AP Language and Composition - Glossary of Literary and Rhetorical Devices

Vocabulary flashcards from AP Language and Composition glossary of literary and rhetorical devices.

Active Voice

The subject of the sentence performs the action. This is a more direct and preferred style of writing in most cases.

Passive Voice

The subject of the sentence receives the action. Often overused, resulting in lifeless writing.

Allusion

An indirect reference to something (usually a literary text) with which the reader is supposed to be familiar.

Alter-ego

A character that is used by the author to speak the author’s own thoughts; when an author speaks directly to the audience through a character.

Anecdote

A brief recounting of a relevant episode. Often inserted into texts as a way of developing a point or injecting humor.

Antecedent

The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun.

Classicism

Art or literature characterized by a realistic view of people and the world; sticks to traditional themes and structures.

Romanticism

Art or literature characterized by an idealistic, perhaps unrealistic view of people and the world, and an emphasis on nature. Does not rely on traditional themes and structures

Comic relief

When a humorous scene is inserted into a serious story, in order to lighten the mood somewhat.

Diction

Word choice, particularly as an element of style. Different types of words have significant effects on meaning.

Colloquial

Ordinary or familiar type of conversation. A “colloquialism” is a common or familiar type of saying, similar to an adage or an aphorism.

Connotation

The associations suggested by a word. Implied meaning rather than literal meaning.

Denotation

The literal, explicit meaning of a word, without its connotations.

Jargon

The diction used by a group which practices a similar profession or activity.

Vernacular

1. Language or dialect of a particular country. 2. Language or dialect of a regional clan or group. 3. Plain everyday speech

Didactic

A term used to describe fiction, nonfiction or poetry that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking.

Adage

A folk saying with a lesson.

Allegory

A story, fictional or non fictional, in which characters, things, and events represent qualities or concepts. The interaction of these characters, things, and events is meant to reveal an abstraction or a truth.

Aphorism

A terse statement which expresses a general truth or moral principle. An aphorism can be a memorable summation of the author's point.

Ellipsis

The deliberate omission of a word or phrase from prose done for effect by the author.

Euphemism

A more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts.

Figurative Language

Writing that is not meant to be taken literally.

Analogy

A comparison of one pair of variables to a parallel set of variables. The writer argues that the relationship between the first pair of variables is the same as the relationship between the second pair of variables.

Hyperbole

Exaggeration.

Idiom

A common, often used expression that doesn’t make sense if you take it literally.

Metaphor

Making an implied comparison, not using “like,” as,” or other such words.

Metonymy

Replacing an actual word or idea, with a related word or concept.

Synecdoche

A kind of metonymy when a whole is represented by naming one of its parts, or vice versa.

Simile

Using words such as “like” or “as” to make a direct comparison between two very different things.

Synesthesia

A description involving a “crossing of the senses.”

Personification

Giving human-like qualities to something that is not human.

Foreshadowing

When an author gives hints about what will occur later in a story.

Genre

The major category into which a literary work fits. The basic divisions of literature are prose, poetry, and drama.

Gothic

Writing characterized by gloom, mystery, fear and/or death.

Imagery

Word or words that create a picture in the reader's mind. Usually this involves the five senses.

Invective

A long, emotionally violent, attack using strong, abusive language.

Irony

When the opposite of what you expect to happen does.

Verbal irony

When you say something and mean the opposite/something different.

Dramatic irony

When the audience of a drama, play, movie, etc. knows something that the character doesn't and would be surprised to find out.

Situational irony

Found in the plot (or story line) of a book, story, or movie.

Juxtaposition

Placing things side by side for the purposes of comparison. Authors often use juxtaposition of ideas or examples in order to make a point.

Mood

The atmosphere created by the literature and accomplished through word choice (diction). Syntax is often a creator of mood.

Motif

A recurring idea in a piece of literature.

Oxymoron

When apparently contradictory terms are grouped together and suggest a paradox.

Pacing

The speed or tempo of an author’s writing. Writers can use a variety of devices (syntax, polysyndeton, anaphora, meter) to change the pacing of their words.

Paradox

A seemingly contradictory situation which is actually true.

Parallelism

Sentence construction which places equal grammatical constructions near each other, or repeats identical grammatical patterns. Parallelism is used to add emphasis, organization, or sometimes pacing to writing.

Anaphora

Repetition of a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of two or more sentences or clauses in a row. This is a deliberate form of repetition and helps make the writer's point more coherent.

Chiasmus

When the same words are used twice in succession, but the second time, the order of the words is reversed.

