Nick Hoy 12/14/09 AP English

Nick Hoy 12/14/09 AP English
Allegory
A narrative that serves as an extended metaphor. The main

purpose of a n allegory is to tell a story that has characters,
a setting, as well as other types of symbols, that have both
literal and figurative meanings.
• The Crucible – The Salem Witch Trials vs. McCarthyism.

• The Lord of the Rings was an allegory to the World Wars.
Alliteration
Repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning or in the

middle of two or more adjacent words
• Example:
◦ Instrumural hockey is a strenuous, stimulating,
satisfying sport.
• Example:
◦ Puny puma pit their skills against zebras.
Allusion
A direct or indirect reference to something the is presumably

commonly Known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or
work of art. Allusions can be historical, literary, religious, or
mythical. A work may simulatneously use multiple layers of
allusion to create poignancy or humor.
• The Great Gatsby--”He's one the one who fixed the

world series in 1919.”
• The Great Gatsby--”secrets that only Midas and Morgan
and Maecenus Knew.”
Anadiplosis
Repetition of th last word of one clause at the beginning of

the following clause.
• Example—Mental preparation leads to training; training

builds muscle tone and coordination; muscle tone and
coordination, combined with focused thinking, produce
athletic excellence.
• Example--In the beginning God made the heavens and
the earth The earth was without form and void, and
darkness was upon the fence of the deep.
Anagorisis
A moment of clairvoyant insight or understanding in the mind

of the tragic hero as he suddenly comprehends the web fate
in which he is entangled.
• The Crucible—John Proctor

• Dead man in the movie The Sixth Sense.
Analogy
A comparison between two things that are similar in some
way, often used to help explain something or make it easier
to understanding.
• Example—Glove is to hand as paint is to wall.

• Example—Citizens are to president as solar system is to
galaxy.
Anaphora
The use of the same word or phrase at the beginning of

several successive clauses, sentences, lines, or verses,
usually for emphasis or rhetoical effect.
• Example—Excercise builds stamina in young children;

excercise builds stamina in teenagers and young adults;
exercise builds stamina in older adults and senior
citizens.
• · Example
◦ Mine-by the Right of the White Election!

◦ Mine-by the Royal Seal!
◦ Mine-by the Sign in the Scarlet prison
Bars-Cannot conceal (Emily Dickens)
Aposiopesis
A sudden break in speaking, giving the impression that the

speaker does not want to or cannot continue.
• « I won't sleep in the same bed with a woman who

thingk's I'm lazy! I'm going right downstairs, unfold the
couch, unroll the sleeping ba—uh, goodnight. » (Homer
Simpson)
• "They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist. . . ."
(Last words of General John Sedgwick, killed in battle
during the U.S. Civil War)
Apostrophe
A rhetorical passage in which an absent or imaginary person

or an abstract or inanimate entity is addressed directly.
• Example-- »Hello darkness, my old friend Ive come to

talk with you again. »
• "O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?"
(Shakespeare)
Archetype
A pattern from which copies can be made.
• Ex. Santiago in The Old Man and the Sea.

• Cinderella stories.
Assonance
• Repetition of vowel sounds in the stressed syllables of

two or more adjacent words.
• A workout partner is finally a Kind, Reliable, right-
minded helper.
• « It beats as it sweeps as it cleans. »
Catharsis
To arouse the feeling of pity and fear in such a way as to

effect that special purging off and relief of these two
emotions.
• The climax of the Crucible—John Proctor's death.

• Romeo and Juliet
Chiasmus
A rhetorical construction in which the order of the words in

the second of the two paired phrases is the reverse of the
order in the first.
• « Nice to see you, to see you, nice! »

• "I am stuck on Band-Aid, and Band-Aid's stuck on me."
Climax
Repetition of words, phrases, or clauses in ordewr of

increasing number or importance.
• Example—Excellent Schools need tob e respectful of

themselves, their teammates, their schools, their
schools, and their communities.
• « I am the way, the truth, and the life. »
Christ Figure
A literary technique that authors use to draw allusions

between their characters and the biblical Jesus Christ.
• Santiago in the Old Man and the Sea.

• Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia.
Context
Every speech or written composition arises from a context ..

