[Not everything is included here. These are more term-based.]

https://www.varsitytutors.com/my-learning/subjects/ap-english-language-and-composition?vtintref=freemium-subjects-nav-menu#assessment-subjects → review / practice tests

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yLiYGivSACzZq2AxiEnDFfTw1g_KnCTH0Bc6UFCXm4k/edit?usp=sharing —> link to google doc of these notes <3

Unit 1: Rhetoric and the Elements of Style

Denotation and Connotation

• Denotation : a word’s primary or literal significance

• Connotation : vast range of other meanings that a word suggests

Example :

• The word home refers to the place where you live—denotation : it could be a house, an apartment, etc.

  • For many people, the word home has a positive connotation—it's associated with safety, comfort, and a sense of belonging.

Syntax

• The ordering of words in a sentence; it describes sentence structure

  • Refers to the arrangement of words and phrases to achieve a desired effect.

  • Used by speakers/writers to convey meaning and emotion, persuade an audience, emphasize key points, create a sense of cohesion between ideas, and craft arguments more effectively.

Example :

• “Never was anything so gallant, so well outfitted, so brilliant, and so finely disposed as the two armies. The trumpets, fifes, reeds, drums, and cannon made such harmony as never was heard in Hell.”

  • The first sentence depicts a beautiful battle.

  • The second begins similarly, but its phrases are structured to maximize the surprise at the end.

  • Being the last item on a list of military musical instruments, the cannons are expected to fit well.

    • It doesn't, but a new setup with the words "such harmony as never been heard..." distracts us before we can register our amazement.

  • We expect harmony to be beautiful and start to give the concluding word (Earth? Heaven?) until Voltaire surprises us with Hell.

Figurative Language

• Strictly defined as speech or writing that departs from literal meaning to achieve a special effect or meaning

  • Imagery

    • When an author uses vivid or metaphorical language to create a mental image that helps readers visualize what’s being described

      • Includes metaphors, similes, personification, and onomatopoeia

      • Appeals to the 5 senses (touch, sight, hearing, smell, and taste)

  • Hyperbole

    • An overstatement or exaggeration (exaggerates facts for effect)

      • Examples :

        • I was dying of laughter.

        • Her smile was a mile wide.

  • Understatement

    • Presents facts in a way that makes them appear much less significant than they really are–almost always used for comedic effect.

      • Example :

        • After dinner, they came and took into custody Doctor Pangloss and his pupil Candide, the one for speaking his mind and the other for appearing to approve what he heard. They were conducted to separate apartments, which were extremely cool and where they were never bothered by the sun.

The understatement in this example ("They were brought to separate apartments, which were extremely cool and where they were never bothered by the sun") implies that the poor men were dumped into horrifyingly gloomy, dank, and frigid jail cells.

• Simile

  • Comparison between two unlike objects, in which they are connected with terms such as like or as

  • Metaphor

    • Similar to similes, without the use of like or as.

  • Extended Metaphor

    • A metaphor that lasts longer than just one phrase or sentence

  • Symbolism

    • A concrete object that represents an abstract idea

      • Example :

        • The Christian soldiers paused to remember the lamb.

        • The lamb is a symbol

        • The lamb is a concrete object that represents an abstract idea

        • The lamb symbolizes the legacy of Jesus Christ

• Personification

  • Inanimate objects or concepts are given the thoughts, feelings, or actions of a human

    • Example :

      • The flowers danced with the wind.

    • Anthropomorphism occurs when non-human objects are given the physical shape of a human

      • Example

        • The legs of a table

        • The face of a clock

        • The arms of a tree

• Circumlocution and Euphemism

  • Circumlocution : a form of communication in which the speaker’s meaning is not directly expressed but implied (often through metaphors or other forms of figurative language)

    • It can be used to build suspense, hide sensitive information, or simply express emotions and feelings more effectively than literal words do

  • Euphemism : a word or words that are used to avoid employing an unpleasant or offensive term

Paradox

• Contains two elements which cannot both be true at the same time

  • Example :

    • Less is more

    • The only rule is that there are no rules

Rhetorical Question

• A question whose answer is obvious and does not need to be answered.

  • Example :

    • Given how cheap the most fattening foods are, is it any wonder obesity is on the rise? (no irony)

    • Aren’t AP Exams great fun? (with irony)

Irony and Satire

• Irony : words are used to convey the opposite of their literal meaning

  • Example :

    • [After skipping many questions on a test] “I think I did great!”

