AP Language: SOAPS & DIDLS Flashcards

4963868467	SOAPS	An acronym used to remember the subject, location, audience, purpose, and speaker of a piece of writing when close reading.	0
4963868468	S:subject	The general topic, content, and ideas contained in the text. You should be able to state the main subjects in a few words or a short phrase.	1
4963868469	O:occasion	The time, place, context, or current situation of the piece. It is important that you understand the context that encouraged the writing to happen, but don't confuse occasion with purpose. Why did the author sit down and write about this?	2
4963868470	A:audience	The group of readers to whom this piece is directed. Audience may be one person a, small group, or a large group. It may be a certain person or a certain people.	3
4963868471	P:purpose	The reason behind the text. This is especially important for examining rhetoric. You cannot examine the logic or argument of the peace until you know the reason for the piece or what the author is trying to tell you. What does the author want the audience to take away ?	4
4963868472	S:speaker	The voice which tells the story. You might believe that the author and speaker are the same but that is often not the case. In fiction the author may choose to tell the story for any number of different points of view or through different methods of narration and characterization. There might be a gender difference. You need to be able to differentiate between the author and the narrator understanding that what the narrator believes may not be true for the author. And nonfiction it is important not just to identify the author also analyze the authors attitude toward the subject an audience and the tone of voice that is used in the selection.	5
4963868473	DIDLS	An acronym used to remember the key components of literature that need to be identified to analyze any piece of writing.	6
4963868474	D:diction	The important and individual words the author uses. Discussed in terms of levels (formal colloquial technical) in terms of meaning (connotation vs denotation) in levels of abstraction (concrete vs abstract general vs specific)	7
4963868475	I:imagery	The word pictures created by groups of words. Vivid imagery. Appeals to understanding through the senses.	8
4963868476	D:details	Often confused with images, these are more precisely fact that are notable not only for what is included but what is purposefully omitted.	9
4963868477	L:language	Refers to figurative language; literary devices	10
4963868478	S:syntax	Expressed in its most elemental form, syntax refers to sentence structure. Short sentences often indicate an emotional or assertive tone and longer sentences convey more reasonable, suspenseful, and even scholarly intent. Also consider free things such as parallelism and repetition.	11