Untitled

Non Sequitur

"it does not follow"; an unwarranted conclusion

Homily

"sermon," but it includes any serious speech, or lecture involving moral or spiritual advice.

Hasty Generalization

A person who makes a hasty generalization draws a conclusion about an entire group based on evidence too scant or insufficient. (Example: Because my Honda broke down, all Hondas must be junk)

Either/or argument

A way to simplify arguments and give them power is to reduce the options for action to only two choices. Often, the preferred option is drawn into a favorable light, whereas the alternative is cast as an ominous shadow. The either/ or argument becomes fallacious, however, when it reduces a complicated issue to excessively simple terms or when it is designed to obscure other legitimate alternatives. (Example: Tomorrow is April 15th; therefore I must mail in my tax return, or I will be arrested.)

Ad Hominem argument

From Latin meaning "to or against the man", it is the strategy of attacking the character the people you disagree with rather than the substance of their arguments. In politics, this is called "mudslinging" (Example: So you think Eminem is a homophobic racist? Well, you're just a thumb-sucking, white-bread elitist)

Straw-man argument

Here is a technique we've all seen and heard used by politicians seeking election. The speaker/writer attributes false or exaggerated characteristics or behaviors to the opponent and attacks him on those falsehoods or exaggerations. (Example: You say you support allowing people under 18 to drive alone. I'll never be able to understand why weak-willed drivers like you are willing to risk your life and the lives of all other drivers with these crazy teenagers on the road.)

Begging the question

Is a logical fallacy in which the claim that is made is based on grounds that are in doubt. (Example: An accused felon makes the argument "I can't be guilty of embezzlement; I'm an honest person." Fallacy: How can the accused felon defend himself on the grounds of honesty when that honesty is now suspect? )

Non sequitur argument

This Latin phrase means "does not follow." A non sequitur is an argument in which claims, reasons, or warrants fail to connect logically; one point does not follow another. (Example: A child says to her parent "You don't love me or you'd buy me that bicycle!" Claim: You must not love me. Reason: because you haven't bought me that bicycle. Warrant: Buying bicycles for children is essential for loving them. Although the child might accept the warrant in her argument, her parent can see that she has made a non sequitur argument because bicycles don't necessarily follow love.)

Post hoc argument

This fallacy cites an unrelated event that occurred earlier as the cause of a current situation. (Example: I saw a black cat run across the street in front of my car five minutes before I was hit by a foul ball at the ball park. Therefore, the black cat is the cause of my bruised arm.)

Circular reasoning

This mistake in logic restates the premise rather than giving a reason for holding that premise. (Example: I like to eat out because I enjoy different foods and restaurants.)

Anecdote

a brief account of some interesting or entertaining and often humorous incident

Metaphor

a direct comparison between dissimilar things.

Allusion

a direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, or place. Allusions can be historical, (like referring to Hitler), literary (like referring to Huck Finn), religious (like referring to Noah and the flood), or mythical (like referring to Atlas). An author's use of this device tends to presuppose that readers in general will possess the knowledge to recognize the allusion. Because of the connotations they carry, allusions are used to enrich meaning or broaden the impact of a statement.

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.

Litotes

a figure of speech consisting of an understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negating its opposite, as in This is no small problem.

Synecdoche

a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to represent the whole or, occasionally, the whole is used to represent a part. To refer to a boat as a sail is synecdoche. In Night, Wiesel uses synecdoche when he speaks of himself as "a body. Perhaps less than that even: a starved stomach."

Metonymy

a figure of speech in which one thing is represented by another that is commonly and often physically associated with it. A monarch may be referred to as "the crown," or a news release claim, "the White House declared" rather than "the President declared."

Apostrophe

a figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or personified abstraction, such as liberty or love. The speaker addresses the object of the apostrophe as if this object were present and capable of understanding and responding. The effect may add familiarity or emotional intensity. William Wordsworth addresses John Milton as he writes, "Milton, thou shouldst be living in this hour. England hath need of thee."