• Verbal Irony : refers to the process of stating something but meaning the opposite of what is stated

  • Example :

    • An author may describe an experience while shopping. When the author enters the store, the salesperson says, “Hello, how can you help me?” This would be ironic because the expectation is that the salesperson would say the opposite, “How can I help you?”

• Situational Irony : refers to a circumstance that runs contrary to what was expected

  • Example :

    • Suppose you live in Seattle during the rainy season and plan a vacation to sunny Phoenix. While you are in Phoenix, it rains every day there, but is sunny the entire week in Seattle.

• Satire : something is portrayed in a way that’s deliberately distorted to achieve comedic effect OR a social or political criticism that relies heavily on irony, sarcasm, and often humor

  • Implicit in most satire is the author’s desire to critique what is being mocked.

    • Parody : Imitation for comic effect

    • Lampoon : Sharp ridicule of the behavior or character of a person or institution

    • Caricature : A ludicrous exaggeration (typically in drawings) of the defects of persons or things

Style, Tone, and Mood

• Style : the general manner of expression used in a text (describes how the author uses language to get his or her point across

• Tone : describes the speaker’s attitude towards the subject (describes how the author seems to be feeling)

• Mood : describes how the text makes the audience feel

  • Example : (of all 3)

    • Our left fielder couldn’t hit the floor if he fell out of bed! After striking out twice (once with the bases loaded!), he grounded into a double-play. My grandmother runs faster than he does! In the eighth inning, he misjudged a routine fly ball, which brought in the winning run. What a jerk! Why didn’t the club trade him last week when it was still possible? What’s wrong with you guys?

      • The style is simple, direct, unsophisticated, truculent, and even crass.

      • The tone is angry, brash, emotional, and even aggressive.

      • The mood is stressed and concerned.

      • Pay close attention to the final sentence: The speaker accuses the audience directly with “you,” which could make the audience feel guilty, defensive, or angry.

Classical Appeals

• Logos : an appeal to reason and logic (fact-based, statistics, logical strategies, etc.)

• Ethos : an appeal to the speaker’s credibility–whether he or she is to be believed on the basis of his or her character and expertise

• Pathos : an appeal to the emotions, values, or desires of the audience

• Kairos : taking advantage of the opportune time (ex : a non-profit organization hosting a relief fund immediately after a natural disaster)

Unit 2: Basic Rhetorical Modes

Rhetorical Modes

• Ways of using language that are intended to have an effect on the audience

Classification

• When and How to use

  • When you’re asked to analyze and explain something, classification will be very useful.

  • Make sure you have a central idea (thesis).

  • Sort your information into meaningful groups.

  • Make sure you have a manageable number of categories—three or four.

  • Make sure the categories (or the elements in the categories) do not overlap

  • Before writing, make sure the categories and central idea (thesis) are a good fit.

  • As you write, do not justify your classification unless this is somehow necessary to address a very bizarre free-response question.

Illustration

• When and How to use

  • Use examples that your reader (the person who reads your essays) will identify with and understand.

  • Draw your examples from “real life,” “real” culture (literature, art, classical music, and so on), and well-known folklore.

  • Make sure the example really does illustrate your point.

  • Introduce your examples using transitions, such as for example, for instance, case in point, and consider the case of.

  • A single example that is perfectly representative can serve to illustrate your point.

  • A series of short, less-perfect (but still relevant) examples can, by their accumulation, serve to illustrate your point.

  • Remember that you are in control of what you write.

  • Quality is more important than quantity; poorly chosen examples detract significantly from your presentation.

Analogy

• Sometimes used to explain things that are difficult to understand by comparing them with things that are easier to understand.

• You can also use an analogy to explain something that is abstract by comparing it with something that’s concrete

  • Abstract : intangible qualities, ideas, and concepts.

    • ideas and. qualities rather than observable or specific things, people, or places

  • Concrete : tangible or perceivable characteristics in the real world

    • providing precise details and specific identifying information

• When and How to use

  • Use analogy for expository writing (explanation).

  • Do not use analogy for argumentative writing (argumentation).

  • Use analogy to explain something that is abstract or difficult to understand.

  • Make sure your audience will readily understand your “simple” or concrete subject.

Unit 3: Complex Rhetorical Modes

Process Analysis

• A rhetorical mode that is used by writers when they want to explain either how to do something or how something was done

• Can be an effective way of relating an experience

  • When and How to use

    • Sequence is chronological and usually fixed—think of recipes.

