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188 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
Abstract:
Opposed to concrete, not quantifiable
Adjective:
modifies, alters, changes a noun
Adverb:
modifies, alters, changes a verb
Aesthetic:
the study or philosophy of beauty in art, literature and nature
Allegory:
form of a metaphor, the meaning of a person, object, or action resides outside the story, the concrete is within the story
Alliteration:
repetition of initial consonant sounds
Allusion:
an indirect reference, often to another text or an historic event
Ambiguity:
having more than one meaning, used in verbal, written, and nonverbal
communication
Anachronism:
out of time, placing something in a time where it does not belong
Analogy:
the comparison of two things alike in some respects
Analysis:
to separate into parts for inspection and evaluation
Anaphora:
the repetition of words at the beginning of successive clauses
Anecdote:
a short narrative detailing the particulars of an event
Annotation:
explanatory or critical notes added to a text
Antagonist:
the force against the protagonist, a person, nature, or the person’s psyche
Antecedent:
the noun to which the pronoun refers
Antimetabole:
the repetition of words in an inverted order to sharpen a contrast
Antihero:
a protagonist who is particularly graceless, inept, stupid, or dishonest
Antithesis:
figure of speech, using strongly contrasting words, clauses, sentences or ideas
Aphorism:
a brief statement of general truth or wisdom
Apology:
a written or spoken defense
Appositive:
a word or phrase that renames a nearby noun or pronoun
Archaic Diction
the use of words common to an earlier time period; antiquated language
Archetype:
a blocked off memory or our past or of pre‐human experience, a type of struggle or character to which a culture relates without prior knowledge
Argument:
a statement put forth and supported by evidence
Aristotelian triangle:
a diagram that represents a rhetorical situation as the relationship among
the speaker, the subject, and the audience
Artificial Setting:
man made settings
Assertion:
an emphatic statement; declaration.
Assumption:
a belief or statement taken for granted without proof
Asyndeton:
leaving out conjunctions between words, phrases, clauses
Attitude:
the author’s or speaker’s feelings toward the subject, attend to distance when discussing attitude
Audience:
the intended receiver/s for a speaker or writer’s message
Authority:
a reliable, respected source – someone with knowledge
Begging the Question:
a fallacy in reasoning which omits the minor premise and goes directly
to the conclusion
Bias:
prejudice or predisposition toward one side of a subject or issue
Bildungsroman:
a coming of age novel, the story of a persons’ development
Canon:
an accepted list of literary works
Carpe Deim:
literally “Seize the day,” a philosophy of living for the day and not thinking of
tomorrow
Catharsis:
a moral and spiritual cleansing you receive when watching a protagonist overcome great odds to survive
Character:
a person described as an individual with reference to characterization
characterization:
an imaginary person who seems life‐like
Chronological:
in the order of time.
Claim:
an assertion, usually supported by evidence
Cliche
an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has been overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect
Clause:
any combination of subject and verb which makes a complete sentence, Independent/dependent
Colloquial:
informal conversation, it differs in grammar, vocabulary, syntax, imagery, or connotation
Common Ground
Share beliefs, values, or positions
Complex Sentence
a sentence that includes one independent clause and at least one
dependent clause.
Conceit:
a type of metaphor that is strikingly odd and thoughtful, ex. Love compared to a motorcycle
Concession:
a reluctant acknowledgment or yielding
Concrete:
opposed to abstract, quantifiable
Concrete Detail:
details used in a persuasive paper which attempt to convince the reader: proof or evidence
Confidant (male)/ Confidante (female)
A person who partakes little in the action, is very close to the protagonist, and hears all of the intimate secrets of the protagonist
Conflict:
Protagonist/ Antagonist clash, anytime these two come into the same arena there is some form of conflict
Connotation:
that which is implied by a word, as opposed to the word’s literal meaning
Context:
words, events, or circumstances that help determine meaning
Controlling Image:
an image or metaphor which runs throughout the work
Coordination:
grammatical equivalence between parts of a sentence, often through a
coordinating conjunction such as and, or but
Counterargument:
a challenge to a position; an opposing argument
Credible:
worthy of belief; trustworthy
Crisis:
The point of the highest clash
Criticism:
analysis, study, and evaluation of individual works of literature
Cumulative Sentence:
an independent clause followed by subordinate clauses or phrases that
supply additional detail
Declarative Sentence:
a sentence that makes a statement
Deductive:
reasoning from the general of the specific
Denotation:
the literal meaning of a word; its dictionary definition
Descriptive Detail:
Details in an essay which use sensory description (the five senses) therefore you analyze these descriptions by each sense.
