Rhetorical Terms

periodic sentence

sentence whose main clause is withheld until the end- This is used for emphasis and can be persuasive by putting reasons for something at the beginning before the final point is made. It can also create suspense or interest for the reader. Example-In spite of heavy snow and cold temperatures, the game continued.

antecedent example

"O that this too, too solid flesh would melt, Thaw and resolve itself into a dew." (Shakespeare, Hamlet)

Diction

A writer's or speaker's choice of words- ____ descriptions: Formal, informal, academic, sophisticated, slang, poetic, concrete, abstract, etc....

Logos

An iPhone commercial that highlights the latest features and specs. A Dole fruit juice commercial that hypes vitamin and calorie stats. Verizon shows a map to prove it has better coverage than AT&T. ____ appeals to logic and reason by using statistics, facts, and figures. Aristotle considered this the biggie. He believed that people are rational, and appealing to the rational mind with data, research, and evidence is the best way to win them over.

ad hominem argument

an argument attacking an individual's character rather than his or her position on an issue. Example- Attacking a defendant's character rather than addressing the actual facts of the alleged criminal activity - "You haven't held a steady job since 1992. Worse than that, we couldn't find a single employer who'd provide you with a good reference."

antecedent example

The AP language exam occasionally asks for the ___ 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."

Syntax

The arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language- cumulative and periodic sentences are examples _____.

figurative language

Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid- think metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole- figurative language is used a lot when writing with imagery which many times appeal to emotions of the reader (pathos)

Pathos

____ aims to persuade viewers by prompting an emotional response. This can be a positive, such the happiness you would feel if you bought, say, a new bike. It can be a negative, as in, "Yikes, I might die if I keep smoking." And how about guilt? "Adopt this puppy and give it a home."

Ethos

____ convinces the audience by presenting reliability, honesty, and credibility. This often means a respected authority figure or celebrity giving a product or brand a testimonial or endorsement.

Logical appeals

arguments that use reasons and evidence to support

cumulative sentence

sentence that completes the main idea at the beginning of the sentence and then builds and adds on-These sentences are especially effective for description, even if they use only a single detail at the end. Example-"The radiators put out lots of heat, too much, in fact, and old-fashioned sounds and smells came with it, exhalations of the matter that composes our own mortality, and reminiscent of the intimate gases we all diffuse."