english - intro to rhetoric: vocab

Rhetoric

the art of using language for persuasion

Exigence

issue/problem/situation that prompts/motivates the writer

Ethos

qualities of character, intelligence, and goodwill in an arguer that contribute to an audience’s acceptance of a claim

Logos

argument based on reason

Pathos

argumentative proof based on emotions

Deduction

logical process wherein you reach a conclusion by starting with a general principle or universal truth (major premise) and applying it to a specific case (minor premise)

Syllogism

form of deductive reasoning in which conclusion is supported by a major premise and minor premise

Induction

logical process wherein you reason from particulars to universals, using specific cases in order to reach a generalization

Claims of fact

based on facts or data that the audience will accept as objectively verifiable

Claims of value/judgement

express of (dis)approval; attempt to prove that some things are right or wrong

Support

materials used by the arguer to convince an audience that his or her claim is sound

Warrant

beliefs, assumptions, and principles that underlie an argument and connect the support to the claim

Backing

offers support of the validity of the warrant

Rebuttal

addresses counterarguments to the author’s position

Qualifier

shows, in the form of words like “probably” or “more likely”

Allusion

reference to a person, place, event, or literary work for the sake of comparison a writer expects a reader to recognize

Analogy

comparison between two things to show the similarities between them

Aphorism

terse, pointed statement expressing some wise or clever observation about life

Figurative language

language that is not to be interpreted in a literal sense (hyperbole, simile, personification, etc…)

Rhetorical question

questions to which the answers are obvious or unnecessary

Hypophora

a speaker raises a question and then immediately answers it

Diction

writers choice or words, particularity for clarity, effectiveness, and precision

“High” diction

vocabulary for a professional or college-educated audience; used between experts

“Middle” diction

vocabulary suited for well-educated audiences and mass media publications yet not pitched at the level of expert to expert

“Low” diction

Simple vocabulary and abbreviated self centered discourse

Denotation

Literal meaning of the found; dictionary definition

Connotation

Implied or associated meaning of a word, acquired and conveyed through the contexts in which we counter these words and through the emotions they may inspire

Jargon

The specialized or technical language of a trade, profession, or similar group that allows experts to communicate efficiently

Slang

Informal language used of a given group of locale

Euphemism

An inoffensive or polite term used in place of language that readers or listeners may find unfavorable

Syntax

Grammatical structure of sentences

Parallelism

repetition of similar grammatical or syntactical structures to emphasize ideas, to contract ideas, and to connect ideas.

Anaphora

the deliberate repetition of a word of phrase at the beginning of successive clauses

Epistrophe

the repetition of the same word of phrase at the end of successive phrases

Tricolon

a series of three parallel words, phrases, or clauses

Climactic order

the arrangement of details or ideas in order of increasing importance or force: the principle of saving the best for last.

Antithesis

the contrast of thoughts in two phrases, clauses, or sentences

Antimetabole

identical or near identical repetition of words in one phrase or clause in reverse order in the next phrase or clause; ABBA structure

Zeugma

construction in which a word (usually a verb) modifies or governs two or more words in a sentence

Cumulative sentence

begins with standard sentence pattern and adds multiple details after it

Periodic sentence

begins with multiple details and holds off a standard sentence pattern until the end

Inverted sentence

has the verb come before the subject

Polysyndeton

deliberate use of a series of conjunctions

Asyndeton

deliberate omission of conjunctions