Antithesis

Two opposite or contrasting words, phrases, or clauses, or even ideas, with parallel structure.

Zuegma (Syllepsis)

When a single word governs or modifies two or more other words, and the meaning of the first word must change for each of the other words it governs or modifies.

Parenthetical Idea

Parentheses are used to set off an idea from the rest of the sentence.

Parody

An exaggerated imitation of a serious work for humorous purposes. It borrows words or phrases from an original, and pokes fun at it. This is also a form of allusion, since it is referencing a previous text, event, etc.

Persona

The fictional mask or narrator that tells a story.

Poetic device

A device used in poetry to manipulate the sound of words, sentences or lines.

Alliteration

The repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words.

Assonance

The repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds.

Consonance

The repetition of the same consonant sound at the end of words or within words.

Onomatopoeia

The use of a word which imitates or suggests the sound that the thing makes.

Internal rhyme

When a line of poetry contains a rhyme within a single line.

Slant rhyme

When a poet creates a rhyme, but the two words do not rhyme exactly – they are merely similar.

End rhyme

When the last word of two different lines of poetry rhyme.

Rhyme Scheme

The pattern of a poem’s end rhymes.

Meter

A regular pattern to the syllables in lines of poetry.

Free verse

Poetry that doesn’t have much meter or rhyme.

Iambic pentameter

Poetry that is written in lines of 10 syllables, alternating stressed and unstressed syllables.

Sonnet

A 14 line poem written in iambic pentameter. Usually divided into three quatrains and a couplet.

Polysyndeton

When a writer creates a list of items which are all separated by conjunctions. Normally, a conjunction is used only before the last item in a list.

Pun

When a word that has two or more meanings is used in a humorous way.

Rhetoric

The art of effective communication.

Rhetorical Question

Question not asked for information but for effect.

Sarcasm

A generally bitter comment that is ironically or satirically worded. However, not all satire and irony are sarcastic. It is the bitter, mocking tone that separates sarcasm from mere verbal irony or satire.

Satire

A work that reveals a critical attitude toward some element of life to a humorous effect. It targets human vices and follies, or social institutions and conventions.

Appositive

A word or group of words placed beside a noun or noun substitute to supplement its meaning.

Clause

A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb.

Balanced sentence

A sentence in which two parallel elements are set off against each other like equal weights on a scale. Both parts are parallel grammatically.

Compound sentence

Contains at least two independent clauses but no dependent clauses.

Complex sentence

Contains only one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.

Cumulative sentence

When the writer begins with an independent clause, then adds subordinate elements.

Periodic sentence

When the main idea is not completed until the end of the sentence. The writer begins with subordinate elements and postpones the main clause.

Simple sentence

Contains only one independent clause.

Declarative sentence

States an idea. It does not give a command or request, nor does it ask a question.

Imperative sentence

Issues a command.

Interrogative sentence

Sentences incorporating interrogative pronouns (what, which, who, whom, and whose).

Style

The choices in diction, tone, and syntax that a writer makes. Style may be conscious or unconscious.

Symbol

Anything that represents or stands for something else. Usually a symbol is something concrete such as an object, actions, character…that represents something more abstract.

Syntax

Grammatical arrangement of words.

Theme

The central idea or message of a work. The theme may be directly stated in nonfiction works, although not necessarily. It is rarely stated directly in fiction.

Thesis

The sentence or groups of sentences that directly expresses the author's opinion, purpose, meaning, or proposition. It should be short and clear.

Tone

A writer's attitude toward his subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language and organization. To identify tone, consider how the piece would sound if read aloud (or how the author wanted it to sound aloud).

Understatement

The ironic minimizing of fact, understatement presents something as less significant than it is. The effect can frequently be humorous.

Litotes

A particular form of understatement, generated by denying the opposite of the statement which otherwise would be used.

Argument

A piece of reasoning with one or more premises and a conclusion.

Premises

Statements offered as reasons to support a conclusion.

Conclusion

The end result of the argument – the main point being made. In an argument one expects that the conclusion will be supported with reasons or premises.

Ethos

Being convinced by the credibility of the author. We tend to believe people whom we respect.

Pathos

Persuading by appealing to the reader's emotions.

Logos

Persuading by the use of reasoning, using true premises and valid arguments. This is generally considered the strongest form of persuasion.

Concession

Accepting at least part or all of an opposing viewpoint. Often used to make one’s own argument stronger by demonstrating that one is willing to accept what is obviously true and reasonable, even if it is presented by the opposition.

Conditional Statement

An if-then statement and consists of two parts, an antecedent and a consequent.