    • When you use this device, make sure the stages of the process are clear, by using transitions (e.g., first, next, after two days, finally).

    • Make sure your terminology is appropriate for the reader.

    • Verify that every step is clear; an error or omission in an intermediate step may make the rest of the process analysis very confusing.

Cause and Effect

• Explains the processes responsible for the process

  • When and How to use

    • Do not confuse the relating of mere circumstances with a cause-and- effect relationship.

    • Turn your causal relationships into causes and effects by using carefully chosen examples.

    • Make sure to carefully address each step in a series of causal relationships; if you don’t, you risk losing your reader.

Definition

• Looking up words in dictionaries. You must understand the words you use in FRQs.

  • When and How to use

    • Keep your reason for defining something in mind as you’re writing.

    • Define key terms according to what you know of your audience, in other words, the readers of the essays; you don’t want to bore your reader by defining terms unnecessarily, nor do you want to perplex your reader by failing to define terms that may be obscure to your audience.

    • Explain the background (history) when it is relevant to your definition.

    • Define by negation when appropriate.

    • Combine definition with any number of other rhetorical modes when applicable.

Description

• Can help make expository or argumentative writing lively and interesting and hold the reader’s interest, which is vital

• Oftentimes serves as the primary rhetorical mode for an essay/book

  • When and How to use

    • When possible, call on all five senses: visual, auditory, olfactory (smell), gustatory (taste), and tactile.

    • Place the most striking examples at the beginnings and ends of your paragraphs (or essay) for maximum effect.

    • Show, don’t tell, using anecdotes and examples.

    • Use concrete nouns and adjectives; nouns, not adjectives, should dominate.

    • Concentrate on details that will convey the sense you’re trying to get across most effectively. (Remember the fish bladders!)

    • Employ figures of speech, especially similes, metaphors, and personification, when appropriate.

    • When describing people, try to focus on distinctive mannerisms; whenever possible, go beyond physical appearance.

    • Direct discourse (using dialogue or quotations) can be revealing and useful.

    • A brief illustrative anecdote is worth a thousand words.

    • To the extent possible, use action verbs.

Narration

• (Narrative) is a story in which pieces of information are arranged in chronological order.

  • When and How to use

    • When possible, structure the events in chronological order.

    • Make your story complete: make sure you have a beginning, middle, and end.

    • Provide a realistic setting (typically at the beginning).

    • Whenever possible, use action verbs; for example, write “the fighters tumbled to the ground,” rather than “there were fallen soldiers on the ground.”

    • Provide concrete and specific details.

    • Show, don’t tell.

    • Establish a clear point of view—if it’s clear who is narrating and why, then it will be easier to choose relevant details.

    • Include appropriate amounts of direct discourse (dialogue or quotations).

Induction and Deduction

• Induction : a process in which specific examples are used to reach a general conclusion

• Deduction : involves the use of a generalization to draw a conclusion about a specific case

  • When and How to use

    • Induction proceeds from the specific to a generalization.

    • Make sure you have sufficient evidence to support your claim.

    • Deduction is the process of applying a generalization to a specific case.

    • Make sure your generalization has sufficient credibility before applying it to specific cases.

Unit 4: Rhetorical Fallacies

The Rhetorical Fallacy Trap

• Basically faulty reasoning leading to a conclusion the author wants you to make

  • Often pops up in : ads, statements by politicians, in appeals from charities, in arguments

• Uses (or mis-uses) language in order to trick you into accepting the author’s conclusion

  • Essentially, gaslighting/manipulation (in simpler terms)

Spotting and Avoiding Rhetorical Fallacies

• Think of rhetorical fallacies as “fake evidence”.

  • It seems to support a conclusion, but the reality is that it doesn’t. The author wants the reader to accept their claim.

• Identify them by

  • Identifying the conclusion

  • Identifying the evidence

  • Examining the evidence

Common Rhetorical Fallacies

• Emphasizing the Person

  • The evidence focuses on the person who supports a conclusion, not on the merits of the conclusion itself.

• Ad Populum or “bandwagon”

  • Appeal to the public or community

  • Sort of like peer-pressure, in a way

    • Example :

      • A certain political candidate is ahead in the polls

      • Since most people are going to vote for him, you should too. Otherwise you’ll just be wasting your vote.

• Argument from Authority

  • Focuses solely on the credentials or fame of the person recommending the product, without saying anything about the product itself

    • Example :

      • Dr. X recommends this medication to his patients, or well-known musician Y always drives this brand of car. Are they being paid by the manufacturers to endorse those products, or do the products have attributes that really make them superior? You’ll never know.

