rob final

🎯 AP Language Final Test Study Guide

PART 1: VOCAB (kept as before, quick easy review)

Rhetorical Terms

• Point of View: Perspective writer uses (1st person, 3rd person).
  
  

• Diction: Word choice (formal, informal, emotional).
  
  

• Syntax: Sentence structure (short, long, complex).
  
  

• Imagery: Language that appeals to senses.
  
  

  • Literal: concrete descriptions
    
    

  • Figurative: metaphors, similes
    
    

• Narrative Distance: Emotional closeness between writer and reader.
  
  

• Anaphora: Repetition at sentence beginnings.
  
  

• Polysyndeton: Many conjunctions.
  
  

• Syllepsis: Word used in two different ways.
  
  

• Malapropism: Wrong word used by mistake.
  
  

• Paradox: Contradictory but true statement.
  
  

• Polemic: Strong argument against something.
  
  

• Begging the Question: Circular reasoning.
  
  

• Ad Hominem: Attack on the person, not argument.
  
  

• False Cause (Post hoc): Wrongly linking cause and effect.
  
  

• Hasty Generalization: Broad conclusion from little evidence.
  
  

• Bandwagon: Belief because many people do.
  
  

• Non Sequitur: Conclusion doesn’t follow premise.
  
  

• Exigence: Reason why the text was written now.
  
  

• Equivocation: Using ambiguous language to mislead.
  
  

• Specious Reasoning: False logic that sounds true.
  
  

• Noblesse Oblige: Duty of privileged to help others.
  
  

• Supercilious: Arrogant, looking down on others.
  
  

• Adroit: Skillful, clever.
  
  

PART 2: ESSAY BREAKDOWNS (all 6)

1. Politics and the English Language (George Orwell)

Theme:
Bad language causes unclear thinking and political manipulation.

How Orwell Develops Content:

• Examples: Shows bad writing in politics hides truth.
  
  

• Story: Describes the decline of English language.
  
  

• Analogy: Language is a tool — if dull, it produces bad work.
  
  

• Figurative Language: Metaphors like “dying metaphors,” “stale imagery.”
  
  

Imagery Examples:

• Literal: Orwell gives specific poor writing examples.
  
  

• Figurative: “Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful.”
  
  

Narrative Distance:

• Somewhat formal but warns and instructs reader directly.
  
  

2. The Declaration of Independence (Thomas Jefferson)

Theme:
People have the right to overthrow unjust governments to protect natural rights.

How Jefferson Develops Content:

• Examples: Lists abuses by King George III.
  
  

• Story: Details peaceful attempts before rebellion.
  
  

• Analogy: King’s rule compared to tyranny.
  
  

• Figurative Language: “All men are created equal,” “unalienable Rights.”
  
  

Imagery Examples:

• Literal: “He has refused his Assent to Laws…”
  
  

• Figurative: “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
  
  

Narrative Distance:

• Formal and authoritative, addressing “a candid world.”
  
  

3. The Rider and the Elephant (Jonathan Haidt)

Theme:
Human decisions are often driven by emotion (elephant) rather than reason (rider).

How Haidt Develops Content:

• Examples: Studies of human judgment and moral reasoning.
  
  

• Story: Metaphor of rider (reason) controlling elephant (emotion).
  
  

• Analogy: Brain as rider trying to steer elephant.
  
  

• Figurative Language: Extended metaphor of rider and elephant.
  
  

Imagery Examples:

• Literal: Descriptions of brain functions.
  
  

• Figurative: Rider and elephant metaphor.
  
  

Narrative Distance:

• Informal and conversational, engaging reader as curious learner.
  
  

4. Civil Disobedience (Henry David Thoreau)

Theme:
Moral conscience should guide us, not unjust laws — resist and disobey immoral government.

How Thoreau Develops Content:

• Examples: Refuses to pay poll tax funding slavery/war.
  
  

• Story: His jail time illustrates standing by conscience.
  
  

• Analogy: Government is a machine; citizens should be “counter-friction.”
  
  

• Figurative Language: Metaphors like “mass of men serve the state as machines.”
  
  

Imagery Examples:

• Literal: “I have paid no poll-tax for six years.”
  
  

• Figurative: “Government is a wooden gun to the people.”
  
  

Narrative Distance:

• Personal and direct, speaking as a moral guide.
  
  

5. Letter from the Birmingham Jail (Martin Luther King Jr.)

Theme:
Justice delayed is justice denied; nonviolent resistance to unjust laws is moral duty.

How King Develops Content:

• Examples: Unjust arrests, segregation, bombings.
  
  

• Story: Personal and others’ experiences under segregation.
  
  

• Analogy: Unjust laws degrade humanity; just laws uplift.
  
  

• Figurative Language: Metaphors like “cup of endurance runs over,” Biblical allusions.
  
  

Imagery Examples:

• Literal: “When you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers…”
  
  

• Figurative: “Justice rolls down like waters…”
  
  

Narrative Distance:

• Close and emotional, addressing critics and wider audience.
  
  

6. The Prince (Excerpt) (Niccolò Machiavelli)

Theme:
Power must be maintained by pragmatic, sometimes ruthless means.

How Machiavelli Develops Content:

• Examples: Historical rulers like Cesare Borgia.
  
  

• Stories: Brief anecdotes of gaining and losing power.
  
  

• Analogy: A prince must be both fox (cunning) and lion (strong).
  
  

• Figurative Language: “A prince must learn not to be good.”
  
  

Imagery Examples:

• Literal: “Keep weapons ready, fortress strong.”
  
  

• Figurative: “Fortune is a woman you must strike and beat.”
  
  

Narrative Distance:

• Detached, analytical tone to sound objective.
  
  

PART 3: QUICK ORAL TEST FORMULA

• Start with theme: “The theme is...”
  
  

• Explain development: “The author develops this through examples such as..., stories like..., analogies like..., and figurative language including...”
  
  

• Use 1–2 vocab terms in your explanation: e.g., “He uses vivid imagery and close narrative distance to engage the reader.”
  
  

• Wrap up with a personal or memorable example: “For instance, Thoreau’s story of going to jail shows the cost of following conscience.”
  
  

If you want, I can make flashcards or mock oral questions to practice. Would you like me to?