Rhetoric

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allusion

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an indirect reference, often to another text or an historic event

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analogy

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an extended comparison between two seemingly dissimilar things

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anaphora

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the repetition of words at the beginning of successive clauses

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anecdotte

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a short account of an interesting event

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antimetabole

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the repetition in an inverted order to sharpen a contrast

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antithesis

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parallel structure that juxtaposes contrasting ieas

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aphorism

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a short , astute statement of a general truth

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archaic diction

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the use of words common to an early time period

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assertion

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an emphatic statement, declaration

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asyndeton

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leaving out conjunctions between words, phrases, clauses

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colloquialism

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an informal or conversational use of language

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concession

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a reluctant aknowledgement or yielding

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counterargument

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a challenge to a position

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elegiac

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mournful over what has passed or been lost

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epigram

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a brief witty statement

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hortatory

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urging, or strong encouraging

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hyperbole

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exxageration for the purpose of emphasis

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imagery

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vivd use of language that evokes a readers senses

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inversion

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a sentence in which the verb precedes the subject

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irony

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a contradiction between what is said and what is meant

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juxtaposition

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placement of two things side by side for emphasis

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metaphor

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a figure of speech or trope through which one thing is spoken as though it were something else, thus making it an implicit comparison

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metonymy

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use of anaspect of something to represent the whole

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narration

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retelling an event or series of events

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nominalization

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turning a verb or adjective into a noun

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oxymoron

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a figure of speech that combines two contradictory terms

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paradox

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a statement that seems contradictory but is actually true

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parallelism

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the repetition of similar grammatical or syntactical patterns

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parody

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a piece that immitates and exaggerates the prominent features of another, used for comic effect or ridicule

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persona

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the speaker, voice, or character assumed by the author of a piece of writing

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personification

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assigning lifelike characteristics to inanimate objects

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polemic

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an argument against an idea, usually regarding philosophy, politics or religion

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polysyndeton

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the deliberate use of a series of conjections

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propaganda

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a negative term fro writing designed to sway opinion rather than present information

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rhetorical question

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a question asked more to produce an effect thatn to summon an answer

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scheme

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a pattern of words or sentence construction used for rhetorical effect

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simile

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a figure of speech that uses like or as to compare two things

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straw man

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a logical fallacy that invilves the creation of an easily refutable position, misrepresenting, then attacking an opponents position

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tone

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the speakers attitude towards the subject or audience

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topic sentence

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a sentence, most often appearing at the beginning of a paragraph, that announces tha paragraphs idea and often unites it with the works thesis

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trope

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artful diction, the use of language in a nonliteral way

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understatement

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lack of emphasis in a statement or point

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voice

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a distinctive quality in the style and tone of writing

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zeugma

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a contruction in which one word modeifies or governs