AP Lang Need to know, list 1 and 2

allegory

a form of narrative that uses plot, setting, or character to stand for a message that has a larger moral or lesson or makes a far-reaching commentary on real-world issues

animal farm- characters symbolize political figures and concepts

analogy

a rhetorical device that compares two different things to highlight a similarity and explain a concept or idea (goes beyond simple comparison by exploring the relationship)

america is like a quilt, “ life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get”, a warrior’s sword is to a writer’s pen

connotation

the implied, emotional or cultural meaning of a word beyond its literal dictionary definition (feeling or idea a word suggests)

knife can suggest fear, violence, or danger; home can suggest comfort or warmth or security; childish-negative, immature vs childlike-positive, innocent

denotation

the strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word (no emotional associations/feelings/connotations)

home- where one lives; rose- a flower; blue- a color

nothing past defintion

euphemism

mild or indirect words or phrases used to substitute for harsh, unpleasant or offensive ones. can help us talk about uncomfortable topics in a way that avoids causing offense/discomfort

she passed instead of she died; stepping out-cheating; economically disadvantaged- poor; correctional facility- prison

paradox

a statement that appears contradictory or illogical on the surface but reveals a deeper, hidden truth

less is more; the only constant is change; all animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others; I must be cruel to be kind

understatement

a figure of speech where the speaker intentionally downplays the significance of exaggerates less than what is actually true, often for comedic effect or to create emphasis

it rained a bit more than usual (it flooded); we did not do well (lost 50-0); it’s just a scratch (it’s a big bleeding cut); I did ok (got the highest score)

aphorism

a short statement that expresses an important truth about life (a general truth)

imitation is the highest form of flattery; “you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view- until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (to kill a mockingbird); to err is human, to forgive is divine

logos

a rhetorical appeal to an audience’s sense of logic and reasoning, persuading them through facts, stats, data, logical reasoning, and clear evidence to support a claim

citation of statistics, facts, data, charts, and graphs

pathos

a rhetorical appeal to the audience’s emotions, designed to persuade them by evoking feelings like sympathy, fear, anger, joy, or patriotism

emotional language, tone, imagery, anecdotes, using sad animals so people donate

ethos

a rhetorical appeal that focuses on the writer or speaker’s credibility, character, or trustworthiness to persuade an audience

referencing degrees, titles, years of experience, professional language, evidence, and examples

simile

a type of figurative language that compares 2 (usually) unrelated things, using the words “like” or “as”

he ran like the wind; she is as busy as a bee

onomatopoeia

a figure of speech in which words imitate or suggest the sounds they describe

bang, splash, roar

oxymoron

combines two contradictory or opposite words to create a paradoxical or ironic effect

organized chaos; deafening silence; jumbo shrimp

personification

the attribution of human characteristics to something that is non-human (or representation of an abstract quality in human form)

the sun smiled down at us; the wind danced through the trees; the door protested as it was opened

antecedent

the noun or noun phrase that a pronoun replaces, making it clear who/what the pronoun is referring to (a word, phrase, or clause that a pronoun or other word refers back to)

Sarah lost her keys (Sarah is the antecedent of the pronoun her)

the dog wagged its tail

symbol

where a person, place, object, or idea represents something else, often an abstract concept or idea

dove-peace; white-purity; water-rebirth

metaphor

a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things by stating that one thing is another, without using “like” or “as”

my body is a temple; you are the apple of my eye; the snow is a white blanket on the ground

hyperbole

a figure of speech that employs deliberate exaggerations for emphasis and effect

i’ve told you a million times; this weighs a ton; you’re worlds away; it was never ending

alliteration

the repetition of beginning consonant sounds in multiple words in a single line, sentence, or phrase

fair is foul and foul is fair; along the lonesome lake, lucy longed for the love of her life; the crisp crackle of fire

allusion

a reference to a famous person, place, event, or literary work (can be direct or implied) (historical, literary, cultural, political)

chocolate cake is my Achilles heel; you were Romeo… my daddy said stay away from Juliet; he is such a scrooge, he never pays for tickets; the company was going down like the Titanic

parallelism

a figure of speech in which two or more elements of a sentence (or a series of sentences) have the same grammatical structure

give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime; easy come, easy go; we came, we saw, we conquered

syntax

refers to the way words and phrases are arranged to create well-formed sentences (set of rules that govern how sentences are structured)

understanding grammatical structures and how to manipulate to achieve effects; if you change around the order of words they may no longer make sense

diction

a writer’s or speaker’s distinctive choice of words

furious instead of mad; wonderous instead of good

can impact how the audience perceives a text (tone/mood)

antithesis

the placement of contrasting ideas (usually in a parallel grammatical sentence) next to each other

it was the best of times, it was the worst of times; you win some, you lose some; one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind; give me liberty or give me death

juxtaposition

a literary device where two concepts are placed side by side to reveal their differences or surprising similarities

treasure lost but found; the sweet and sour sauce

asyndeton

a literary device in which conjugations (and, but, or, etc.) are intentionally omitted to change a sentences tone

reduce, reuse, recycle; live, laugh, love

polysyndeton

a literary device that uses multiple repetitions of the same conjugation in a close proximity (to emphasis what is said)

neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night…; reduce, and reuse, and recycle; we went to the park, and then we got ice cream, and then… and then…

(can make a childlike character)

anaphora

repetition of a word or expression at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, sentences, or verses

we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground; I have a dream…

epistrophe

a rhetorical device where a word or phrase is repeated at the end of successive clauses, sentences, or verses

government of the people, by the people, for the people

you shoulda put a ring on it (at the end of successive sentences in the song)

gustatory imagery

descriptions that appeal to the sense of taste (helping imagine flavors or experiences)

as I took a bite of the warm apple pie, the buttery crust crumbled softly, and the sweet spiced apples filled my mouth with the comforting flavors of cinnamon and sugar

auditory imagery

the use of descriptive language to create imagery that appeals to our sense of hearing (invokes sound images)

lambs loud bleat, hedge cricket sings, the red-breast whistles, the gathering swallows Twitter; came a tapping, gently rapping, I muttered

olfactory imagery

the use of language to evoke the sense of smell in the readers mind (immersive and vivid reading experience)

the pungent smell; the calming fragrance of the flowers; the welcoming aroma of the bakery

visual imagery

the use of descriptive language that appeals to the sense of sight, creating mental pictures for the readers

a host of golden daffodils; the sun glistened off the calm lake

tactile imagery

the use of descriptive language to evoke the sense of touch, making readers feel textures, temperatures, and physical sensations within the text

my toes sank into the sand at the beach; the icy water seemed to freeze my fingers