| Term | Definition |
|---|
| ad hominem argument | this is an argument that appeals to emotion rather than reason, to feeling rather than intellect |
| allegory | an expressive style that uses fictional characters and events to describe some subject by suggestive resemblances |
| alliteration | use of the same consonant at the beginning of each stressed syllable in a line of verse |
| allusion | an indirect reference; casual mention |
| ambiguity | unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning |
| analogy | drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity in some respect |
| antecedent | a preceding occurrence or cause or event |
| antithesis | the juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas to give a feeling of balance |
| aphorism | a short pithy instructive saying |
| apostrophe | address to an absent or imaginary person |
| atmosphere | The overall aesthetic effect of a work of art. |
| caricature | a picture or description in which natural characteristics are exaggerated or distorted. |
| chiasmus | inversion in the second of two parallel phrases |
| clause | (grammar) an expression including a subject and predicate but not constituting a complete sentence |
| colloquialism | spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech |
| conceit | vanity or self-love; too high opinion of one's own value; extravagant metaphor (in poetry) |
| connotation | suggested or implied meaning of an expression |
| denotation | the most direct or specific meaning of a word or expression |
| diction | the manner in which something is expressed in words |
| didactic | intended to teach or moralize excessively |
| euphemism | an inoffensive expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive |
| extended metaphor | The comparison between two things is continued beyond the first point of comparison. This extends and deepens a description. |
| figurative language | Writing or speech that is used to create vivid impressions by setting up comparisons between dissimilar things, [examples are metaphor, simile, and personification. |
| figure of speech | A word or phrase that describes on thing in terms of another and that is not meant to be taken literally. |
| generic conventions | this term describes traditions for each genre. help define each genre |
| genre | a style, type, or category of literature or music |
| homily | a sermon or lecture; also, an inspirational saying or a platitude. |
| hyperbole | a figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor |
| inference | the reasoning involved in drawing a conclusion or making a logical judgment on the basis of circumstantial evidence and prior conclusions rather than on the basis of direct observation |
| invective | abusive or venomous language used to express blame or censure or bitter deep-seated ill will |
| ironic | characterized by often poignant difference or incongruity between what is expected and what actually is |
| juxtaposition | placing two ideas or characters"side by side" for comparison or contrast |
| loose sentence | a type of sentence: independent clause comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units; a basic sentence with a string of details |
| metaphor | a comparision without using like or as |
| metonymy | substituting the name of an attribute or feature for the name of the thing itself (as in 'they counted heads') |
| mood | verb inflections that express how the action or state is conceived by the speaker |
| prose | One of the major divisions of genre, prose refers to fiction and nonfiction, because they are written in ordinairy language |
| repitition | sounds, words, phrases, lines or stanzaz are repeated for emphasis |
| rhetoric | study of the technique and rules for using language effectively (especially in public speaking) |
| logos | A name, symbol, or trademark designed for easy and definite recognition, especially one borne on a single printing plate or piece of type. |
| ethos | the moral element in dramatic literature that determines a character's action rather than his or her thought or emotion. |
| pathos | a style that has the power to evoke feelings |
| sappy | pungent adjectives of disesteem |
| narrative | consisting of or characterized by the telling of a story |
| paradox | a situation or statement that seems to be impossible or contradicting, but is nevertheless true, either literally or figuratively |
| parallelism | A technique in which a speaker or writer expresses ideas of equal worth with the same grammatical form |
| parody | humorous or satirical mimicry |
| pedantic | Adjective that describes the word, phrases, or general tone that is overly scholarly, academic, or bookish |
| personification | A figure of speech in which the author presents or describes concepts, animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions |
| point of view | The narrative perspective from which a literary work is presented to the reader. Main types are 1st person, 2nd person and 3rd person. |
| rhetorical question | a question asked for an effect, not actually requiring an answer |
| satire | witty language used to convey insults or scorn |
| simile | a comparision using like or as |
| style | a way of expressing something (in language or art or music etc.) that is characteristic of a particular person or group of people or period |
| syllogism | logical formula consisting of a major premise, a minor premise and a conclusion; deceptive or specious argument |
| symbol | a person, place, thing, or event that has meaning in itself and that also stands for something more than itself |
| syntax | the grammatical arrangement of words in sentences |
| theme | a unifying idea that is a recurrent element in a literary or artistic work |
| thesis | a treatise advancing a new point of view resulting from research |
| tone | the quality of something (an act or a piece of writing) that reveals the attitudes and presuppositions of the author |
| transition | the act of passing from one state or place to the next |
| understatement | a statement that is restrained in ironic contrast to what might have been said |
| wit | a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or incongruity has the power to evoke laughter |
| attitude | speaker's, author's, or character's disposition towards a subject |
| concrete detail | specific details that form the backbone or core of your body paragraph. |
| devices | The figure of speech, syntax, diction, and other stylistic elements that collectively produce a particular artistic effect. |
| narrative devices | Tools used to tell the story. |
| persuasive essay | presents arguements and tries to convince readers to adopt a certain point of view |
| sentence structure | the grammatical arrangement of words in sentences |
| stylistic devices | An essay that mentions stylistic devices is asking you to note and analyze all of the elemnets in language that contribute to style- such as diction, syntax, tone, attitude, figures of speech, connotations, and repetition. |
| oxymoron | apparent paradox achieved by the juxtaposition of words which seem to contradict one another |
| predicate adjectives | An adjective, group of adjectives, or adjecive clause that follows a linking verb |
| subject complement | word/group of words that completes the meaning of a linking verb and identifies or modifies it . |
| sarcasm | witty language used to convey insults or scorn |
Combine with other sets
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