| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Ad Populum | "To the crowd," a misconception that a widespread occurrence of something is assumed to make an idea true or right |
| Begging the Question | taking for granted something that really needs proving. Can be similar to circular reasoning in that the conclusion is restated in the premises in a slightly different form. |
| Either/Or reasoning | the tendency to see an issue as having only two sides. |
| Non Sequitur | "it does not follow," an inference or conclusion that does not follow established premises or evidence. |
| Dicto Simpliciter | Fallacy of accident, argument based on an unqualified or sweeping generalization in which a general rule is applied to a situation where there actually expectations to rule. |
| Allegory | Literary work in which characters, events, objects, and ideas have secondary or symbolic meanings. |
| Allusion | Reference to a historical event or to a mythical or literary figure. |
| Simile | Comparing one thing to an unlike thing by using like, as, or than. |
| Metaphor | Comparing one thing to an unlike thing without using like, as or than. |
| Hyperbole | Exaggeration; overstatement |
| Imagery | sensory detail, presents an image to the mind, language that evokes one or all of the five senses: seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, touching |
| Inference | imply |
| Parody | Imitation of a literary work or film–or the style used by a writer or filmmaker–in order to ridicule the work and its writer or producer. |
| Verbal Irony | an author says one thing and means something else |
| Situational Irony | a discrepancy between the expected result and actual results |
| Dramatic Irony | an audience perceives something that a character in the literature does not know |
| Onomatopoeia | a word mimics a sound, an arrangement of words in a rhythmic pattern suggests a sound or an image |
| Satire | Literary work that attacks or pokes fun at vices and imperfections; political cartoon that does the same. |
| Point of View | method of narration in a literary work. |
| Setting | Setting is the environment in which a story unfolds. It includes (1) the time and period of history, (2) the place, (3) the atmosphere, (4) the clothing, (5) the living conditions, and (6) the social climate. |
| Alliteration | Repetition of consonant sounds |
| Allusion | Sir Lancelot fought with Herculean strength. (Reference to the mythological hero Hercules). "I have met my Waterloo," the mountain climber said after returning from a failed attempt to conquer Everest. (Reference to the Belgian town where Napoleon lost a make-or-break battle). |
| Allegory | One of the most popular allegories of the 20th Century was George Orwell's Animal Farm, about farm animals vying for power. On the surface, it is an entertaining story that even children can enjoy. Beneath the surface, it is the story of ruthless Soviet totalitarianism. |
| Hyperbole | He [Julius Caesar] doth bestride the narrow world like a Colossus, and we petty men walk under his...huge legs (Caesar has become a giant). Ten thousand oceans cannot wash away my guilt. |
| Imagery | The leaves danced across the lawn. |
| Parody | The Austin Powers movies are parodies of spy films. |
| Verbal Irony | "What a beautiful day," Maxine said, opening her umbrella. |
| Situational Irony | In the movie Planet of the Apes, an astronaut who lands on another planet where intelligent apes rule discovers a startling irony at the end of the movie: When looking over a vast wasteland, he sees the head of the Statue of Liberty and realizes he was on earth all the time. Apparently, a nuclear war had destroyed humankind while he was time-traveling. While in his Einsteinian time warp, the apes had evolved to an almost human level. |
| Dramatic Irony | In Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles, Oedipus is unaware that he has married his own mother even though the audience is well aware of the incestuous union. |
| Onomatopoeia | burp, varoom, oink, crackle, moo, hiss, |
| Satire | The TV program Saturday Night Live often uses satire to expose abuses and follies |
| Point of View | 1st, 2nd, 3rd POV |
| Alliteration | sweet smell of success, a dime a dozen, bigger and better, jump for joy |
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