• Ad Hominem

  • Turns to the other side of the coin and points out negative characteristics of the person who promotes an idea or action

    • Example :

      • By implication, the action is as negative as the person who endorses it. The mayor was caught plagiarizing an essay in college and was accused of embezzlement by a former employer. Therefore, his claim that municipal taxes must increase to cover necessary road repairs has to be a lie and an attempt to steal taxpayers’ money. Nothing is said about the actual condition of the roads.

• Dogmatism

  • The conclusion must be correct because the author or speaker says it is and she can’t possibly be wrong.

    • Example :

      • After all, she is an internationally recognized authority on the subject, or she is the CEO of the most profitable company on the planet. She wouldn’t have risen to that position if she were ever wrong. No other reasons are presented to support the conclusion, and no opposing viewpoints are even considered.

Presenting Only Part of the Truth

• Equivocation : leaves out facts that a reader or listener would need in order to make a thorough assessment of the conclusion. Often relies on ambiguous definitions of words

  • Example :

    • For $50, your home insurer may cover $100,000 in flood damage

      • You undoubtedly imagined those incidents would all cause "water damage," and the insurer is depending on it to get you to spend the extra $50.

• Sentimental Appeals : charities often use this tactic when they ask for donations

  • Example :

    • Starving children or clear-cut mountains that were previously clothed in lush trees evoke emotions rather than intellect.

      • This rhetorical error omits sensible justifications for why the charity merits your support.

Arousing Fear

• Slippery Slope

  • According to this rhetorical fallacy, if you eat at a fast-food takeout once, pretty soon you’ll never want to eat healthy, nourishing home-cooked meals again.

    • According to this rhetorical fallacy, if you consume fast food once, you'll never want to eat wholesome, home-cooked meals again.

    • Thus, you must never eat at a fast-food takeout.

    • The author scares the reader into agreeing that the first action must not happen.

• Scare Tactics

  • Here the speaker or author is trying to frighten you into agreeing with him.

• If you don’t commit to a two-year contract, your monthly rate won’t be protected and prices are going to go through the roof in the next couple of years.

  • Who says? On what evidence does he make that prediction?

Weakening an Opposing Argument

• These rhetorical fallacies present an opposing view in such a weak light that almost nobody would agree with it

  • Red Herring

    • Instead of addressing the key issues of an opposing argument, a red herring fallacy focuses attention on an insignificant or irrelevant factor

      • For instance, you should avoid eating green vegetables (the conclusion) because of the risk of salmonella contamination (the red herring).

      • This fallacy avoids the main points of the opposing argument in favor of green vegetables (such as nutritional content and health benefits).

  • Straw Man

    • The writer creates a straw man—something that’s easy to knock down and tear apart—as the opposing viewpoint.

• Example :

  • The mayor wants taxpayers to pay for a new bridge that will go to a vast new development.

    • She claims that opponents of this investment don't think the new bridge is required because subdivision residents can drive downtown, across the existing bridge, and back up the other side of the river to the new neighborhood in an additional half hour.

    • If you live, work, or shop in the new subdivision, it's easy to argue for a new bridge.

Making Inaccurate Connections

• Faulty analogy : one thing is compared with a second thing, but the comparison is exaggerated or misleading or unreasonable

  • Example :

    • “Hiking on that trail is like descending into a dungeon of horrors from which you might never return”

      • Perhaps it’s just a challenging trail that leads through thick woods and would give you a good workout.

      • But not many people would try it after hearing the speaker’s comparison.

• Faulty causality : assumes that because one event happened shortly before another, the first event must have caused the second

  • Example :

    • “She wore her old Brand X runners instead of her new Brand Y runners, therefore she lost the race.”

      • But perhaps she lost the race because she hadn’t trained sufficiently, or because her knee was sore that day, or because others were simply faster.

      • No evidence is presented to prove that the first event caused the second.

• Reverse causation : causal arguments are often faulty because the reverse causation is equally plausible

  • Example :

    • “Eating too much chocolate can make you depressed”

      • It’s just as likely that depressed people might feel the urge to eat too much chocolate.

      • If the author says “A caused B,” ask yourself, “Is it also possible that B caused A?”

Twisting the Language

• Begging the Question : an assumption which is not proven is used as evidence that the conclusion is correct

  • Example :

    • "high-altitude skiing is such a deadly activity," (the proof) "that no one under the age of 18 should be allowed to undertake it"

      • If the writer had shown with facts or instances that high-altitude skiing is risky for youth, that would be a valid argument.