Detail:
specifically described items placed in a work for effect and meaning
Deus Ex Machina:
literally “God in the machine” Greek idea from when the gods would come on stage to rescue the hero, now it applies to anytime the hero is saved by a miraculous or
improbably event
Dialect
a term that applies to particular speech patterns, or it's characteristic to a particular group of the language speakers.
Devices:
speech, syntax, diction. These stylistic elements collectively produce and effect
Diction:
word choice: denotation = dictionary definition, connotation = all the emotions the word brings
Didactic:
a teaching type of tone, usually lesson‐like or boring in nature
Digression:
insertion of material not closely related to the work or subject
Dilemma:
2 choices – both bad, or 2 choices either one producing a bad outcome
Doppelganger:
literally double goer” a mysterious twin or double fighting against your good
work
Dystopia:
“bad place” An imaginary world which was constructed to be perfect yet failed. Present tendencies are carried out to their intensely unpleasant end.
Elegiac:
mournful over what has passed or been lost; often used to describe tone
Ellipsis/Ellipse:
the omission of one or more words
Epigram:
a brief witty statement
Epiphany:
a sudden understanding or realization which prior to this was thought of or
understood
Ethos:
the character of the writer reflected in the speech or writings
Euphemism:
a device where being indirect replaces directness to avoid unpleasantness
Explication of text:
explanation of a text’s meaning through an analysis of all of its constituent parts, including the literary devices used; also close reading
Expository:
a mode of writing which is used to explain something
Fantasy:
a genre--usually the breaking away from reality
Figurative language:
the use of tropes or figures of speech; going beyond literal meaning to
achieve literary effect
Figure of Speech:
uses of language which depart from customary construction. Metaphors,
similes, personfication, hyperboles, etc.
Fragment:
a word, phrase, or clause that does not form a full sentence
Generic Conventions:
from “genre” or type, each type of writing editorial, biography, narrative, persuasive, etc.; uses particular conventions. The persuasive mode of writing uses the technique of syllogism to prove a point
Genre:
A particular type or category of writing; tragedy, comedy, epic, short story, historical fiction, didactic, etc.
Hamartia:
from Greek and translated in the New Testament as “sin” literally it means an error, mistake, frailty, or misstep. The protagonist’s hamartia will cause his/her downfall
Hyperbole:
to overstate an issue, exaggeration
Imagery:
literally, the collection of images within a work. Specifically, descriptive details which use figures of speech to explain a concept, person, or thing.
Imperative sentence:
a sentence that requests or commands
In Medias Res:
“in the midst of things” starting a story the middle of the action. Later the first
part will be revealed.
Independent Clause:
a sentence which stands alone
Dependent clause:
a sentence which needs to be joined with another sentence in order to
make sense
Inductive:
reasoning from the specific to the general
Inference:
to conclude by reason an idea, attitude, tone which is not directly stated by the author
Invective:
a violent verbal attack
Inversion:
a sentence in which the verb precedes the subject
Irony:
a recognition of reality different from the appearance.
Irony (verbal):
the actual intent is the opposite of what is said, something like sarcasm but not as harsh.
Juxtaposition:
placement of two things side by side for emphasis
Kitsch:
“gaudy trash” shallow flashy art designed to have a mass appeal
Language:
the style of the sentence and vocabulary used in conversation and written communication. Slang, formal, parental, didactic, common, etc.
