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AP Lang > Rhetorical Terms > Flashcards

Rhetorical Terms Flashcards

(66 cards)

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1
Q

Simile

A

Figure of speech, compares to unlike things using like, as, than, or resembles

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2
Q

Personification

A

Figure of speech, attribution of personal nature or human characteristics to something not human

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3
Q

Apostrophe

A

Speaking to someone that is dead/something like it can understand you like they can hear you

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4
Q

Allusion

A

A loose reference to a person/thing of historical/political context (literary/historical reference in a text)

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5
Q

Hyperbole

A

Extravagant exaggeration (not meant to be taken literally)

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6
Q

Irony

A

Expressions of meaning by using the opposite

  1. Verbal Irony: saying one thing and meaning another
  2. Situational Irony: irony of a situation
  3. Dramatic Irony: audience knows something the characters don’t
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7
Q

Understatement

A

Make light of a situation (to hide the importance)

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8
Q

Paradox

A

A seemingly self-contradictory statement or proposition, but in reality expresses a possible truth

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9
Q

Oxymoron

A

Figure of speech where contradictory terms are put next to each other to create an effect

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10
Q

Epithet

A

Any word or phrase applied to a person or thing to describe an actual or attributed quality

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11
Q

Bathos

A

Falling into inconsequential/absurd metaphors, disruptions, or ideas in an effort to increase emotion or passion

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12
Q

Euphemism

A

Substitution a mild, indirect or vague expression thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt

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13
Q

Parallelism

A

Use of components in a sentence that are grammatically the same or similar in their construction, sound, meaning, or meter

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14
Q

Rhetorical Question

A

Figure of speech in the form of a question that is asked to make a point, rather than elicit an answer

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15
Q

Antithesis

A

Contrasting two ideas using similar phrasing. Contrasting of opposing ideas in adjacent places, clauses, or sentences

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16
Q

Inversion

A

Normal order of words reversed for effect or emphasis of meter

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17
Q

Anaphora

A

Repetition of initial word to create a rhyming scheme/prove a point

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18
Q

Anathema

A

Something/someone that is intensely disliked/loathed

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19
Q

Aphorism

A

Brief sentence/phrase that expresses an opinion/makes a statement of wisdom

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20
Q

Epigram

A

Short and clever poem/witty saying

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21
Q

Satire

A

A way of using humor to show that someone/something is foolish or bad

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22
Q

Parody

A

Imitation of someone’s work: mimicking/poking fun at something for comic effect (character)

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23
Q

Mock Heroic

A

When character/normal event is treated with grandeur (heroic style) for coming effect. (Mocking)

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24
Q

Allegory

A

A story in which characters/events are symbols that stand for ideas/political/historical situation

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25
Fable
Concise and brief story that uses plants, animals or forces of nature with human traits to teach a moral lesson
26
Myth
Not factual: relies on religion, superstition, or stories to explain the world
27
Parable
Children's short story that teaches a lesson (allegorical)
28
Logos
A statement/sentence/argument used to persuade the audience by using reason/logic
29
Pathos
An appeal to emotion/feelings
30
Ethos
Character, trustworthiness, or credibility of the writer/speaker
31
Syllogism
A deductive scheme of a formal argument consisting of a major and minor premise and a conclusion
32
Major Premise
Formal logical argument containing the major term. Premise of a syllogism
33
Minor Premise
Formal logical term containing a minor term. Subject of a syllogism
34
Induction
A conclusion reached through reasoning
35
Deduction
Using logic/reason to form an opinion/conclusion
36
Hasty Generalization
A fallacy in which a conclusion is not logically justified by a sufficient or unbiased evidence
37
Faulty Causality
Event/action that influences another that is not reasonably related
38
Begging the Question (circular argument)
Fallacy in which the premise concludes that the conclusion is true (indirectly/directly) by assuming the conclusion is true
39
Equivocation
The use of equivocator ambiguous expressions: especially in order to mislead more than one interpretation
40
Non Sequitur
A statement that is not connected in a logical or clear way to anything said before it
41
Ad Hominem
A fallacy in which a claim/argument is rejected based on a fact about the person presenting the argument (attacking the person to weaken argument)
42
Denotation
The explicit/direct meaning of a word/expression (exact definition)
43
Connotation
The implied meaning of the word (emotional association)
44
Elegy
Mournful, melancholy, or planted poem (ex. A funeral song or a lament for the dead)
45
Alliteration
Repeating of consonant sounds in a word/phrase/sentence
46
Onomatopoeia
The naming of a thing/action with a vocal immigration of its sound
47
Anadiplosis
Technique where the last word of the sentence becomes the first word of the next sentence
48
Epanalepsis
Repeating word or phrase with words in-between that set off repetition and add surprise/emphasis (same word/phrase open and closes a speech
49
Antimetabole
Repeating words in reverse order for surprise/emphasis
50
Chiasmus
Words/grammatical constructions/concepts repeated in reverse order for effect
51
Ellipsis
The artful omniscient of a word implied by a previous clause with "..." (Left out because it is not needed)
52
Asyndeton
Omission of a conjunction before the last term in a series
53
Analogy
A comparison in which an idea/thing is compared to another thing that is quite different
54
Aristotelian Logic
Logos (using reasoning)
55
Argument as Populem
Popular appeal: an argument that concludes a proposition to be true because many or all people believe it
56
Bandwagon
A popular activity/effort/cause that becomes popular thought the thought that "everyone is doing it" (propaganda)
57
Red Herring
Something that distracts attention from the real issue (diversion from the main point)
58
Aristotelian Concession/Conclusion
Conceding to a point in an argument (agreeing with opponent). Not out of weakness, but as an ethical appeal. Admit opponent is valid, while still upholding your own view
59
Colloquial
Writing/speaking in an informal or slangy way vs. formal speech (ordinary conversation over formal speech)
60
Metaphor
Figure of speech, something is applied/compared not literally
61
Metonymy
One term is substituted for another term with which it is closely associated
62
Circumlocution
Talking around the subject
63
Lampoon
Sharp ridicule of the behavior or character of a person or institution
64
Caricature
A ludicrous exaggeration of persons or things
65
False Dichotomy
Consideration of only the two extremes and not any of the "middle ground" or intermediate possibilities
66
Equivocation
Telling part of the truth, while deliberately hiding the entire truth

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