Terms : Hide Images
| 3442036240 | anaphora | the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, or lines Ex. "Five years have passed; Five summers, with the length of Five long winters! and again I hear these waters... " | 0 | |
| 3442053379 | antithesis | the presentation of two contrasting images. the ideas are balanced by word, phrase, clause, or paragraphs. Ex. "To be or not to be..." or "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for you country..." | 1 | |
| 3442072637 | apostrophe | a figure of speech that directly address an absent or imaginary person or personified abstraction, such as liberty or love. the effect may add familiarity or emotional intensity. Ex. "Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee! I have thee not, and yet I see thee still." | 2 | |
| 3442094218 | asyndeton | the omission of conjunction between related clauses Ex. "I came, I saw, I conquered" | 3 | |
| 3442099066 | chiasmus | two corresponding pairs arranged not in parallels (a-b-a-b) but in inverted order (a-b-b-a) Ex. "Never let a Fool Kiss You or a Kiss Fool You." | 4 | |
| 3442113287 | concrete | words describe things that exist and can be experienced through the senses. Abstractions are rendered understandable and specific through concrete examples Ex. "I saw him shooting at targets with his 9mm, blue steel, Sig-Sauer, 15 shot, semi-automatic, handgun." | 5 | |
| 3442138789 | connotation | the interpretive level of a word based on its associated images rather than its literal meaning | 6 | |
| 3442152806 | diction | the choice of words used in speaking or writing. it is frequently divided into four levels: forma, informal, colloquial, and slang | 7 | |
| 3442157082 | epistrophe | repetition of a group of words a the end of successive clauses Ex. "Where now? Who now? When now?" | 8 | |
| 3442170852 | ethos | the appeal of a text to the credibility and character of the speakers, writer, or narrator Ex. "Doctors all over the world recommend this type of treatment." | 9 | |
| 3442280571 | irony | an unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended or expected to happen. it involves dialog and situation, and can be intentional or unplanned. dramatic irony centers around the ignorance of those involved; whereas, the audience is aware of the circumstance. Ex. I posted a video on YouTube about how boring and useless YouTube is. | 10 | |
| 3442300786 | metonymy | a figure of speech in which a representative term is used for a larger idea Ex. The pen is mightier than the sword | 11 | |
| 3442309111 | oxymoron | an image of contradictory term Ex. bittersweet, pretty ugly, jumbo shrimp | 12 | |
| 3442315177 | paradox | a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or opposed to common sense, but upon closer inspection contains some degree of truth or validity Ex. "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" | 13 | |
| 3442323953 | parallelism | also referred to as parallel construction or parallel structure, this term comes from Greek roots meaning "beside one another" it refers to the grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity. this can involve, but is not limited to, repetition of a grammatical element such as a preposition or verbal phrase. Ex. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it waxe the epoch belief, it was the epoch of incredulity..." | 14 | |
| 3442354060 | rhetorical question | one that does not expect an explicit answer Ex. "Where are they now, the days of wine and roses?" | 15 | |
| 3442358644 | rhetorical triangle | a diagram showing the relations of writer or speaker, reader or listener, and text in a rhetorical situation (speaker, audience, subject) | 16 | |
| 3442368756 | synecdoche | a figure of speech that utilizes a part as representative of the whole Ex. "All hands of deck" | 17 | |
| 3442373009 | satire | a mode of writing based on ridicule that criticizes the foibles and follies of society without necessarily offering a solution Ex. "What's the use you learning to do right, when it's troublesome to do right and isn't no trouble to do wrong, and the wages is just the same?" | 18 | |
| 3442386338 | alliteration | the repetition of initial consonant sounds | 19 | |
| 3442389193 | atmosphere | the emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work, established partly by the setting and partly by the author's choice of objects that are described. Ex. weather (also foreshadows events) | 20 | |
| 3442402005 | mood | prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work | 21 | |
| 3442407116 | tone | author's attitude toward his subject | 22 | |
| 3550905527 | conceit | a fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects. A conceit displays intellectual cleverness due to the unusual comparison being made Ex. Marriage is like getting a root canal | 23 | |
| 3550973988 | deductive reasoning | reasoning that begins with a general principle and concludes with a specific instance that demonstrates the general principle Ex. Since all humans are mortal, and I am a human, then I am mortal | 24 | |