Hyperbole

a figure of speech that uses deliberate exaggeration to achieve an effect.

Deduction

a form of logical thinking to analyze when asked to evaluate the persuasive devices used by the author. General statements (major premises) believed to be true are applied to specific situations (minor premises). The result of deduction is a conclusion about a specific situation.

Analogy

a literary device employed to serve as a basis for comparison. It is assumed that what applies to the parallel situation also applies to the original circumstance. In other words, it is the comparison between two different items.

Dialectic

a method of logical argumentation that typically addresses conflicting positions.

Satire

a mode of writing based on ridicule that criticizes the foibles and follies of society without necessarily offering a solution.

Preposition

a preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence as in the following examples: The book is on the table. The book is beneath the table. The book is leaning against the table. The book is beside the table. She held the book over the table. She read the book during class.

Synesthesia

a psychological process whereby one kind of sensory stimulus evokes the subjective experience of another. For instance, the sight of ants may make you feel itchy. When used with reference to literature, it refers to the practice of associating two or more different senses in the same image. It speaks of one sensation in terms of another. Ex: a red hot coal evokes both color (sight) and heat (touch).

Pathos

a quality in a work that makes the reader experience pity, sorrow or tenderness. Pathetic characters are usually helpless, innocent victims suffering through no fault of their own.

Interrogative

a question that always ends with a question mark: If I won the lottery, do you think I would share the money with you?

Chiasmus

a rhetorical device in which certain words, sounds, concepts, or syntactic structures are reversed or repeated in reverse order. Chiastic structure may also create or heighten paradox. (ex: "Fair is foul and foul is fair." "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.")

Antithesis

a rhetorical device in which two ideas are directly opposed. For a statement to be truly antithetical, the opposing ideas must be presented in a grammatically parallel way, thus creating a perfect rhetorical balance. Example: "Give me liberty or give me death."

Periodic Sentence

a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end. This independent clause is preceded by a phrase or clause that cannot stand alone. For example, "Ecstatic with my AP scores, I let out a loud shout of joy!" The effect of a periodic sentence is to add emphasis and structural variety.

Declarative

a statement that always ends with a period: Mars is the fourth planet from the sun.

Paradox

a statement that seems self-contradictory or nonsensical on the surface but that, upon closer examination, may be seen to contain an underlying truth. As a rhetorical device, paradox is used to grab the reader's attention and to direct it to a specific point or image that provokes the reader to see something in a new way. Ex: "We had to destroy the village to save it."

Authorial Aside

a technique in which the author steps outside the story, speaking directly to the reader to reveal an attitude, purpose or meaning.

Pedantic

a term used to describe writing that borders on lecturing. It is scholarly and academic and often overly difficult and distant.

Aphorism

a terse statement of known authorship, which expresses a general truth or moral principle. (If the authorship is unknown, the statement is generally considered a folk proverb.) An aphorism can be a memorable summation of the author's point.

Mode of discourse

a type of writing. The modes are usually described as the following types: exposition - illustrates a point, narration - tells a story, description - creates a sensory image, and argumentation - takes a position on an issue and defends it.

Motif

a unifying element in an artistic work, especially any recurrent image, symbol, theme, character, type, subject or narrative detail. Specific colors such as green and white serve as motifs in The Great Gatsby.

Indefinite Pronoun

a word that replaces a noun without specifying which noun it replaces. Examples: another, anybody, anyone, anything, each, either, everybody, everyone, everything, little, much, neither, nobody, no one, nothing, one, other, somebody, someone, something, both, few, many, others, several, all, any, more, most, none, some

Attitude

a writer's intellectual position/emotion regarding the subject. In the essay section, expect to be asked what the writer's attitude is and how the language conveys that attitude. Although the singular term "attitude" is used, the passage will rarely have only one attitude. More often, the author's attitude will be more complex, and the student who presents this complexity will appear to be more astute than the student who uses one adjective to describe attitude. Understand that an accurate statement of an attitude is not likely to be blatantly obvious.

