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AP Language Final Review Flashcards

krods fallacies

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5867295298Ad Homineman attack on the person rather than on the opponent's ideas.0
5867295299Argument from Authoritythe conclusion rests on a statement made by some presumed authority or witness.1
5867295300Appeal to ignoranceAssumption that whatever cannot be proven false must be true (or vice versa).2
5867295301Begging the questionsomeone assumes that parts of what the person claims to be proving are proven facts3
5867295302Hasty generalizationdrawing conclusions based on insufficient or unrepresentative evidence4
5867295307Straw man argumentconsists of an oversimplification of an opponent's argument to make it easier to attack5
5867295308Sentimental appealsappeal to the hearts of readers/listeners so that they forget to use their minds.6
5867295310Scare tacticsusing fear, panic, or prejudice to win an emotional argument7
5867295311Bandwagon appealsagree with a position because everyone else does8
5867295313Equivocationtelling part of the truth, while deliberately hiding the entire truth9
5867295314Faulty analogymisleading comparison between two things10
5867295315AlliterationThe repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words (as in "she sells sea shells"). Although the term is not frequently in the multiple choice section, you can look for alliteration in any essay passage. The repetition can reinforce meaning, unify ideas, supply a musical sound, and/or echo the sense of the passage.11
5867295316AllusionA direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art. Allusions can be historical, literary, religious, topical, or mythical. There are many more possibilities, and a work may simultaneously use multiple layers of allusion.12
5867295317AnalogyA similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them. An analogy can explain something unfamiliar by associating it with or pointing out its similarity to something more familiar. Analogies can also make writing more vivid, imaginative, or intellectually engaging.13
5867295318AnaphoraOne of the devices of repetition, in which the same expression (word or words) is repeated at the beginning of two or more lines, clauses, or sentences.14
5867295319AnecdoteA short narrative detailing particulars of an interesting episode or event. The term most frequently refers to an incident in the life of a person.15
5867295320AntecedentThe word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun. The AP language exam occasionally asks for the antecedent of a given pronoun in a long, complex sentence or in a group of sentences. A question from the 2001 AP test as an example follows: "But it is the grandeur of all truth which can occupy a very high place in human interests that it is never absolutely novel to the meanest of minds; it exists eternally, by way of germ of latent principle, in the lowest as in the highest, needing to be developed but never to be planted."16
5867295321AntimetaboleRepetition of words in reverse order.17
5867295322AntithesisFigure of balance in which two contrasting ideas are intentionally juxtaposed, usually through parallel structure; a contrasting of opposing ideas in adjacent phrases, clauses, or sentences. Antithesis creates a definite and systematic relationship between ideas.18
5867295323AphorismA terse statement of known authorship which expresses a general truth or a moral principle. (If the authorship is unknown, the statement is generally considered to be a folk proverb.) It can be a memorable summation of the author's point19
5867295324Archaic DictionOld-fashioned or outdated choice of words.20
5867295325Aristotelian TriangleA diagram that illustrates the interrelationship between the speaker, the audience, and the subject. Synonymous with the rhetorical triangle.21
5867295326AsyndetonConsists of omitting conjunctions between words, phrases, or clauses. This can give the effect of unpremeditated multiplicity, of an extemporaneous rather than a labored account. Asyndetic lists can be more emphatic than if a final conjunction were used.22
5867295327AudienceThe listener, viewer, or reader of a text.23
5867295328ClauseA grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb. An independent, or main, clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent, or subordinate clause, cannot stand alone as a sentence and must be accompanied by an independent clause. The point that you want to consider is the question of what or why the author subordinates one element should also become aware of making effective use of subordination in your own writing.24
5867295329ConnotationThe nonliteral, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning. Connotations may involve ideas, emotions or attitudes25
5867295330ContextThe circumstances and other conditions surrounding a text.26
5867295331CounterargumentAn opposing argument to the argument advocated by the speaker.27
5867295332Cumulative SentenceA sentence which completes the main idea at the beginning of the sentence and then builds or adds on. Also called a loose sentence.28
5867295333DenotationThe strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion attitude, or color.29
5867295334DictionRelated to style, diction refers to the writer's word choices, especially with regard to their correctness, clearness, or effectiveness. For the AP exam, you should be able to describe an author's diction (for example, formal or informal, ornate or plain) and understand the ways in which diction can complement the author's purpose. Diction, combined with syntax, figurative language, literary devices, etc., creates an author's style.30
5867295335DidacticFrom the Greek, didactic literally means "teaching." Didactic works have the primary aim of teaching or instructing, especially the teaching of moral or ethical principles.31
5867295336EthosPersuasion by means of the depicting the trustworthy character of the author.32
5867295337Extended MetaphorA metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout the work.33
5867295338Generic ConventionsThis term describes traditions for each genre. These conventions help to define each genre; for example, they differentiate an essay and journalistic writing or an autobiography and political writing. On the AP language exam, try to distinguish the unique features of a writer's work from those dictated by convention.34
5867295339Hortative SentenceA sentence that exhorts, urges, entreats, implores, or calls to action.35
5867295340HyperboleA figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement. Hyperboles often have a comic effect; however, a serious effect is also possible. Often, hyperbole produces irony.36
5867295341ImageryThe sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions. On a physical level, imagery uses terms related to the five senses; we refer to visual, auditory, tactile, gustatory, or olfactory imagery. On a broader and deeper level, however, one image can represent more than one thing.37
5867295342Imperative SentenceSentence used to command or enjoin.38
5867295343InversionInverted order of words in a sentence.39
5867295344JuxtapositionThe placement of two highly contrasting phrases near each other to emphasize their differences.40
5867295345LogosPersuasion by means of logical reasoning.41
5867295346MetaphorA direct comparison between two dissimilar subjects.42
5867295347OxymoronThe deliberate juxtaposition of two contrasting words.43
5867295348ParallelismTwo or more adjacent phrases with similar grammatical structure.44
5867295349PathosPersuasion by means of exploiting the reader's emotions.45
5867295350Periodic SentenceA sentence whose main clause is withheld until the end.46
5867295351PersonificationAssignment of human characteristics or behavior to non-human entities.47
5867295352PolemicAn aggressive argument which generally establishes superiority and does not acknowledge the counterargument.48
5867295353PropagandaThe spread of ideas and information to further a cause. Often carries a negative connotation.49
5867295354PurposeThe goal of the speaker.50
5867295355RefutationA denial of the validity of the counterargument.51
5867295356RhetoricThe art of finding means to persuade an audience.52
5867295357Rhetorical appealsRhetorical techniques used to persuade an audience. Includes ethos, pathos, and logos.53
5867295358Rhetorical QuestionA question which is asked to effect a point rather than to solicit an answer.54
5867295359Rhetorical TriangleA diagram which illustrates the interrelationship between the speaker, the audience, and the subject. Synonymous with the Aristotelian Triangle.55
5867295360SOAPSA mnemonic device which stands for Subject, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, and Speaker.56
5867295361SpeakerThe person or group who creates a text.57
5867295362SubjectThe topic of a text.58
5867295363SynecdocheFigure of speech that uses a part to represent a whole.59
5867295364SyntaxThe proper grammatical structure of a text.60
5867295365ZeugmaUse of two different words in a grammatically similar way that produces different, often incongruous, meanings.61

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