Ap Lan composition Terms

Alliteration

Repetition of the same sound beginning several words or syllables in sequence

Allusion

brief reference to a person , event, or place or to a work of art

Ambiguity

the multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage.

Analogy

a comparison between two seemingly dissimilar things.

Anecdote

a brief story used to illustrate a point or claim

Aphorism

A terse statement if know authorship that expresses a general truth and moral principal.

Argument

A process of reasoned inquiry. A persuasive discourse resulting n a coherent and consideration movement from a claim to conclusion.

Audience

the listener, viewer, or reader if a text.

Claim

Also called an assertion or proposition

Colloquialism

words or phrases that have a conversional feel and are not generally used n format written English

Connotation

meanings or associations that readers have with a word beyond its dictionary definition, or denotation.

Context

The circumstance, atmosphere, attuites, and events surrounding a text

Denotation

the strict, literal dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion, attitude, or color.

Diction

a speaker’s choice of words

Emphasis

when the writer places importance on a particular word

Ex: position, proportion, isolation, repetition

Ethos

When speakers appeal to demonstrate that they are credible and trustworthy to speak on a given topic

Euphemism

More agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words of concept.

Figurative Languae

nonliteral language, sometimes referred to as tropes or metaphorical language, often evoking strong forms of imagery

hyperbole

deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or to produce a comic or ironic effect

imagery

a description of how something looks, feels, tastes, smells, or sounds.

irony

a figure of speech that occurs when a speaker or character says one thing but means else, or when is said is the opposite of what is expected, creating a noticeable incongruity

jargon

specialized terminology used by a particular group of people

Juxtaposition

placement of two things closely together to emphasize difference or similarities

logos

Greek for “embodied thought” speakers appeal to ___ or reason by offering clear, rational ideas, and using specific details, examples, facts, statistics, or expert testimony.

metaphor

figure of speech that compares two things without using like or as

mood

the feeling or atmosphere created by the text

Narration

in classical oration, the factual and background information, establishing why a subject or problem needs addressing,

Oxymoron

a paradox made up of two seemingly contradictory words

Paradox

a statement or situation that is seemingly contradictory on the surface, but delivers an ironic truth.

Parallelism

similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases, or clauses

Pathos

Speaker appeal to ___ to emotionally motivate their audience

Persona

the face or character that a speaker shows to his or her audience

personification

attribution of a lifelike quality to an inanimate object or idea

purpose

the goal the speaker wants to achieve

Rhetoric

the art of finding ways of persuading an audiences

Rhetorical Appeals

rhetorical techniques used to persuade an audience by emphasizing what they find most important or compelling

satire

the use of irony or scarcasm to critique soioety or na individual

simile

a figure of speech used to explain or clarify and idea by comparing it explicitly to something else, using words like, or as.

style

a writer’s specific way of saying things

syntax

the arrangement of words into phrases, clauses, and sentences

theme

a writer’s thoughts on a topic. It is not JUST the topic but what the author develops in terms of what they believes about the topic

tone

a speaker’s attitude toward the subject convoyed by the speakers’ stylistics and rhetorical choices

understament

a figure of speech in which something is presented as less important, dire, urgent, good and son on, than it actual is, often for satiric or comical effect.

vernacular

the speech patterns of a particular group of people or region

voice

he unique flavor of a piece based upon the author