Advanced Placement English Language and Composition

Advanced Placement English Language and Composition Advanced Placement English Language and Composition Advanced Placement English Language and Composition Advanced Placement English Language and Composition Advanced Placement English Language and Composition Advanced Placement English Language and Composition

Achilles Heel

Achilles Heel

From greek mythology, Mother dropped in river styx but held by heel so it was his area of vulnerability. Somebodies weak point.

Bread and circuses

Writer during Roman empire. imperial government kept distributing free food and providing entertainment, which kept people “in line” by deflecting other issues

Sound and Fury

In macbeth, a bunch of talking that is just meaningless.

Tantalus

From Greek mythology, a king who offended the gods and was condemned to suffer eternal hunger and thirst in hell. Offered something desirable, but never in grasp.

Throw down the gauntlet

Knighthood and chivalry, if a knight wanted to challenge another to a duel he would throw down his gauntlet. If the other knight picked it up they accepted. Issuing a challenge.

Scapegoat

Book of Leviticus every year on the day of atonement a priest would symbolically place the sins of the Israelites on a goat and send it out taking the sins with it. Someone blamed for someone else’s misdeeds.

Scylla+Charybais

Greek mythology, Scylla was a many headed monster living in a cave on one side of a narrow strait. Charybdis was a whirlpool on the opposite side. Odysseus and Jason had to steer carefully to avoid both. Caught between two equal dangers.

Catch-22

Novel by Joseph Heller that is set on a US base in World War II. U can’t be relieved from flight duty unless insane, but anyone not wanting to fly is obviously sane, so there is no way to avoid this. A no-win situation.

Pavlov’s dogs/pavlovian

A Russian scientist best known for his research on conditioned response. Rang a bell while presenting food to dogs causing them to salivate. Eventually even without the food the dogs began to solivate when the bell was rang. Phrase that refers to someone that automatically responds to a signal.

Pearls before swine

Sermon on Mount Jesus, Jesus said “Cast not your pearls before swine”. Meaning to offer someone something precious only to those who appreciate it. Offering pearls before swine is offering something precious to those who can’t appreciate it.

Juggernaut

Hindu Deity. A large cart which devotees threw themselves in front of being crushed believing guaranteed entry into paradise. A very destructive force that defies opposition.

Tower of Babel

Book of Genesis, Noah’s descendants tried to build a tower to reach heaven, so God created many different languages so they could not complete the tower and understand each other. This is noisy confusion.

Freudian Slip

Sigmund Freud an Austrian physician. Work centered around the role of the subconscious mind in human behavior. This is an unintentional or accidental error either in speech or action that reveals someones subconscious thoughts.

Sword of Damocles

Damocles from greek mythology, a courtier of a Greek King, who flattered him and talked about how easy it was as king. The king then put him under the chair to experience how it really was. Due to impending dangers the king was never really at ease. Awareness of impending or imminent danger.

Icarus/Fly too close to the sun

From Greek Mythology, Icarus flew too close to the sun and his wax wings melted so he fell to his death.

Sour Grapes

In The Fox and the Grapes a fable, a fox tries to reach grapes above him, but when fails he says that the grapes were probably sour anyways. Attitude of a person who has been dissapointed and thinks what they wanted probably wasnt even so great.

Witch hunt

1692 salem, massachusetts, hysteria about supposed witches led to the arrest of many and the execution of many. These were based on weak evidence. This is a campaign against a group of people holding unorthodox opinions.

Pound of Flesh

Shakespeare’s merchant of venice. A moneylender finances a fleet of ships and demands the buyers flesh. Someones instance being repaid even if it destroys or harms debtor.

Thirty Pieces of Silver

Bible, Judas was the disciple who betrayed Jesus to the authorities for payment. Thirty pieces of silver was his payment and he approached Jesus with a kiss of identification. Thirty pieces of silver is payment for an act of treachery and betrayed with a kiss is a friends treachery.

Casanova

Last name of a famous 18th century Italian explorer. It is a man who has many lovers and it means womanizer.

Once in a blue moon

A second full moon in the same calendar month that occurs every three years. Describes something that occurs very rarely.

Sirens

Greek mythology, creatures who lured sailors to their deaths on the shores by singing an irresistible song. Sirens are temptations.

Magnum Opus

Latin for “great work”. This is someones greatest work that they will make in their lifetime. Plural of opus is opera.

Muckraker

President Theodore Roosevelt criticized journalists saying they only focused on the muck and raked it up. Meant as an insult but journalists used the term as a badge of honor to those who exposed corruption.

Crocodile Tears

Ancient times, where crocodiles were thought to shed tears before devouring their prey. A crocodile doesn’t have any real sympathy. Shedding these is faking sympathy.

Svengali

Character in Trilby, a novel. A super control freak.

Sold down the river

Nineteenth century of America during the days of slavery. Wealthy homeowners would sell their house servants to plantation owners in the south. They would naturally feel betrayed. To be betrayed or misled especially by someone trusted.

White Elephant

Albino elephants in Asia and Africa. Colors make them special and are treated as kings. They were given to the king of siam due to rarity, but after realizing their cost he would give them to people who displeased him. The cost brought ruin to the recipient. An an object that has no use to its owner.

Golden Calf

From the Book of Exodus, while Moses recieves the 10 commandments the people melt gold and make a calf out of it, and start worshipping it. An idol or object that is worshipped even when not worthy.

Sisyphus

Greek mythology, a king that offended Zeus. Punishment was to spend eternity in Hell rolling a giant boulder up a hill. Everytime the boulder neared the top it rolled back down. A seemingly endless or futile task.

Shibboleth

Hebrew word from the Old testament, Isrealites used this as a password to prevent their enemies from infiltrating their camp. A slogan or catchword associated with a particular party, group, or sect.