Linking Verb:
a being verb; is, are, was, were, have been, had been, has been, will have been; which joins a subject to a predicate nominative or predicate adjective.
Logos:
a Greek term that means “word”; an appeal to logic; one of Aristotle’s three rhetorical appeals
Mechanics:
any form of sentence regulation which aides in interpretation; period, comma,
hyphen, question mark, italics, capitalization, etc.
Metaphor:
saying one thing in terms of something else
Metonomy:
figure of speech. The substitution of the name of an object with a word closely associated with it. Ex. The White House for the presidency, the crown for the royal family or
the queen.
Microcosm:
“small world” representing an entire idea through a small situation or confl
Modifier:
a word, phrase, or clause that qualifies or describes another word, phrase, or clause
Motif:
a simple device that serves as a basis for an expanded narrative, the motif is a recurring feature in the work
Narrative Devices:
the ordering of events, withholding information until a climactic moment,
and all tools the storyteller uses to progress the story line
Narrative Technique:
The “style” of the story, concentrate on the writer’s order of events and
details
Natural Setting:
all setting that is produced through nature including weather and
light/darkness
Nominalizaton:
turning a verb or adjective into a noun
Noun:
any name of a person, place, thing, or idea
Objective:
a tone of fairness and even discussion of a subject, it usually suggests that there is distance between the author and the subject being discussed. Be careful, this tone can also be cold and impersonal.
Occasion:
an aspect of context; the clause or reason for writing
Omniscient narrator:
an all knowing, usually third‐person narrator
Oxymoron:
a self‐contradictory combination or words.
Paradox:
A statement that seems to be contradictory or absurd, however it is found to be true
Parallelism:
the coordination of sentence syntax, word order, and ideas. It is used for effect and emphasis
Parody:
a writing which imitates another serious piece and pokes fun at the original.
Pathos:
a Greek term that refers to suffering but has come to be associated with broader appeals to emotion; one of Aristotle’s three rhetorical appeals
Pedantic:
bookish and scholarly in tone, often boring and dull due to little interest on the part of the listener
Periodic Sentence:
a sentence not grammatically complete until the end. It has the dependent clause at the beginning and ends with the independent clause
Persona:
the speaker, voice, or character assumed by the author of a piece of writing
Personification:
human‐like qualities are given to inanimate objects
Persuasive Devices:
devices used in the writing mode of persuasion; strong connotations, order
of intensity from lesser to greater, the logic of the argument
Plagiarism:
Literary theft. Using someone’s ideas and style and passing the off as your own.
Plot:
the framework upon which a story is placed; chronological, flashback, in medias res, or others. Once the story is finished a definite beginning, middle, and end can be found.
Point of View:
point from which an author presents a story. It can be close, distant, within a
character, or others.
Polemic:
an argument against an idea, usually regarding philosophy, politics, or religion
Polysyndeton:
the deliberate use of a series of conjunctions
Predicate:
the part of the sentence beginning with the verb or the first verb in a verb phrase
Predicate Adjective:
an adjective in the predicate which modifies the subject of the sentence, the predicate adjective must follow a linking verb, and “tall” is an adjective modifying the
subject “She”.
Predicate Nominative:
a noun in the predicate which renames the subject, It must follow a
linking verb. Ex. He is President. “President” renames the subject.
Premise; major, minor:
two parts of a syllogism. The concluding sentence of a syllogism takes
its predicate from the major premise.
Major premise: All mammals are warm‐blooded
Minor premise: All horses are mammals
Conclusion: All horses are warm‐blooded
Pronoun:
a word which takes the place of a noun to prevent repetition or to act as the subject of a clause.
Propaganda:
A negative term for writing designed to sway opinion rather than present
information
Protagonist:
the main character of a work who has some type of contest; mental, spiritual, physical, natural; to complete
Purpose:
One’s intention or objective in a speech or piece of writing
Realism:
being as close to reality as possible. Realistic works depict the reality of the harsh world and the effect upon the luckless protagonist.
