AP Lang Rhetorical Analysis Terms

Rhetorical Questioning

A scheme where a question is posed not to solicit a reply but to emphasize a foregone or clearly implied conclusion

Epiphany

A sudden overwhelming insight or revelation evoked by a commonplace object or scene in a poem or work of fiction

Mood

The emotional atmosphere of a work created by word choice

Allegory

An extended form of metaphor in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative are equated with meanings that lie outside the narrative itself (ex: the allegory of the cave)

Imagery

A visual description of an object or scene - the concrete, rather than the abstract aspects of a literary work

Diction

Word choice or phrasing in a literary work

Allusion

A reference in a work of literature to another literary/historical work, figure, event, or literary passage

Symbol

A concrete object that represents an abstract idea

Parallel Structure

The use of parallel elements in a sentence in a prose (things that are similar deserve to be treated similar)

Denotation

The literal meaning of a word

Connotation

The suggested or implied meaning of a word

Genre

Type or category to which a literary work belongs

Metaphor

An implied comparison between dissimilar objects (ex: "Her talents Blossomed")

Motif

A recurring feature of a literary work that through repetition serves to unify or convey a theme

Tone

Writer's attitude toward the audience or subject, implied or related directly

Understatement

Saying less than one means, for effect

Ambiguity

A conscious lack of clarity meant to evoke multiple meanings and interpretations

Satire

The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose, ridicule, and criticize the vices and foibles of an individual or society, often in order to promote change

Juxtapose

To place side by side in order to show similarity or difference

Ethos

A speaker or writer's credibility and authority to speak to the subject at hand

Metaphor

A comparison of two unlike things in order to show oone more clearly or in a new way

Narrative

A form of verse or prose that tells a story

Pathos

The quality in literature that appeals to the audience's emotions

Alliteration

The repetition of one or more initial consonants in a group of words

Didactic

A form of fiction or nonfiction that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking

Personifiction

A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes

Pun

A "play on words" based on the multiple meanings of a single word or on words that sound alike but mean different things

Oxymoron

A compressed paradox that closely links two seemingly contrary elements in a way that, on further consideration, turns out to make good sense

Antithesis

A scheme in which words or phrases that are parallel in order and syntax express opposite or contrasting meanings (ex: Beggars can't be choosers"

Hyperbole

Intentional exaggeration to achieve a specific purpose

Dramatic Irony

A circumstance in which the reader or audience knows or understands more than a character in the work

Situational Irony

When there is a disparity between what is expected and what actually occurs

Cosmic Irony

When a situation, action, or event thought to have a positive outcome results in a negative outcome through a circumstance rather than the actions of a specific person. These events are blamed on an unknown force, usually referred to as God, Fate, or The Universe, which seems responsible for the negative consequences

Metonymy

A figure of speech that uses the name of one thing to represent something else with which it is associated (ex: "The message came from the White House")

Onomatopoeia

Use of a word whose sound imitates its meaning (ex: "hiss")

Euphemism

Substitution of an agreeable or less offensive expression in place of one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant to the listener (ex: shoot or freak)

Syntax

The organization of language into meaningful structure; word order or grammatical appropriateness

Archetype

A character or personality type found in every society

Anachronism

A person, scene or event, or other element that fails to correspond with the time or era in which the work is set

Verisimilitude

The appearance of truth, the quality of realism in a work that persuades readers that they are getting a vision of life as it is

Epithet

A descriptive label that takes the place of a name

Vernacular

The ordinary, every day speech of a region or culture

Apostrophe

A form of speech in which the speaker directly addresses something/someone not present or living that cannot answer back

Epigram

A short quotation or verse that preceded a text that sets a tone or provides a context for the work that follows

Idiom

A figure of speech, a manner of speaking that is natural to native speakers of a language

Non sequitur

A statement or idea that fails to follow logically from the one before

assunance

The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a group of words or line of poetry (ex: "Meet Pete Green")

Aphorism

A short, pithy statement of a generally accepted truth or sentiment

Inversion

The reversal of the normal word order in a sentence or phrase

Litote

A figure of speech and a form of understatement in which a sentiment is expressed ironically by negating its contrary (ex: "It's not the best weather today" during a hurricane)

Polysyndeton

Deliberate insertion of conjunctions into a sentence for the purpose of slowing down the rhythm of prose so as to produce an impressively solemn note (ex: "richer and fuller and better")

Hendiadys

The expression of a single idea by two words connected with "and" when one could be used to modify the other (ex: "savage and brutal" instead of "savagely brutal")

Anaphora

The repetition of a word/phrase at the beginning of successive clauses (form of parallel structure)