AP English 11 Rhetorical Terms List for Rutsky and Cooley's classes, Hoover High School, Hoover, AL
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| 437272692 | Personification | attributing human characteristics to nonhuman things EX: "The wind whispers through the trees." | 0 | |
| 437272693 | Point of view | the vantage point from which the author presents the actions of the story. | 1 | |
| 437272694 | Polysyndeton (paulee-SIN-dih-tawn) | the repetition of conjunctions in close succession for rhetorical effect EX: "Here and there and everywhere." | 2 | |
| 437272695 | Prosody | the study of sound and rhythm in poetry | 3 | |
| 437272696 | Protagonist | the central character of a drama, novel, short story, or narrative poem | 4 | |
| 437272697 | Pun | a play on words that are identical or similar in sound but have sharply diverse meanings EX: When Mercutio is bleeding to death in Romeo and Juliet, he says to his friends, "Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find a grave man" | 5 | |
| 437272698 | Repetition | reiterating a word or phrase, or rewording the same idea, to secure emphasis | 6 | |
| 437272699 | Rhetorical fragment | incomplete sentence used deliberately for persuasive purpose | 7 | |
| 437272700 | Rhetorical question | a question asked solely to produce and effect and not to elicit a reply EX: "When will I ever learn?" | 8 | |
| 437272701 | Rhyme | the repetition of sounds in two or more words or phrases that appear close to each other | 9 | |
| 437272702 | Sarcasm | the use of verbal irony in which a person appears to be praising something but is actually insulting it EX: "As I fell down the stairs headfirst, I heard her say, 'Look at that coordination.'" | 10 | |
| 437272703 | Satire | a technique that points out the fallacies in both people and societal institutions, using iron wit and exaggeration | 11 | |
| 437272704 | Setting | the time and place in which events in a short story novel, play, or narrative poem take place | 12 | |
| 437272705 | Shift or Turn | a change or movement in a piece resulting from an epiphany, realization, or insight gained by the speaker, a character, or the reader | 13 | |
| 437272706 | Simile | a figure of speech involving a comparison using like or as EX: "She is as lovely as a summer's day" | 14 | |
| 437272707 | Spin | twist and turn so as to give an intended interpretation EX: "The President's spokesmen had to spin the story to make it less embarrassing" | 15 | |
| 437272708 | Stichomythia | dialogue in which the endings and beginnings of each line echo each other, taking on a new meaning with each new line EX: from Shakespeare's Hamlet: QUEEN: Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended. HAMLET: Mother, you have my father much offended. QUEEN: Come, come, you answer with an idle tongue. HAMLET: Go, go, you question with a wicked tongue. | 16 | |
| 437272709 | Style | the author's characteristic manner of expression | 17 | |
| 437272710 | Syllepsis (a type of zeugma) | occurs when a single word that governs or modifies two or more others must be understood differently with respect to each of those words. A combination of grammatical parallelism and semantic incongruity, often with a witty or comical effect. EX: [a] He grabbed his hat from the rack by the stairs and a kiss from the lips of his wife. [b] She stole his heart and his car on their first date. | 18 | |
| 437272711 | Syllogism | a particular kind of argument containing three categorical propositions, two of them premises, one a conclusion. Logical form allows one to substitute subjects and predicates for letters (variables). EX: If all humans are mortal, and all Greeks are humans, then all Greeks are mortal. | 19 | |
| 437272712 | Symbol | something concrete (such as an object, person, place, or event) that stands for or represents something abstract (such as an idea, quality, concept, or condition) | 20 | |
| 437272713 | Symploce | repetition of the first and last words in a clause over successive clauses (combines anaphora and epistrophe) EX: "Much of what I say might sound bitter, but it's the truth. Much of what I say might sound like it's stirring up trouble, but it's the truth. Much of what I say might sound like it is hate, but it's the truth." -- Malcolm X | 21 | |
| 437272714 | Synecdoche (sih-NECK-duh-kee) | a type of figurative language in which the whole is used in place of the part or the part is used in place of the whole EX: "Give us this day our daily bread." -- Matthew 6:11 Note: In this case, the part (bread) stands in for the whole (food and perhaps other necessities of life) | 22 | |
| 437272715 | Syntax | the pattern or structure of the word order in a sentence or phrase: the study of grammatical structure | 23 | |
| 437272716 | Tone | the attitude of the writer or speaker toward his subject | 24 | |
| 437272717 | Voice | the implied personality the author chooses to adopt | 25 | |
| 437272718 | Zeugma (zoog'-ma) | A general term describing when one part of speech (most often the main verb, but sometimes a noun) governs two or more other parts of a sentence (often in a series). EX: [a] Mr. Glowry was horror-struck by the sight of a round, ruddy face and a pair of laughing eyes. [b] The little baby from his crib, the screaming lady off the roof, and the man from the flooded basement were all rescued. | 26 |