Invective

an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language.

Stylistic Devices

an essay that mentions stylistic devices is asking you to note and analyze all of the elements in language that contribute to style-such as diction, syntax, tone, attitude, figures of speech, connotations and repetition.

Exclamatory

an expression of strong feeling that ends with an exclamation point: Oh, what a wonderful feeling! Oh, what a wonderful day!

Irony

an unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended or expected to happen. It can be verbal, situational or dramatic.

Compound

composed of two or more independent clauses, which are joined by a conjunction or a semicolon: Timmy likes grammar class, so he does not like "Magma."

Style

comprises subject matter, selection of detail, organization, point of view, diction, syntax, language, attitude and tone, as well as other literary devices. An evaluation of the sum of the choices an author makes in regards to language. We can analyze and describe an author's personal style and make judgments on how appropriate it is to the author's purpose.

Selection of detail

facts, circumstances, characteristics, techniques, etc., used by the writer to convey tone, purpose or effect.

Syllogism

format of a formal argument that consists of a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion.

Euphemism

from the Greek for "good speech" euphemisms are a more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts. The euphemism may be used to adhere to standards of social or political correctness, or to add humor or ironic understatement. Saying "earthly remains" rather than "corpse" is an example of euphemism.

Rhetoric

from the Greek for "orator," this term describes the principles governing the art of writing effectively, eloquently and persuasively.

Oxymoron

from the Greek for "pointedly foolish," a figure of speech that juxtaposes two opposite or apparently contradictory words to present an emphatic and dramatic paradox for a rhetorical purpose or effect. Ex: wide fool, bittersweet, eloquent silence.

Imperative

gives a command or makes a request, and usually ends with a period: Please bring me that cup. Run for your life!

Ad Hoc argument

giving an after-the-fact explanation which doesn't apply to other situations. Often this ad hoc explanation will be dressed up to look like an argument. For instance, suppose you analyze "bird" as "any creature that can fly." I then cite mosquitoes as a counter-example. They can fly, but they aren't birds. Now, you might fix up your analysis as follows: A bird is any creature that can fly, and which is not a mosquito.

Simple

has only one independent clause, no dependent clauses, and is limited to one subject and one predicate: German is boring.

Rhetorical Strategies

include example, contrast and comparison, definition, cause and effect, process, analysis/division and classification. The writer may also employ descriptive and narrative strategies. These are the basic approaches a writer uses to tell a story, explain a point, describe a situation or argue a position.

Figurative Language

includes apostrophe, hyperbole, metaphor, oxymoron, paradox, personification, simile, and understatement.

Ellipsis

indicated by a series of three periods, the ellipsis shows some material has been omitted. Be wary of the ellipsis; it could obscure the real meaning of the piece of writing.

Connotation

interpretative level of a word based on its associated images rather than literal meaning

Compound-Complex

joins a compound and a complex sentence together. It should contain two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clause: Magma sings in a language they created, and they feel that proper grammar has no place at their shows, which are often quite obnoxious. ("Magma sings..." is an independent clause, "they feel..." is an independent clause, "which are..." is a dependent clause.)

Ambiguity

multiple meanings, intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence or passage.

Mood

prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura. Setting, tone and events can affect the mood.

Alliteration

repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in 2+ neighboring words.

Imagery

sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions, typically related to the five senses. On a deeper level, one image can represent more than one thing. For example, a rose may present visual imagery, while also representing the color in a woman's cheeks. In addition, this term can apply to all images in a work. On the AP exam, pay attention to how an author creates imagery and its effect.

Tone

similar to mood, tone describes the author's attitude toward his or her material, the audience, or both. Tone is easier to determine in spoken language than written. Considering how a work would sound if it were read aloud can help in identifying an author's tone. Some words describing tone are playful, serious, businesslike, sarcastic, humorous, formal, ornate and somber. As with attitude, an author's tone in the exam's passages can rarely be described by one word. Expect that it will be more complex.