| 3551011285 | denotation | the literal or dictionary meaning of a word | 25 | |
| 3551018965 | didactic | From the Greek, it literally means "teaching". Their words have the primary aim of teaching or instructing, especially the teaching of moral or ethical principles Ex. George Orwell's "Animal Farm" is an allegory or a moral and didactic tale that uses animals on a farm to describe the overthrow of the last of the Russian Tsars, Nicholas-II and exposes the evil of the Communist Revolution of Russia before WWII | 26 | |
| 3551064931 | double entendre | the double or multiple meanings of a group of words that the speaker or writer has purposely left ambiguous Ex. Nurse: God ye good morrow, gentlemen. Mercutio: God ye good den, fair gentlewoman. Nurse: Is it good den? Mercutio: 'Tis no less, I tell you; for the bawdy hand of the dial is now upon the prick of noon. Nurse: Out upon you! What a man are you! | 27 | |
| 3559951798 | ellipis | indicated by series of three periods, it indicates that some material has been omitted from Ex. "..." | 28 | |
| 3559988741 | epigraph | the use of a quotation at the beginning of a work that hints at its theme Ex. "You are all a lost generation" ~ "Sun Also Rises" Hemingway | 29 | |
| 3560013776 | epithet | an adjective or adjective phrase appropriately qualifying a subject (noun) by naming a key or important characteristic of the subject Ex. "The earth is crying-sweet, And scattering-bright the air, Eddying, dizzying, closing round, With soft and drunken laughter..." | 30 | |
| 3560063886 | Eponym | substitutes for a particualr attribute the name of a famous person recognized for that attribute Ex. Saxophone was given the name of Sax, a surname of family from Belgium, which was skilled at making musical instruments | 31 | |
| 3560097799 | Euphemism | a more acceptable and usually more pleasant way of saying something that might be inappropriate of uncomfortable. are often used to obscure the reality of a situation Ex. "He went to his final reward" means he died | 32 | |
| 3560116964 | Euphony | the pleasant, mellifluous presentation of sounds in a literary work Ex. ....Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day To the last syllable of recorded time, And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage And then is heard no more. It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing. | 33 | |
| 3560145569 | Exposition | the background information presented in a literary work Ex. beginning of Goldilocks | 34 | |
| 3560162608 | Figures of Rhetoric | schemes-that is, variations from typical word or sentence formations, -and tropes, which are variations from typical patterns or thought... | 35 | |
| 3560179267 | Homily | literally means "sermon," but more informally, it can include any serious talk, speech, or lecture involving more or spiritual advice Ex. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Jonathan Edwards | 36 | |
| 3560199060 | Hyperbole | extreme exaggeration, often humorous, it can also be ironic; overstatement; the opposite of understatement Ex. "Neptune's ocean wash this blood Clean from my hand? No. This my hand will rather The multitudinous seas incarnadine, Making the green one red." Macbeth | 37 | |
| 3560213806 | Inductive Reasoning | it begins by citing a number of specific instances or examples and then shows how collectively they constitute a general principal | 38 | |
| 3560223069 | invective | a verbally abusive attack Ex. "A knave, a rascal; an eater of broken meats; a base, proud, shallow, beggarly, three-suited, hundred-pound, filthy, worsted-stocking knave... and art nothing but the composition of a knave, beggar, coward, pandar, and the son and heir of a mongrel bitch..." | 39 | |
| 3560236157 | jargon | the specialized vocabulary of a particular group Ex. Getting on a soapbox | 40 | |
| 3560248207 | Litotes | understatement, for intensification, by denying the contrary of the thing being affirmed Ex. You are not as young as you used to be. | 41 | |
| 3560266804 | Logic | the art of reasoning | 42 | |
| 3560270152 | Loose Sentence | independent clause (main idea) comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases or clauses. Works with this often seem informal, relaxed, conversational | 43 | |
| 3560289271 | Motif | the repetition of variations of an image or idea in a work to develop theme or characters. Ex. In Mark Twain's "The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn", we see several motifs that support the central idea of the narrative. The motif of childhood gives the novel a lighter tone and makes it enjoyable to read despite its grave central idea i.e. slavery and racism. Both Huck and Tom are young and flexible enough to undergo a moral education and thus are more open-minded than adults. Another obvious motif in the narrative is superstitions. Jim appears silly to believe in all sorts of signs and omens but interestingly predicts the coming event. | 44 | |
| 3560309124 | occasion | the part of context also referred to as time and place | 45 |
