Ap English Terms

Front 1

abstract language

Back 1

language expressing a quality apart from a specific object or event; opposite of concrete langauage

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ad hominem

Back 2

"against a man", attacking the arguer rather than the argument or issue

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ad populum

Back 3

"to the people", playing on the prejudices of the audience

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ambiguity

Back 4

the multiple meanings of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage

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antimetabole

Back 5

the repetition of words in successive clauses, but transposed in grammatical order.

EX: "Ask not what your country can do for you; as what you can do for your country." JFK

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appeal to tradition

Back 6

a proposal that something should continue because it has traditionally existed or been done that way

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argument

Back 7

a process of reasoning and advancing proof about issues on which conflicting views that may be held; also, a statement or statements providing support for a claim

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atmosphere

Back 8

The emotional nod created by the entirety of a literary work

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audience

Back 9

those to whom a communication is addressed

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authoritative warrant

Back 10

a warrant based on the credibility of the source

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authority

Back 11

a respectable, reliable source of evidence

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backing

Back 12

the assurances upon which a warrant or assumption is based

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begging the question

Back 13

a statement that assumes that the issue being argued has already been decided

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caricature

Back 14

a verbal description, the purpose of which is to exaggerate or distort, for comic effect

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cause and effect

Back 15

reasoning that assumes one event or condition can bring about another

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chiasmus

Back 16

a crossing parallelism

EX: parallelism = what is learned unwillingly is forgotten gladly

chiasmus = what is learned learned unwillingly is gladly forgotten

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claim

Back 17

the conclusion of an argument; what the arguer is trying to prove

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claim of fact

Back 18

a claim that asserts something exists, has existed or will exist

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claim of policy

Back 19

a claim asserting that specific courses of action should be instituted as solutions to problems

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claim of value

Back 20

a claim that says some things are more or less desirable than others

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clause

Back 21

a grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb

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cliche

Back 22

a worn-out expression or idea

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comparison warrant

Back 23

a warrant based on shared characteristics and circumstances of tow or more things or events

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conceit

Back 24

a fanciful experession

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concrete language

Back 25

language that describes persons, places or things

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deduction

Back 26

reasoning by which we establish that a conclusion must be true because the statement on which it is based are true

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definition

Back 27

an explanation of meaning of a term, concept or experience

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definition by negation

Back 28

defining a thing saying what it is not

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enthymeme

Back 29

a syllogism in which one of the premises or the conclusion is not stated explicitly.

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evidence

Back 30

facts or opinions that support an issue or claim

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extended definitions

Back 31

a definition that uses several different methods of development

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extended metaphor

Back 32

a metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work

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fact

Back 33

something that is believed to have objective reality, a piece of info regarded as verifiable

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factual evidence

Back 34

support consisting of data that is considered objectively verifiable by the audience

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fallacy

Back 35

an error of reasoning based on faulty use of evidence or incorrect inference

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false analogy

Back 36

assuming without sufficient proof that if objects or processes are similar in some ways, then they are similar in other ways as well

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false dilemma

Back 37

simplifying a complex problem into an either or dichotomy

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faulty emotional appeal

Back 38

basing an argument on feelings, especially pity or fear

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faulty use of authority

Back 39

failing to acknowledge disagreement among experts or otherwise misrepresenting the trustworthiness of sources

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figurative language

Back 40

writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid

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figure of speech

Back 41

a device used to produce figurative language

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generalizations

Back 42

a statement of general principle derived inferentially from a series of examples

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hasty generalization

Back 43

drawing conclusions from insufficient evidence

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independent clause

Back 44

a grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb

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induction

Back 45

reasoning by which a general statement is reached on the basis of particular examples

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inference

Back 46

to draw a reasonable conclusion from the info presented

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invective

Back 47

an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language

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litotes

Back 48

understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negative of the contrary

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motivational appeal

Back 49

an attempt to reach an audience by recognizing their needs and values and how these contribute to their decision making

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motivational warrant

Back 50

a type of warrant based on the needs and values of an audience

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narrative

Back 51

the telling of a story or an account of an event or series of events

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need

Back 52

in the hierarchy of Abraham Maslow, whatever is required, whether psychological or physiological, for the survival and welfare of a human being

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non sequitur

Back 53

"it does not follow", using irrelevant proof to buttress a claim

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pathetic fallacy

Back 54

an error in logical argumentation which consists of treating inanimate objects or concepts as if they were human beings especially for having thoughts, feelings, or senstations

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picturesque language

Back 55

imagery

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point of view

Back 56

1st person, 3rd person limited omniscient, 3rd person omniscient

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policy

Back 57

a course of action recommended or taken to solve a problem or guide decisions

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polysyndeton

Back 58

repetition of conjunctions in close succession especially where they might be omitted

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post hoc

Back 59

mistakenly inferring that because one event follows another, they have a casual relation

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prose

Back 60

one of the major divisions of genre, prose refers to fiction and nonfiction, including all its forms.

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qualifier

Back 61

a restriction placed on the claim to state that it may not always be true as stated

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refutation

Back 62

an attack on an opposing view in order to weaken it, invalidate it, or make it less credible

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reservation

Back 63

a restriction placed on the warrant to indicate that unless certain conditions are met, the warrant may not establish a connection between the support and the claim

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semantics

Back 64

the branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their historical and psychological development, their connotations, and their relation to one another

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sign warrant

Back 65

a warrant that offers an observable datum (something used as a basis for calculating or measuring) as an indicator of a condition

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slanting

Back 66

selecting facts or words with connotations that favor the arguer's bias and discredit alternatives

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slippery slope

Back 67

predicting without justification that one step in a process will lead unavoidably to a second, generally undesirable step

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slogan

Back 68

an attention-getting expression used largely in politics or advertising to promote support of a cause or product

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statistics

Back 69

information expressed in numerical form

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stipulative definition

Back 70

a definition that makes clear that it will explore a particular area of meaning of a term or issue

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straw man

Back 71

disputing a view similar to, but not the same as, that of the arguer's opponent

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substantive warrant

Back 72

a warrant based on beliefs about the reliability of factual evidence

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support

Back 73

any material that serves to prove an issue or claim

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syllepsis

Back 74

applying a single word to the others it governs in the distinct senses

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symbol

Back 75

generally, anything that represents itself and stands for something else. Usually a symbol is something concrete -- such as an object, action, character, or scene

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syntax

Back 76

the way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences

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Tautology

Back 77

a needless repetition of ideas, words, or concepts

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thesis

Back 78

in expository writing, the thesis statement is the sentence or group of sentences that directly expresses the author's opinion, purpose, meaning, or position.

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transition

Back 79

a word or phrase that links different ideas

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two wrongs make a right

Back 80

diverting attention from the issue by introducing a new point

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values

Back 81

conceptions or ideas that act as standards for judging what is right or wrong, worthwhile or worthless, beautiful or ugly or bad

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warrant

Back 82

a general principle or assumption that establishes a connection between the support and the claim