IB English Paper 1 Terminology

Accent

Pronunciation of a language

Alliteration

Repetition sound at the beginning of several words. This can have different effects on an audience

Allusion

Reference is made to a text, event, person or place. The writer makes a implicit comparison between what is presented and what is known

"To teach or not to teach that is the question" reference to Shakespeare

Analogy

Process of transferring traits from one thing or idea to another. Propaganda often uses false analogies to persuade an audience

"9/11 is our generation's Pearl Harbour"

Anaphora

Repetition of the same word or phrase in a succession of sentences. Used to establish rhetorical effect

Antithesis

Contrast between ideas by placing them together for a literary effect

Cacophony

Hard-sounded effects that is produced by clusters of consonants to make the pronunciation difficult. It is frequent in comical verse or tongue-twisters

Caesura

Pause within a line or verse. Established by the natural organisation of language into phrases, clauses and sentences that do not conform to a pattern

Characterisation

Way in which a writer creates characters so to attract or repel the sympathy of the audience

Cliché

Attempt to be clever or sound fine but is made tedious by frequent repetition

Coherence

Describes systematic connection of ideas. Achieved through the use of linking words and the integration of illustrations

Colloquialism

Expression or grammar that is associated with ordinary everyday speech rather than formal language. Intended as a relaxed way of speaking or writing

Connotations

Aura of emotion that is associated with the word and may mean something different for everyone. Opposite of denotation which is what the word literally means

Couplet

A pair of rhymed lines

Dialect

Unique and distinguishable combination of vocabulary, pronunciation and syntax

Direct Narration

Narrator is talking directly to audience. The reader is only shown events or characters in action without any instructions on how to interpret them. Direct narration tells the audience a story

Direct Speech

Characters do all of the talking. Lots of dialogue defines direct speech. Direct speech is a characteristic on indirect narration

Dramatic Irony

Occurs when the audience possesses more information during the plot than some of the characters

Enjambment

Sentence continues into the next line without pause or punctation

Ethos

Ethos means character. Describes the character of an audience, nation or community. How does the author appeal to the ethos of his or her audience. Texts often contain ethos to give the speaker more credit or authority on a matter. What gives the person the mandate to speak on the matter?

"As a doctor, I am qualified to tell you that this course of treatment will likely generate the best results."

Euphemism

Makes something sound better than it actually is. Found in political speeches, advertising campaigns or conversation. Related to censorship where only half-truths are told and reality is distorted

"Died becomes passed away"

First-person point-of-view

When a narrator is included in the story. The reader hears the thoughts of the narrator directly.

Is the narrator an observer or protagonist?

Is the narrator reliable or unreliable

To whom is the narrator speaking

Free indirect speech

Gives the sense of first-person narration while being told through third-person narration. Combination of direct and reported speech

Third-person narration shows the thoughts and actions of one character.

"She hoped for a son; he would be strong and dark, she would call him George; and this idea of having a male child was like an expected revenge for all her impotence in the past."

Free Verse

Printed in broken-up lines and it is frequently rhythmical

Graphology

Visual aspects of a text such as the layout, font and image

Hyperbole

Emphasis through exaggeration and is common in everyday language

"There were millions of students at the disco"

Idiolect

The way we all speak an individual and unique variety of a language. Every identity is influenced by a range of unique, cultural and contextual factors. People speak unique varieties of English

Imagery

Uses language to appeal to the reader's senses of sight, sound, smell, taste or touch. Compares an abstract idea to a concrete experience. Its aim is to paint a picture in the mind of the reader and bring the "text to life". This engages the reader making them want to read further

Indirect narration

Shows readers events of a story without telling how to interpret them. The story is being told as if the narrator is filming behind a camera.

"What did she say asked the girl. The train is coming in five minutes"

Intertextuality

The ways in which a text resonates or refers to another text

Irony

When someone says one thing but means something else. Understanding of irony depends entirely on an understanding of context.

Rhetorical questions, sarcasm and hyperbole are examples of verbal irony

Jargon

Special technical language on any trade, profession, branch or scholarship

Juxtaposition

Placement of two opposite ideas in close proximity. These opposite ideas can be expressed through words or images. When an author includes opposites they are drawing the readers attention to an inherent tension or conflict

Language

Referring to style, diction and tone

Logos

Appeal to a reader or listener's sense of logic. Appealing to logic involves arguments, syllogisms and reasoning.

Metaphor

Comparison of two concepts through language often used by poets but also in everyday speech and images.

Advertisement for a car could compare car to egg carton as both protect their content securely

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like what they represent

Pathos

Speakers appeal to a person's sense of emotion. Rhetorical questions, emotive language and sensationalism appeal to our sense of pathos

Personification

Inanimate objects are given human qualities. This is a form of analogy which allows the reader to think differently about the characteristics or traits of the object or person

Pun

A comic play on words resulting from a word having more than one meaning or two words with different meanings with the same sound

Second-person point of view

Makes use of the pronoun "you"

Semantic field

Group of words that are related in meaning and are often connected with a particular use of context

"Goal offside corner kick and referee" belongs to the semantic field of football

Setting

Setting is where a story takes place geographically and temporally. Setting creates a set of expectations for the reader and an environment for the characters

1. Mirror: Reflect overall mood of story

2. Mould: Setting may shape characters

3. Escape: Fantasy-like escape taking the reader to imaginary world either past or future

4. Alien: Hostile to character (outsider, exile or refugee). Emphasises loss of roots and sense of home

Simile

The comparison of two things using the words "like" or "as"

Slang

Deviation in language use from the standardised form of a particular language. Slang is often associated with dialects or accents. Often defines members that are part of an "in-crowd"

Slogan

Phrase used in a political or commercial campaign repeatedly. They express a shared purpose or idea

Stereotyping

Assigning fixed characteristics to individuals on the basis of their group membership