Key Rhetorical Terms for AP Language

Alliteration

the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words. Peter's piglet pranced priggishly.

Allusion

an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference. Don't act like a Scrooge! (Literature — A Christmas Carol)

Concession

a point yielded to an opposing perspective during an argument. It allows a writer to acknowledge that information presented by an opponent has some amount of validity and should be considered.

Connotation

the feelings or emotions associated with a word; a further understanding of a word's meaning.

Context

the circumstances and setting that provide background information about an event, statement, or idea. The context helps you more fully understand something. Social — social contexts are all about society and what you need to know about your society in any situation. Society has rules around behavior and interaction.

Diction

the selection of words an author uses to create a specific impact or tone in their writing.

Polemic

a speech or piece of writing expressing a strongly critical attack on or controversial opinion about someone or something. It is a form of contentious rhetoric aimed at supporting a specific position by undermining the opposing position.

Persona

the voice or character chosen by an author to tell a story, often distinct from the author's own identity. It's a literary device used to shape the reader's perception and understanding of the narrative.

Propaganda

information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view.

Refutation

the action of proving a statement or theory to be wrong or false.

Rhetoric

the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially the use of figures of speech and other compositional techniques.

Rhetorical (Aristotelian) triangle

a framework for understanding and constructing persuasive arguments. It consists of three key elements: Ethos (credibility), Logos (logic), and Pathos (emotion).

Ethos

focuses on the speaker's credibility and character. Building ethos involves establishing expertise, trustworthiness, and good intentions.

Logos

relies on logical reasoning and evidence. Logos involves presenting clear and reasoned arguments, supporting them with facts, statistics, and data, and using a logical structure to make a point.

Pathos

appeals to the audience's emotions and feelings. Pathos can involve using vivid language, storytelling, and emotionally charged imagery to create an emotional connection with the audience.

Syntax

the arrangement of words and phrases in sentences, affecting rhythm, flow, and emphasis.

Anaphora

the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses. 'We will not surrender, we will not yield, we will not be defeated.'

Antimetabole

a rhetorical device where a phrase is repeated, but with the order of words reversed, creating a balanced and memorable effect. It's often used to emphasize a connection between two ideas or to make a statement more impactful.

Antithesis

A rhetorical device where contrasting ideas are juxtaposed, often with a parallel structure to emphasize the contrast. "My only love sprung from my only hate."

Cumulative/loose sentence

A type of sentence where the main idea or independent clause comes first, followed by phrases and dependent clauses. "I knew I had found a friend in the woman, who herself was a lonely soul, never having known the love of a man or a child."

Declarative sentence

A type of sentence that makes a statement, provides information, or expresses an opinion. It typically ends with a period and serves to convey facts or a point of view. "The sun rises in the east."

Elegiac

Relating to or characteristic of an elegy. Elegy: a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.

Hortatory

Pieces of writing that aim to persuade the reader to take a specific action or adopt a particular course of conduct. They are characterized by exhorting, encouraging, and urging the audience to believe or do something.

Imperative sentence

A type of sentence that gives a command, request, instruction, or invitation. It directly tells someone to do something, and the subject (usually 'you') is implied rather than explicitly stated. "Bring me a glass of water."

Inversion

The purposeful rearrangement of words or phrases within a sentence, breaking from the standard subject-verb-object structure. This literary device is used to create emphasis, suspense, a formal tone, or a poetic effect, often drawing attention to a specific word or phrase. The night is tender. → Tender is the night.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction. "The food was awfully good."

Periodic sentence

A sentence where the main clause, or the main point, comes at the end, after one or more dependent clauses. This structure creates a sense of suspense or emphasis, as the reader or listener must wait until the end to grasp the full meaning. "As I parted the grassy curtain, I found myself nose to nose with an angry hippopotamus."

Polysyndeton

The use of repeated conjunctions between words or clauses in a sentence to emphasize what's being said. "He is brave, honest, good, and decent." "He is brave and honest and good and decent."

Rhetorical question

A question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer.

Satire

The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.

Contrapuntal turnaround

Switching words around in a phrase. "Never negotiate out of fear, but never fear to negotiate."

Cynosure

Something or someone that intensely attracts attention or is the focal point of interest. It can also be used metaphorically to describe a guiding star or something that leads or directs.

Pith

The central idea or essence of something.

Peroration

The concluding part of a speech, typically intended to inspire enthusiasm in the audience.

Antecedent

A grammatical device in which a pronoun, noun, or other word refers to an earlier noun or phrase.

Aphorism

a short, concise statement that expresses a general truth, principle, or opinion.

Appositive

a noun, or noun phrase, that sits next to another noun to rename or re-describe it.

Deduction Reasoning

the act of backing up a generalized statement with specific scenarios.

Inductive Reasoning

the act of making generalized conclusions based on specific scenarios.

Epigram

a brief, interesting, memorable, sometimes surprising or satirical statement.

Metonymy

a concept is referred to by the name of something associated with that thing or concept.

Modifier

a word, especially an adjective or noun used attributively, that restricts or adds to the sense of a head noun.

Syllogism

a type of deductive reasoning where a conclusion is drawn from two or more premises.

Pronoun

a word that replaces a noun or noun phrase in a sentence.

Straw man

an intentionally misrepresented proposition that is set up because it is easier to defeat than an opponent's real argument.

Synthesize

combining information from various sources to create a comprehensive and original understanding of a topic.

Figurative language

language that uses figures of speech, meaning the words are not used in their literal sense, but rather to create a more vivid, imaginative, or emotional effect.

Parallelism

also known as parallel structure or parallel construction, it is a balance within one or more sentences of similar phrases or clauses that have the same grammatical structure.

Analogy

a comparison between two things, typically for the purpose of explanation or clarification.

Colloquial

the linguistic style used for casual and informal communication.

Irony

dramatic, verbal, and situational irony.

Paradox

a statement or situation that appears self-contradictory or absurd, yet may be true, or a statement that, despite valid reasoning, leads to a logically unacceptable conclusion.

Cliché

a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.

Anecdote

a brief, amusing, or interesting narrative that highlights a specific incidence or experience.

Documentation

the process of citing sources to give credit for ideas and information used in a research paper or other academic work.

Juxtaposition

the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.

Parody

A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satirical or ironic imitation.

Trope

a figure of speech or a recurring motif, theme, or character type in storytelling.