Cumulative Rhetorical Devices

absolute

a word free from limitations or qualifications (“best,”“all ,““unique,”“perfect”)

adage

a familiar proverb or wise saying

Ad hominem

an argument attacking an individual’s character rather than his or her position on an issue

Allegory

a literary work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions

Alliteration

the repetition of initial sounds in successive or neighboring words

Allusion

a reference to something literary, mythological, or historical that the author assumes the reader will recognize

Analogy

a comparison of two different things that are similar in some way

Anaphora

the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of consecutive lines or sentences

Anecdote

a brief narrative that focuses on a particular incident or event antecedent—the word, phrase, or clause to which a pronoun refers antithesis

a statement in which two opposing ideas are balanced

Antecedent

a phrase, clause, or word that is later referred back to by an earlier word, noun, or phrase

ex: Chelsey finished her presentation

Antithesis

positions opposite ideas parallel to each other.

enhances your writing by illuminating differences and making your point more persuasive

Aphorism

a concise statement that expresses succinctly a general truth or idea, often using rhyme or balance

Apostrophe

a figure of speech in which one directly addresses an absent or imaginary person, or some abstraction

Archetype

a detail, image, or character type that occurs frequently in literature and myth and is thought to appeal in a universal way to the unconscious and to evoke a response

Argument

a statement of the meaning or main point of a literary work

asyndeton

a construction in which elements are presented in a series without conjunctions

balanced sentence

a sentence in which words, phrases, or clauses are set off against each other to emphasize a contrast

chiasmus

a statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed

ex: “Susan walked in, and out rushed Mary”

cliche

an expression that has been overused to the extent that its freshness has worn of

colloquialism

informal words or expressions not usually acceptable in formal writing

compound sentence

a sentence with one independent clause and at least one dependent clause

conceit

a fanciful, particularly clever extended metaphor

concrete details

details that relate to or describe actual, specific things or events

connotation

the implied or associative meaning of a word

denotation

the literal meaning of a word

dialect

a variety of speech characterized by its own particular grammar or pronunciation, often associated with a particular geographical region

cumulative sentence

a sentence in which the main independent clause is elaborated by the successive addition of modifying clauses or phrases

 periodic sentence

a complex sentence in which the main clause, or main point, occurs at the end of the sentence instead of the beginning

deductive reasoning

reasoning in which a conclusion is reached by stating a general principle and then applying that principle to a specific case

ex: The sun rises every morning; therefore, the sun will rise on Tuesday morning

inductive reasoning 

deriving general principles from particular facts or instances

ex: Every cat I have ever seen has four legs; cats are four-legged animals

syllogism

a three-part deductive argument in which a conclusion is based on a major premise and a minor premise

ex: All men are mortal; Socrates is a man; therefore, Socrates is mortal

didactic

having the primary purpose of teaching or instructing

dissonance

harsh, inharmonious, or discordant sounds

elegy

a formal poem presenting a meditation on death or another solemn theme

ellipsis

the omission of a word or phrase which is grammatically necessary but can be deduced from the context

ex: Some people prefer cats; others, dogs

epic

a long narrative poem written in elevated style which presents the adventures of characters of high position and episodes that are important to the history of a race or nation

epigram

a brief, pithy, and often paradoxical saying

epigraph

a saying or statement on the title page of a work, or used as a heading for a chapter or other section of a work

epiphany

a moment of sudden revelation or insight

epitaph

an inscription on a tombstone or burial place

eulogy

a formal speech praising a person who has died

epithet

a term used to point out a characteristic of a person

ex: swift-footed Achilles

exigence

the moment or event that motivates someone to write or to speak about a specific issue, problem, or situation

euphemism

an indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant

expletive

an interjection to lend emphasis; sometimes, a profanity

fable

a brief story that leads to a moral, often using animals as characters

fantasy

a story that concerns an unreal world or contains unreal characters; a fantasy may be merely whimsical, or it may present a serious point

flashback

the insertion of an earlier event into the normal chronological order of a narrative

Inference

a conclusion one draws based on-premises or evidence

Invective

an intensely vehement, highly emotional verbal attack

Irony

the use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning; or, incongruity between what is expected and what actually occurs

Jargon

the specialized language or vocabulary of a particular group or profession juxtaposition — placing two elements side by side to present a comparison or contrast

Juxtaposition

places different elements side by side in order to emphasize their differences, reveal surprising similarities, or explore a unique relationship between the two.

Legend

a narrative handed down from the past, containing historical elements and usually supernatural elements

Litotes

a type of understatement in which an idea is expressed by negating its opposite

ex: describing a particularly horrific scene by saying, “It was not a pretty picture.”)

Logos

to appeal to the audience’s sense of reason or logic

Malapropism

the mistaken substitution of one word for another word that sounds similar (“The doctor wrote a subscription”).

Maxim

a concise statement, often offering advice; an adage

Metaphor

a direct comparison of two different things

Metonymy

substituting the name of one object for another object closely associated with it

ex: The pen [writing] is mightier than the sword [war/fighting]

Motif

a standard theme, element, or dramatic situation that recurs in various works

Non sequitur

an inference that does not follow logically from the premises (literally, “does not follow”).

Oxymoron

an expression in which two words that contradict each other are joined

Parable

a short simple story illustrating a moral or spiritual truth

Parody

a humorous imitation of a serious work

Parallelism

when phrases in a sentence have similar or the same grammatical structure

Personification

endowing non-human objects or creatures with human qualities or characteristics

Paradox

a contradictory statement that contains some truth parallelism

Rhetoric

the art of presenting ideas in a clear, effective, and persuasive manner

Satire

the use of humor to emphasize human weaknesses or imperfections in social institutions

Solecism

nonstandard grammatical usage; a violation of grammatical rules structure—the arrangement or framework of a sentence, paragraph, or entire work

Pathos

the quality in a work that prompts the reader to feel pity

Parenthetical

a comment that interrupts the immediate subject, often to qualify or explain

Pedantic

characterized by an excessive display of learning or scholarship

Polysyndeton

the use, for rhetorical effect, of more conjunctions than is necessary or natural

Philippic

a strong verbal denunciation

Round Character

a character who demonstrates some complexity and who develops or changes in the course of a work

Pun

a play on words, often achieved through the use of words with similar sounds but different meanings

Sarcasm

harsh, cutting language or tone intended to ridicule

Rhetorical Devices

literary techniques used to heighten the effectiveness of expression

Synesthesia

describing one kind of sensation in terms of another

ex: a loud color, a sweet sound

Style

the choices a writer makes; the combination of distinctive features of a literary work

Syllepsis

a construction in which one word is used in two different senses

ex: After he threw the ball, he threw a fit.

Synecdoche

using one part of an object to represent the entire object

ex: referring to a car simply as “wheels”

Syntax

the manner in which words are arranged into sentences

Tautology

needless repetition which adds no meaning or understanding

ex: widow woman

Tone

the attitude of a writer, usually implied, toward the subject or audience topic—the subject treated in a paragraph or work

Trilogy

a work in three parts, each of which is a complete work in itself

Trite

overused and hackneyed

Understatement

the deliberate representation of something as lesser in magnitude than it actually is; a deliberate under-emphasis.

Vernacular

the everyday speech of a particular country or region, often involving nonstandard usage

Zeugma

using one word to modify two other words, in two different ways.

ex: She broke his car and his heart