Rhetorical Terms- Argument Flashcards
(37 cards)
Antanaclasis
Repetition of a word in two different senses (Ex. If we do not hang together, we will hang separately.)
Antagonist
The character who opposes the interest of the protagonist
Anticipated objection
The technique a writer or speaker issues in an argumentative text to address and answer objections, even though the audience has not had the opportunity to voice these objections
Antimetabole
The repetition of words in successive clauses in reverse grammatical order (Ex. One should eat to live, not live to eat)
Apologist
A person or character who makes a case for some controversial, even contentious, position (Ex. Romeo makes a cause for marrying Juliet despite the controversy)
Apology
An elaborate statement justifying some controversial, even contentious, position (Ex. “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed; ‘we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.”)
Apostrophe
The direct address of an absent person or personified object as if he/she/it is able to reply (Ex. “O’ Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo!”)
Appeal to authority
In a text, the reference to words, actions, or beliefs of a person in authority as a means of supporting a claim, generalisation or conclusion
Appeal to emotion
The appeal of a text to the feelings or interests of the audience
Argument by analysis
An argument developed by breaking the subject matter into it’s component parts
Asyndeton
The omission of conjunctions between related clauses (Ex. “This is the villain among you who deceived you, who cheated you, who meant to betray you completely”)
Basic topic
One of the four perspectives that Aristotle explained could be used to generate material about any subject matter: greater or less, possible and impossible, past future, and future fact
Brain-storming
Within the planning act of the writing process, a technique used by a writer or speaker to generate many ideas some of which he or she will eliminate later
Cloze test
A test of reading ability that requires a person to fill in missing words in a text
Common topic
One of the perspectives, derived from Aristotle’s topics used to generate material. The six common topics are definition, division, comparison, relation, circumstances, and testimony
Compound subject
A sentence in which two or more nouns, noun phrases, or noun clauses, constitute the grammatical subject of a clause
Confirmation
In ancient Roman oratory, the part of speech in which the speaker or writer could offer proof or demonstration of the central idea
Conflict
The struggle of characters with themselves, with others, or with the world around them
Connotation
The implied meaning of a word, in contrast to it’s directly expressed “dictionary meaning”
Consulting
Seeking help for one’s writing from a reader
Dramatistic pentad
The invention strategy, developed by Kenneth Burke, that invited a speaker or writer to create identities for the act, agent, agency, attitude, scene and purpose in a situation
Effect
The emotional or psychological impact a text has on a reader or listener
Ellipsis
The omission of words, the meaning of which is provided by the overall context of a passage
epanalepsis
Repetition at the end of a clause of the word that occurred at the beginning of the clause.
