rhetorical things 1

Asyndeton (uh-sin-di-ton )- the omission of conjunctions, as in “He has provided the poor with Jobs, with opportunity, with self-respect.” I came, I saw, I conquered

Litotes (lahy-tuh-teez)- understatement, esp. that in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary, as in “not bad at all.

Chiasmus (kahy-az-muhs )- rhetoric  reversal of the order of words in the second of two parallel phrases: he came in triumph and in defeat departs; He went to the country, to the town went she

Polysyndeton (pol-ee-sin-di-ton)- the use of several conjunctions in close succession, esp where some might be omitted, as in he ran and jumped and laughed for joy

Anaphora (uh-naf-er-uh)- A rhetorical term for the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses. Example: I needed a drink, I needed a lot of life insurance, I needed a vacation, I needed a home in the country. What I had was a coat, a hat and a gun." (Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely).  "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine." (Rick Blaine in Casablanca)

Anadiplosis (an-uh-di-ploh-sis)- A rhetorical term for the repetition of the last word of one line or clause to begin the next.  Example: "Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. I sense much fear in you."(Frank Oz as Yoda in Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace); "When I give I give myself." (Walt Whitman); "I am Sam, Sam I am." (Dr. Seuss, Green Eggs and Ham); "The land of my fathers. My fathers can have it." (Dylan Thomas on Wales)

Anachronism (uh-nak-ruh-niz-uhm)- something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time, esp. a thing or person that belongs to an earlier time: The sword is an anachronism in modern warfare. An error in chronology in which a person, object, event, etc., is assigned a date or period other than the correct one

Isocolon/parison - A rhetorical term for a succession of clauses of approximately equal length and corresponding structure. Example: "Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get" (Mark Twain). "It takes a licking, but it keeps on ticking!"(advertising slogan of Timex watches). “Equal is your merits! Equal is your din!”

Synecdoche- A figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the whole. Example: All hands on deck; "The sputtering economy could make the difference if you're trying to get a deal on a new set of wheels." White-collar criminals

Metonymy- A figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated (such as "crown" for "royalty"). Metonymy is also the rhetorical strategy of describing something indirectly by referring to things around it, such as describing someone's clothing to characterize the individual. Example: The White House asked the television networks for air time on Monday night; The suits on Wall Street walked off with most of our savings

Zeugma (-zoog-muh) the use of a word to modify or govern two or more words when it is appropriate to only one of them or is appropriate to each but in a different way, as in to wage war and peace  or On his fishing trip, he caught three trout and a cold.  Mr. Pickwick took his hat and his leave. He lost his coat and his temper. You held your breath and the door for me.

Apostrophe- a digression in the form of an address to someone not present, or to a personified object or idea, as “O Death, where is thy sting?”

Conundrum- a riddle whose answer is or involves a pun

Invective: a verbally abusive attack

circumlocution—the use of an unnecessarily large number of words or an indirect means of expression to express an idea so as to effect an evasion in speech

begging the question—supporting a claim with a reason that is really a restatement of the claim in different words

Adage: A saying or proverb embodying a piece of common wisdom based on experience and often couched in metaphorical language. (E.g. It is always darkest before the dawn.)

Verisimilitude: Similar to truth; the quality of realism in a work that persuades the reader that he/she is getting a vision of life as it is.

Malapropism: A confused, comically inaccurate use of a long word or words. Ex. Romeo and Juliet the nurse says “I desire some confidence with you sir”

Cadence: The rising and falling rhythm of speech especially in free verse or prose.

False Analogy – Error in assuming that because two things are alike in some ways, they are alike in all ways. EX. A school is not so different from a business. It needs a clear competitive strategy that will lead to profitable growth.

Hasty Generalization – Unsound inductive inference based on insufficient, inadequate, unspecified evidence.

Nonsequitur: A statement or idea that fails to follow logically from the one before.

Post Hoc- because one thing follows another, it is held to cause the other. 

Ad hominem: Instead of attacking an assertion, the argument attacks the person who made the assertion.

Polyphrasis-excessive talking

Diatribe-a bitter, sharply abusive denunciation, attack, or criticism. A bitter and abusive speech or writing.

Epistrophe-Also called epiphora. Rhetoric . the repetition of a word or words at the end of two or more successive verses, clauses, or sentences, as in “I should do Brutus wrong, and Cassius wrong. …”

Apposition-a syntactic relation between expressions, usually consecutive, that have the same function and the same relation to other elements in the sentence, the second expression identifying or supplementing the first. In Washington, our first president,  the phrase our first president  is in apposition with Washington. Same as appositive.

Appeal to authority-A fallacy in which a speaker or writer seeks to persuade not by giving evidence but by appealing to the respect people have for a famous person or institution.

Appeal to ignorance-A fallacy based on the assumption that a statement must be true if it cannot be proved false.

Concession-An argumentative strategy by which a speaker or writer acknowledges the validity of an opponent's point

Encomium- A tribute or eulogy in prose or verse glorifying people, objects, ideas, or events

Epiphora/epistrophe-The repetition of a word or phrase at the end of several clauses. Contrast with anaphora.  Example: “Take whatever idiot they have at the top of whatever agency and give me a better idiot. Give me a caring idiot. Give me a sensitive idiot. Just don’t give me the same idiot.”  "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as child."

False dilemma- A fallacy of oversimplification that offers a limited number of options (usually two) when in fact more options are available.

Refutation- The part of an argument wherein a speaker or writer anticipates and counters opposing points of view.

Running style-Sentence style that appears to follow the mind as it worries a problem through, mimicking the "rambling, associative syntax of conversation"--the opposite of periodic sentence style.

Explication-an explanation; interpretation 

Imperative tone/sentence- commanding

Interrogative-questioning

Exclamatory-expressing enthusiasm or excitement

Declarative-declaring a statement or fact

Infinitives-“to be” verbs… “to come” “to show” “to dance”