      • But he doesn't. He uses that premise to justify his conclusion.

• Circular Argument : says essentially the same thing in both the conclusion and in the evidence that allegedly supports it

  • Example :

    • Sally cares about others (the conclusion) since she’s always willing to help (the evidence)

      • Someone who helps others cares for them. Both the conclusion and the evidence describe the same idea.

      • The speaker's conclusion would have been stronger if he had supplied specific examples of Sally helping others and other acts of kindness.

Mismatch Between Evidence and Conclusion

• Missing the point : the author offers evidence that supports a conclusion–it’s just not the same conclusion that the author reaches

  • Example

    • Picture a presenter with stunning slides of northern plains meadows, deep woods, and subarctic tundra—grizzly bears' favored habitats.

      • She cites evidence showing that the grizzly population is dwindling and being forced into fewer territory as humans exploit their habitats.

      • As a result, she suggests transferring small groups of grizzlies to explore if they can adapt to areas with less human competition for land. She offers wetlands and high western mountains.

• Non Sequitur : “it doesn’t follow

  • The conclusion is not logically related to the evidence that preceded it

    • Example :

      • The commercials for Axe Body Spray, which claim that women will flock to a person who wears Axe Body Spray

Unstated Assumptions

• False Dichotomy: assumes a black-and-white world in which there is no middle ground, no other alternative.

  • Example :

    • “If we don’t launch a preemptive attack and destroy the enemy first, they will destroy us.”

      • No consideration is given to other possibilities, such as a diplomatic solution or a small-scale limited strike.

• Hasty Generalization: assumes that a limited experience foreshadows the entire experience.

  • Example :

    • “I could tell from the first few minutes that the movie was going to be unbearably boring, so I left rather than waste any more of my time.”

      • Maybe the director deliberately starts off slowly in order to intensify viewers’ reactions to the terrifying monster that is about to appear.

• Non-testable hypothesis: anything that has not been proven false is assumed to be true; the author doesn’t need to prove it’s true.

  • Example :

    • Suppose an environmental group claims that average temperatures across the entire North American continent would fall by 1° Celsius if we switched completely to renewable energy.

      • Since we have never abandoned fossil fuels entirely, it’s impossible to prove that the group’s claim is false.

      • Therefore, the argument assumes it must be true.

FRQs

(Helpful FRQ Guide.)

Synthesis Essay

• The synthesis question includes six to seven references organized around a specific topic. Two sources are visual, such as charts, graphs, photographs, or political cartoons. The remaining sources are excerpts from articles containing about 500 words per source. You must write an essay synthesizing material from at least three of the provided sources and developing your position on the topic.

  • In your response, you should do the following:

    • Respond to the prompt with a thesis that may establish a line of reasoning.

    • Provide evidence from at least three of the provided sources to support your thesis. Indicate clearly the sources used through direct quotation, paraphrase, or summary. Sources may be cited as Source A, Source B, etc., or by using the description in parentheses.

    • Explain the relationship between the evidence and your thesis

    • Demonstrate an understanding of the rhetorical situation.

    • Use appropriate grammar and punctuation in communicating your argument.

  • TIPS

    • This essay will use a topic that does not have a clear yes/no or good/bad opinion on it. It will have complexity; everybody’s perspective will have something positive and negative about it. While acknowledging the opposing viewpoint is essential, you should write more strongly in favor of one side than the other. Do not write an essay that equally explores an issue’s various sides without clarifying your position.

    • Pick two pieces of evidence to support your argument and one from the opposition to use as a concession or to refute. By doing so, you earn points for using three pieces of evidence, enabling you to write two good body paragraphs that recognize the issue’s complexity.

Rhetorical Analysis

• The rhetorical analysis question presents students with a passage of approximately 600 to 800 words of nonfiction prose. You must write an essay that analyzes the writer’s rhetorical choices.

  • In your response, you should do the following:

    • Respond to the prompt with a thesis that analyzes the writer’s rhetorical choices.

    • Select and use evidence to develop and support your line of reasoning.

    • Explain the relationship between the evidence and your thesis.

    • Demonstrate an understanding of the rhetorical situation.

    • Use appropriate grammar and punctuation when expressing your argument.