Personification

the assigning of human qualities to inanimate objects or concepts.

Allegory

the device of using character and or/ story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literal meaning. In some allegories, for example, an author may intend the characters to personify an abstraction like hope or freedom. The allegorical meaning usually deals with moral truth or generalization about human existence.

Devices

the figures of speech, syntax, diction and other stylistic elements that collectively produce a particular artistic effect.

Parallelism (or parallel structure)

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. The effects of parallelism are numerous, but frequently, they act as an organizing force to attract the reader's attention, add emphasis and organization, or simply provide a musical rhythm.

Understatement

the ironic minimalizing of fact, understatement presents something as less significant than it is. The effect can frequently be humorous and emphatic. Understatement is the opposite of hyperbole.

Rhetorical Purpose

the reason for the speaker's remarks; or a definition of the attitude that the author would like the reader to adopt.

Narrative Technique

the style of telling the "story," even if the passage is nonfiction. Concentrate on the order of events and on their detail in evaluating a writer's technique.

Colloquial

the use of slang in writing, often to create local color and to provide an informal tone (Think Adventures of Huck Finn.)

Syntax

the way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses and sentences. Syntax is similar to diction, but you can differentiate the two by thinking of syntax as referring to groups of words, while diction refers to individual words. When you are analyzing syntax, consider such elements as the length or brevity of sentences, unusual sentence constructions, the sentence patterns used, and the kinds of sentences the author uses. The writer may use questions, declarations, exclamations, or rhetorical questions; sentences are classified as periodic, simple, compound, or complex. First try to classify what kind of sentences the author primarily uses, and then try to determine how the author's choices amplify meaning, in other words why they work well for the author's purpose.

Antecedent

the word, phrase or clause to which a pronoun refers. (can be called a pronoun referent).

Diction

the writer's word choices, especially with regard to correctness, clearness or effectiveness. For the exam, you should be able to describe an author's diction (e.g. formal, informal, ornate, plain) and understand the ways diction complements the author's purpose. In your thesis, avoid phrases such as "The author uses diction...." Since diction is word choice, this phrase really says, "The author chooses words to write..." which is redundant. At least try to put an adjective in front of the word "diction" to help describe it.

Narrative Devices

this term describes the tools of a storyteller, such as ordering events so that they build to a climactic moment or withholding information until a crucial or appropriate moment when revealing it creates a desired effect.

Induction

type of reasoning that examines evidence before drawing a conclusion.

Onomatopoeia

use of words that sound like they mean or signify meaning through sound effects.

Complex

use one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses: Timmy thinks of grammar when he is at a Magma concert. ("Timmy thinks..." is an independent clause, "when he..." is a dependent clause.)

Sentence Structure

when an essay question asks you to analyze sentence structure, look at the type of sentences the author uses. Remember that the basic sentence structures are simple, compound and complex, and variations created with sentence combining. Also consider variation or lack of it in sentence length, any unusual devices in sentence construction, such as repetition or inverted word order, and any unusual word or phrase placement. Be prepared to discuss the effect of the sentence structure. For example, a series of short, simple sentences or phrases can produce a feeling of speed and choppiness, which may suit the author's purpose.

Descriptive Detail

when an essay uses this phrase, look for the writer's sensory description. Descriptive detail appealing to the visual sense is usually the most predominant, but don't overlook other sensory detail.

Persuasive Devices

when asked to analyze an author's persuasive devices, look for words in the passage that have strong connotations. In addition, analyze how these words complement the writer's argument as it builds logically.

Supporting a Position

when supporting a position, consider the following types of evidence: facts, statistics, details, quotations, needed definitions, recognition of the opposition, examples, anecdotes, contrast and compare, cause and effect, appeal to emotion and appeal to authority.

Language

when you're asked to "analyze the language," concentrate on how the elements of language combine to form a whole-how diction, syntax, figurative language, and sentence structure create a cumulative effect.