AP Lang Comp Terms (1)

sic

Exactly as stated.

Ad hoc

Created for a special purpose.

Allegory

Narrative demonstrates multiple levels of meaning.

Alliteration

Repetition of initial consonant sounds.

Allusion

Reference to something in history, literature, the Bible, popular culture, etc.

Analogy

Compares two things on the basis of a similarity between them.

Analysis

Break it down into basic components to examine how writer's develop purpose.

Anaphora

Kind of parallelism with exact repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive lines, phrases, clauses, sentences.

Antecedent

The word which came before to which the pronoun refers.

Anticlimax

A rhetorical lapse, usually sudden, that involves a descent from a higher to a lower emotional point; typically results in reversal of expectations.

Antithesis

Two ideas directly opposed and usually presented in grammatically parallel way.

Apostrophe

Figure of speech addressing someone or something as though they were there.

Aside

Character speaks directly to audience; others do not hear.

Argumentation

Writing in which a point of view is debated.

Cause/effect

Method presenting similarities and differences.

Chiasmus

Reversal of grammatic structure in successive phrases or clauses: 'Fair is foul....'

Classification

Separates into major categories and details the characteristics of each group.

Colloquial

Common language.

Conceit

Elaborate and often surprising comparison between two dissimilar things.

Connotation

Associations evoked by a word beyond its denotation.

Consonance

Repetition of final consonance sound following different vowels: made wood.

Contrast/comparison

method presenting similarities and differences

Deductive reasoning

Move from general to specific.

Definition

Identifies the class to which a specific term belongs, and its characteristics.

Denotation

Literal, primary meaning of a word.

Description

Writing that appeals to the senses.

Diction

Word choice.

Discourse

Conversation between text and reader.

Elegy

Tribute to someone deceased, usually in poetic form.

Epistrophe

Repetition of phrase at the ends of successive lines, sentences, phrases, clauses.

Epithet

Adjective or phrase applied to a noun to accentuate a certain characteristic.

Ethos

Ethics; why reader should believe you.

Euphemism

Use of a word or phrase that is less direct but more tasteful.

Exemplification

Uses specific examples, event, person or detail of an idea cited and/or developed.

Exposition

Illustrates a point, explains; a mode of discourse.

Extended metaphor

Goes beyond original use in a series of comparisons.

Figurative language

Includes analogy, sensory description, metaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, metonymy, synecdoche, tropes, alliteration, etc.

First person

'I' narrator.

Flashback

Depicts earlier events.

Genre

Type of literature: short story, novel, epic, history, biography, etc.

Homily

Sermon.

Hyperbole

Exaggeration.

Imagery

Sensory experience through use of figurative language, appeal to senses.

Inductive reasoning

Moves from specific to general.

Inference

Conclusion derived from considering facts, observations, data.

Irony

Contradiction between appearance and reality; verbal, situational, dramatic.

Isocolon

Parallel structure similar in structure, length: 'Many are called, but few are chosen.'

Jargon

Specialized vocabulary of a group.

Juxtaposition

One thing adjacent to or juxtaposed against another for some purpose.

Litotes

Understatement that involves making an affirmative point by denying its opposite.

Logos

Logic, reason.

Metaphor

Comparison of two unlike things as though they were similar.

Metonymy

Figure of speech in which one thing is represented by another: 'crown' for king.

Mode of discourse

Prose divided into four primary groups: narration, exposition, description, argumentation.

Mood

Feeling resulting from tone that establishes atmosphere.

Narrative

Telling a story.

Objective

Having to deal with a known or perceived object.

Onomatopoeia

Words sound like what they mean.

Organization

How a work is organized: chronological, spatial, least to most important, etc.

Oxymoron

Figure of speech juxtaposing opposite or contradictory words to create a paradox.

Paradox

Statement seems contradictory but may be true: 'Fight for peace.'

Parallelism

Used to emphasize ideas in grammatically similar constructions.

Parenthetical expression

Supplementary material set off by parentheses, commas, dashes, etc.

Parody

Literary form that imitates a work or style for comic effect, usually to ridicule or criticize.

Pathos

Simulates or creates pity or sorrow.

Periodic sentence

Long sentence in which main clause does not come until the end.

Personification

Giving nonhuman things human qualities or characteristics.

Persuasion

Persuading or being persuaded.

Point of view

Vantage point from which a narrative is told.

Process

'How to' do something.

Prose

Everyday language.

Regionalism

Having a regional quality or character.

Rhetoric

All strategies, modes, and devices a writer uses to express his point of view.

Rhetorical question

Asked to emphasize a point, not to get an answer.

Rhetorical strategy

Approach a writer uses.

Sarcasm

Verbal irony.

Satire

Genre using wit, irony, and sarcasm to expose human vices with intent to change.

Second person

Point of View using 'you'.

Simile

Comparison of two unlike things as though they were similar using 'like' or 'as'.

Stream of consciousness

Narrative technique that places the reader in thought processes of narrator.

Style

Distinctive manner of expression using diction, syntax, and structure.

Subjective

Produced by the mind.

Syllogism

An argument in which two statements and a logical conclusion is drawn.

Symbol

Something figuratively stands for something else.

Synecdoche

Figure of speech where a part signifies the whole – 'strings' for orchestra.

Syntax

Sentence structure.

Theme

Central dominant idea or focus of work.

Thesis

Position taken on a topic with intent of proving position to be correct.

Third person objective

Narrator looks on, reporting objectively.

Third person omniscient

Narrator reports and provides information - all-knowing.

Tone

Writer's attitude toward his reader, his subject, himself.

Trope

Figure of speech that turns or twists to change meaning.