for instance, or an inverted structure); the length and structure of sentences (simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex); and such schemes as parallelism, juxtaposition, antithesis, and antimetabole

Theme

 A writer’s thoughts on a topic. It is not JUST the topic, but what the author develops in terms of what he believes about the topic

Tone

A speaker’s attitude toward the subject conveyed by the speaker’s stylistic and rhetorical choices

Trope

Artful diction; from the Greek word for “turning,” a figure of speech such as metaphor, simile, hyperbole, metonymy, or synecdoche

Understatement

 A figure of speech in which something is presented as less important, dire, urgent, good, and so on, than it actually is, often for satiric or comical effect. Also called litotes, it is the opposite of hyperbole.

Vernacular

The speech patterns of a particular group of people or region

Voice

The unique flavor of a piece based upon the author. An author adds his or her voice to a piece by creating a tone with diction, syntax, imagery, etc. The author’s voice is what makes his or her writing personal and unique

Zeugma

Use of two different words in a grammatically similar way that produces different, often incongruous, meanings