Refute:
To discredit an argument, particularly a counterargument
Repetition:
word, sound, phrase, idea; used for emphasis. An excellent technique in persuasive speeches. Always pay attention to repetition in writing. The author is trying to tell you something.
Resource of Language:
an author’s use of diction, syntax, sentence structure, and figures of
speech to produce an effect
Rhetoric:
the art of persuasion and employing the devices to persuade. Persuasion extends to the construction of a work so that you believe it to be true even though it is fiction.
Rhetorical Question:
A question used by the speaker or writer to achieve an awareness in the
listener or reader. No reply to the question is expected.
Rhetorical Shift:
changing from one tone, attitude, or distance to another, Look for little words like but, however, even though, although, yet, etc..
Rhetorical Structure:
to analyze, study, and evaluate this, you must examine
images, details and arguments.
Sarcasm:
a bitter expression of disapproval, sometimes intended to be harsh and hurtful, levels of intensity exist
Satire:
a way or writing or speaking which censures things, activities, persons, or ideas; it is accomplished with humor and wit.
Scheme:
a pattern of words or sentence construction used for rhetorical effect
Sentence Structure:
analyzing sentence structure asks that you look at sentence length; simple, compound, complex; unusual phrases, repetition, altered word order.
Simile:
a comparison of two things using “like” or “as”
Simple Sentence:
a sentence containing subject and verb with little else in the subject or
predicate
Spatial:
the distance between characters, ideas, and things within the story. Careful, a character can be close physically to a person, but emotionally distant. Therefore; language, and
in movies and theater body language, explains the difference.
Stylistic Devices:
when analyzing stylistic devices the reader must find the best combination of the elements of language to discuss: tone, syntax, attitude, figures of speech, repetition, in tone especially connotations
Subjective:
expressing in a personal manner your convictions, beliefs, and ideas; when this subjective response occurs it is likely to be emotional.
Subordinate clause:
created by a subordination conjunction, a clause that modifies an
independent clause
Subplot:
a secondary story within a story,
Syllogism:
a formula for presenting a logical argument
Ex. Assertion, Proof, Commentary
Ex. Major Premise, Minor Premise, Conclusion
Symbol:
a thing that in and of itself it stands for something else. All symbols have vehicle and tenor.
Synecdoche
a figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole or the whole for a part, the special for the general or the general for the special
Synopsis:
a summary of the main points of a story or essay
Syntax:
the physical arrangement of words in a sentence.
Synthesis:
the joining of two or more idea, arguments, abstracts to produce a new idea, argument, or abstract; result of thesis and antithesis
Tenor and Vehicle:
terms used when referring to a symbol. The Vehicle is the physical thing or person; the tenor is the abstraction.
Theme:
the central idea of a story or essay.
Thesis:
An attitude or position taken by the speaker or writer.
Topic Sentence:
a sentence, most often appearing at the beginning of a paragraph, that
announces the paragraph’s idea and often unites it with the work’s thesis.
Transcendental:
reliance upon conscience and intuition, a form of idealism, romanticism
Transition:
a body or phrase that links different ideas
Trope:
artful diction; the use of language in a non-literal way; also called a figure of speech
Understatement:
an actual statement which false under the magnitude of the actual event.
Utopia:
a perfect world
Verb:
the word in the sentence which gives action or being to the subject.
Wit:
intellectual humor
Zeugma:
a construction in which one word (usually a verb) modifies or governs – often in different, sometimes incongruent ways – two or more words in a sentence
Idiom
an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the usual meanings of its constituent elements
Jargon
terminology which is especially defined in relationship to a specific activity, profession, group, or event
Litotes
understatement, for intensification, by denying the contrary of the thing being affirmed
Mood
the atmosphere created by the setting, and actions of people and characters in it. It also relates to how the reader emotionally responds to the text
Tone
literary technique which encompasses the attitudes toward the subject and toward the audience implied in a literary work