  • TIPS

    • Summarize each paragraph as you read it by making notes in the margins of the passage. Underline or highlight things you notice the speaker doing to communicate his message. You do not need to use terms like logos, pathos, or ethos to describe the speaker’s rhetorical choices. Using specific terms like those may hinder your ability to write about them. Simply explain what the speaker is doing. For example, the speaker may recall events from their personal experience to evoke sympathy from the audience, establish their credibility to speak about a topic, or create nostalgia for times past.

    • Consider these questions: How does the speaker portray the topic they are discussing–positively or negatively? How did you know? The answers to those questions compose the crux of the entire essay.

    • The top essay score is 6; you can easily score 4. Here’s how:

      • ALWAYS write a thesis = 1 point.

      • The most common point split for Evidence and Commentary is between 2 and 3. Don’t summarize the passage; that only earns you one point.

      • Pick something specific the speaker does to get their purpose across and explain how the speaker makes it work = 2 points. Explain another rhetorical choice the speaker uses = 3 points.

Argument Question

• The argument question presents students with a literary or rhetorical concept or idea, requiring them to craft an essay that argues their position and supports it with evidence from their own experience, reading, or observations.

  • In your response you should do the following:

    • Respond to the prompt with a thesis that may establish a line of reasoning.

    • Select and use evidence to develop and support your line of reasoning.

    • Explain the relationship between the evidence and your thesis.

    • Demonstrate an understanding of the rhetorical situation.

    • Use appropriate grammar and punctuation in communicating your argument.

  • TIPS

    • When facing a lack of ideas for evidence, try using the “ripple effect.”

      • Think of events, people, and situations you know closely and move outward from there. Think of a personal example, then an example from someone you know/ something you’ve seen, then something/someone famous, influential, or historical. Valid examples can come from categories such as art, science, sports, music, gaming, and entertainment, to name a few. They don’t always have to come from a textbook.

    • The same general tips to achieve a score of 4 apply to the argument essay as to the synthesis essay.

      • Write a thesis to receive one point. Explaining how one example supports your position will earn you two points. Explaining how two examples support your position will earn you 3 points.

    • Don’t get lost in explaining all the details of your example.

      • Just focus on the parts that tie into the point you are making and spend your energy explaining how your example supports your position.

MCQs

(Helpful MCQ Guide)

8 Types of MCQs

1. Reading Comprehension

   1. Testing if you understood the passage on a concrete level: what does this particular sentence mean in a literal sense? You can usually identify them from phrases like "according to" and "refers."

2. Implication

   1. Moves beyond basic, concrete reading comprehension into the realm of implication. Implication is what the author seems to say without actually coming out and saying it directly. However, even though the answer may not be written out clearly in the passage, the question will still have a clear correct answer based on textual evidence. You can identify implication questions from phrases like "best supported," "implies," "suggests," and "inferred."

3. Overall Passage and Author Questions

   1. Identify key, overarching elements of the passage or author's views, like the purpose of the text, the author's audience, the author's attitude toward the subject, and so on. These questions are identifiable because they won't refer back to a specific place in the text but will instead ask general questions that apply to the entire excerpt.

4. Relationships Between Parts of the Text

   1. Identify or describe a relationship between two specific parts of the text. This could be paragraphs or shorter line segments, or a specific part of the passage compared to the rest of the passage or the passage as a whole.

5. Interpretation of Imagery/Figurative Language

   1. Concerned with the underlying meaning or implication of imagery or figurative language used in the excerpt. What is the author trying to accomplish with this particular phrase or this metaphor?

6. Purpose of Part of the Text

   1. Will ask you to choose the answer that best states the purpose that a given part of the text serves in the piece. What is the author hoping to accomplish with this specific example/sentence/device? These questions can usually be identified because they will ask specifically about the purpose or function of a specific moment.

7. Rhetorical Strategy

   1. You'll need to identify the specific rhetorical strategy used by the author in the specific place in the passage. Essentially, you'll be identifying the particular argumentative "move" that the author is deploying to try to convince the audience of their position.

8. Style and Effect

   1. Asks you about stylistic moments in the text and the effect created by those stylistic choices. Essentially, what does the author accomplish by making that particular stylistic choice?

Practice Tests

https://highschooltestprep.com/ap/english-language/

https://www.4tests.com/exam/ap-english-lang/0/51584633

https://www.varsitytutors.com/ap_english_language-practice-tests

https://cdnsm5-ss6.sharpschool.com/UserFiles/Servers/Server_90729/File/AP%20Lang%20Multi.pdf (Collegeboard)

TIPS

• Read the passage twice before answering questions

  • Annotate if needed

• Use process of elimination