Audience
The listener, viewer, or reader of a text
Concession
An acknowledgement that an opposing argument may be true or reasonable
Don't use plagiarized sources.
Get Your Custom Essay on "AP Lang Literary terms..."
For You For Only $13.90/page!
Get custom paper
Connotation
Meanings or association that readers have with a word beyond its dictionary definition, or denotation
Context
The circumstances, atmosphere, attitudes and events surrounding a text
Counter-argument
An opposing argument to the one a writer is putting forward
Ethos
Greek for “character.” credibility, trustworthy appeal
Logos
Greek for “embodied thought.” Appeal to reason, examples, facts, statistics, or expert testimony
Occasion
The time and place a speech is given or a piece is written.
Pathos
Greek for “suffering” or “experience.” emotional appeal
Persona
Greek for “mask.” The face or character that a speaker shows to his or her audience.
Polemic
Greek for “hostile.
” An aggressive argument that tries to establish superiority of one opinion over all others.
Propoganda
The spread of ideas and info to further a cause.
Purpose
The goal the speaker wants to achieve
Refutation
A denial of the validity of an opposing argument
Rhetoric
The art of finding ways to persuade an audience
Rhetorical Appeals
Techniques used to persuade an audience by emphasizing what they find most important or compelling. 3 Major ones are: Ethos (character), Logos (reason), and Pathos (emotion).
Rhetorical/Aristotelian Triangle
SOAPSTone
S-SubjectO-OccasionA-AudienceP-PurposeS-SpeakerTone
Speaker
The person or group who creates a text
Subject
The topic of a text.
What the text is about
Text
anything written, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, cartoons, art, photography, performances,fashion, cultural trends, etc.
Alliteration
Repetition of the same sound beginning several words or syllables in sequence
Allusion
Brief reference to a person, event, or place, or to a work of art
Anaphora
Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases clauses, or lines
Antimetabole
Repetition of words in reverse order
Antithesis
Opposition, or contrast, of ideas or words in a parallel construction
Archaic Diction
Old fashioned or outdated choice of words
Asyndeton
Omission of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words
Cumulative Sentence
Sentence that completes the main idea at the beginning of the sentence then builds or adds on
Hortative Sentence
Sentence that exhorts, urges, entreats, implores, or calls to action.
Imperative sentence
Sentence used to command or enjoin. (think of speaker saying “together”)
Inversion
Inverted order of words in a sentence. From subject-verb-object to object-verb-subject
Juxtaposition
Placement of two things closely together to emphasize similarities or differences
Metaphor
Figure of speech that compares two things without using like or as
Oxymoron
Paradoxical juxtaposition of words that seem to contradict one another
Parallelism
Similarity of structure in a pair of series of related words, phrases, or clauses
Periodic sentence
Sentence whose main clause is withheld until the end
Personification
Attribution of a lifelike quality to an inanimate object or an idea
Rhetorical Question
Figure of speech in the form of a question posed for the rhetorical effect rather than getting an answer
Synecdoche
Figure of speech that uses a part to represent a whole
Zeugma
Use of two different words in a grammatically similar way that produces different, often incongruous, meanings
ad hominem
fallacy of diverting the issue at hand to the character of the other speaker
ad populem
fallacy, Bandwagon appeal
appeal to false authority
fallacy of a not credible person speaking on an issue
argument
a process of reasoned inquiry; a persuasive discourse resulting in a coherent and considered movement from a claim to a conclusion
assumption/warrant
In the Toulmin model, the warrant expresses the assumption necessarily shared by the speaker and the audience
backing
in the Toulmin model, backing consists of further assurances or data without which the assumption lacks authority
begging the question
A fallacy in which a claim is based on evidence or support that is in doubt.
It “begs” a question whether the support itself is sound.
Circular Reasoning
A fallacy in which the writer repeats the claim as a way to provide evidence
Claim
also assertion of a proposition, a claim states the argument’s main idea or position. A claim differs from a topic or subject in that a claim has to be arguable.
Claim of Fact
Claim that asserts that something is true or not true
Claim of policy
Claim that proposes a change
Claim of value
Claim that argues that something is good or bad, right or wrong.
Classical oration
Five Part argument structure used by classical rhetoricians.
Introduction (exordium)- introduces the reader to the subject under discussionNarration (narratio)- Provides factual information and background material on the subject at hand or establishes why the subject is a problem that needs addressingConfirmation (conformatio)- Usually the major part of the text, the confirmation includes the proof needed to make the writer’s caseRefutation (refutatio)- Addresses the counter argument. It is a bridge between the writer’s proof and conclusionConclusion (peroratio)- Brings the essayto a satisfying close
Closed thesis
A statement of the main idea of the argument that also previews the major points the writer intends to make
Deduction
Logical process where one reaches a conclusion by starting with a universal truth (Major Premise) and applying it to a specific case (Minor Premise)
Either/or (false dilemma)
Fallacy in which the speaker presents two extreme options as the only possible choices
(logical) fallacy
Potential vulnerabilities or weaknesses in an argument. They often arise from a failure to make a logical connection between the claim and the evidence used to support it
Faulty analogy
Fallacy the occurs when an analogy compares two things that are not comparable.
First-Hand evidence
Evidence based on something the writer knows, whether it’s from personal experience, observations, or general knowledge of events.
Hasty Generalization
Fallacy in which a faulty conclusion is reached because of inadequate evidence
Induction
A logical process whereby the writer reasons from particulars to universals, using specific cases in order to draw a conclusion, which is also called a generalization
Open thesis
thesis that does not list all the points the writer intends to cover in an essay
post hoc ergo propter hoc
Fallacy meaning that it is incorrect to always claim that something is a cause just because it happened earlier.
Correlation does not imply causation
Qualifier
In the Toulmin model, this uses words like usually, probably, maybe, in most cases, and most likely to temper the claim, making it less absolute
Quantitative evidence
Evidence that includes things that can be measured, cited, counted, or otherwise represented in numbers
Rebuttal
In the Toulmin model, this gives voice to possible objections
Reservation
In the Toulmin model, this explains the terms and conditions necessitated by the qualifier
Rogerian arguments
Developed by psychiatrist Carl Rogers, this is based on the assumption that having a full understanding of an opposing position is essential to responding to it persuasively and refuting it in a way that is accommodating rather than alienating
Second-hand evidence
Evidence that is accessed through research, reading, and investigation.
Straw man
Fallacy that occurs when a speaker chooses a deliberately poor or oversimplified example in order to ridicule and refute an idea.
Syllogism
A logical structure that uses the major premise and minor premise to reach a necessary conclusion
Toulmin model
An approach to analyzing and construction arguments created by a british philosopher in his book: The Uses of Argument.This can be stated as a template: Because (evidence of support), therefore (claim), since (warrant/assumption), on account of (backing), unless (reservation)