AP Lang Understanding Rhetoric: R-Z

Repetition: anaphora, chiasmus, epistrophe, parallelism

Rhetoric: the art of using language to achieve a particular purpose or goal

Rhetorical Question: an inquiry that is asked for the same of an argument

Sarcasm: verbal irony in which apparent compliments are bitter or nasty

Satire: a mode of expression that ridicules ideas, persons, events, or doctrines to make fun of human weaknesses

Semicolon: ; form of punctuation to join independent clauses

Sequence: the order in which a writer presents information

Sic: notation made during transcription process to indicate that an apparent error was made in the source document, not transference

Simile: a figure of speech that compares two things using the words “like” or “as”

Slang: unconventional, informal language of particular sub-groups of culture

Speaker: narrator of a story, poem, or drama. NOT the author

Specific/General: general words name groups or classes. Specific name individuals.

Stream of Consciousness: narrative technique meant to mirror the continuous, and often disjointed and disconnected, flow of information through a speaker’s mind with little to no regard for traditional narrative coherence

Style: manner in which an author uses and arranges words, phrases, and ideas to express his or her ideas.

High Style: ceremonial. suitable for formal speeches, arugemnts, legal proceedings.

Middle Style: conversational and amiable. Suitable for everyday interactions

Low Style: unadorned. SImple explanations and teaching

Syllogism: argument that utilizes deductive reasoning and consists of a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion

Symbol: a person, place, or thing that evokes ideas and associations that are not literally part of the original object

Syntax: the manner in which words are arranged in a sentence (passive vs. active)

Technical Language: special vocabulary of a trade or profession

Theme: the central idea upon which a written piece is built.

Thesis: a statement of the mean idea or argument in a work of speech or writing. Controlling idea

Tone: the author’s attitude towards a subject or scenario.

Transition: words that bring unity and coherence to a piece of writing by drawing connections between paragraphed ideas

Understatement: occurs when an author assigns less significance to an event or thing than it deserves

Vernacular: colloquialism; words based on locaation

Voice: the manner in which a speaker of a literary work presents themself to the reader

Zeugma: a figure of speech in which the same word is applied to two other words in the same sentence with different meanings