APLANG Rhetoric Vocab Quiz #1

Rhetorical Situation

1. The rhetorical situation  of a text collectively refers to the exigence, purpose, audience, writer/speaker, context, and message (see additional handout).

Ad homninem

Arguement against a person

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses

Anecdote

1. A brief narrative often used to illustrate an idea or make a point.

Apostrophe

 An utterance that addresses a person not present or a personified thing. Example: “Oh, you stupid computer! Why won’t you cooperate?”

Assonance

1. The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a group of words in prose or poetry.

2. “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?”

Antithesis

A rhetorical opposition or contrast of ideas by means of a grammatical arrangement of words, clauses, or sentences

Annotation

1.  A brief explanation, summary, or evaluation of a text or work of literature.

Cacophony

1. (n.) Grating, inharmonious sounds; cacophonous (adj.)

Compare and Contrast

1.  A mode of discourse in which two or more things are compared and contrasted. Comparison often refers to similarities, contrast to differences.

Connotation

The suggested or implied meaning of a word or definition. Contrast with denotation.

Denotation

 The dictionary definition of a word. Contrast with connotation.

Descriptive Detail

1. Graphic, concrete, precise, and accurate presentation of characteristics of a person, place, or thing.

Diction

The use of words in oral and written discourse.

Didatic

Having an instructive purpose; intending to convey information or teach a lesson, sometimes in a dry, pompous manner

Empathy

1. A feeling of association or identification with an object or person.

Epigram

1. A concise but ingenious, witty, and thoughtful statement.

Epistrophe

A stylistic device. The repetition of words or phrases at the ends of the clauses or sentences

Exigence

1.  In general use, exigence means “a case or situation that demands prompt action or remedy.” It carries the idea of an urgent task or an emergency. In the rhetorical situation, the exigence may not be quite so urgent, but it does refer to the impetus or problem that evokes a response. The exigence prompts a writer or speaker to address the situation. It is the spark that ignites the need for the writer/speaker to address the situation./

What Prompts a writer to speak/address an issue in soceity