1. The convergence of the immediate situation calling forth
the text...
2. Any pertinent historical backgrouind information about
the topic...
3. The persona and identity of the rhetor...
4. And the knowledge and beliefs of the audience.
• The context of a speech or written composition strongly

shapes how rhetors argue their positions or explore their
ideas.
Dehortatio
Dissuasion; advice against something.
• Example-- »Never look down on anybody unless you're

helping him up. » (Jessee Jackson)
• « Never answer an anonymous letter. » (Yogi Berra)
Diction
The writers or speakers word choice viewed on scales of

formality / informality, concreteness / abstraction, Latinate
derivation / Anglo-Saxon derivation, and denotative value /
connotative value.
• « Words Strain, Crack and sometimes break, under the

burden, Under the tension, slip, slide, perish, Decay with
imprecision, will not stay in place, Will not stay still. »
(T.S. Elliot)
• "There's a hell of a distance between wise-cracking and
wit. Wit has truth in it; wise-cracking is simply
calisthenics with words."
(Dorothy Parker, 1956)
Dramatic Irony
When the audience nows something that the character(s)

don't.
• Oedipus – Killed his mother and married his mother.

• The Crucible, the audience knows the girls are not really
crazy.
Encomium
A formal expression of praise.
• "Mark Twain has been called the inventor of the

American novel. It might even be fair to call him the
inventor of the American short story. And he surely
deserves an additional encomium: the man who
popularized the sophisticated literary attack on racism."
(Stephen L. Carter, "Getting Past Black and White," Time
magazine, July 3, 2008)
• "The greatest thing about this man [President George W.
Bush] is he's steady. You know where he stands. He
believes the same thing Wednesday that he believed on
Monday, no matter what happened Tuesday. Events can
change; this man's beliefs never will."
(Stephen Colbert, "The Colbert Report")
Epistrophe
Repetition of the same group of words at the end of

successive vlauses.
• To become a top-notch player, I thought like an athlete, I

trained like an athlete, I ate like an athlete.
• « There is no Negro problem. There is no Southern
problem. There is no Northern Problem. There is only
an American problem. »
Epizeuxis
Repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis, usually with no

words in between.
• « When it comes to compliments, women are ravenous

blood-sucking monsters always wanting more... more...
MORE! »
• « I undid the lantern cautiously—oh, so cautiously—
caustiously. »
Erotesis
A figure of speech whereby a question is asked in confident

expectation of a negative answer.
• « Donuts. Is there anything they can't do? »

• « You may think that you are not superstitious. But
would you walk under a burning building? »
Ethos
People's belief in you based upon your credibility.
• "I'm not a doctor, but I play one on TV."

(1960s TV commercial for Excedrin)
• Actually being a doctor.
Figures of Speech
A use of a word that diverges from its normal meaning or a

phrase with a specialized meaning not based on the literal
meaning of the words in it. Often provide emphasis,
freshness of expression, or clarity.
• « It's rainging cats and dogs » means it is raining

intensely.
• « Break a leg, » Good Luck.
Hamartia
A fatal error or simple mistake on the part of the protagonist

that eventually leads to the final catastrphe.
• The Crucible—John Proctor's affair with Abigail

• Oedipus
Hubris
Insolent daring that gets a person in deep trouble. Other

known as « false pride ».
• The Crucible—John Proctor challenges authority.

• Friar Lawrence in Romeo & Juliet.
Hyperbole
A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or

overstatement.
• « These books weigh a ton. »

• « I'm so hungry, I could eat a watermelon. »
Hypophora
A figure of speech where the speaker poses a qustion and

then answers the question.
• « What's a wedding? Webster's dictionary describes it as

the act of removing weeds from one's garden. »
• « Ask any mermaid you happen to see, 'What's the best
tuna?' Chicken of the Sea. »
Intention
What the rhetor wants to happen as a result of the text, or

what he or she wants the audience to believe or do after
hearing or reading the text.
• The Crucible—Arthur Miller's intention in writing the

Crucible was to tell the acts of McCarthyism by writing a
story bused on The Salem Witch Trials to explain
McCarthyism.
• The Great Gatsby and partying hard.
Irony
A contradiction between what is expected and what actually

happened.
• The Crucible—Abigail claimed to be « pure » and

« holy » when she was accusing innocent people of
witchcraft.
• The crucible—In Scene II, Paris says « All innocent and
Christian people are happy for the courts in Salem, »
When, in fact, few innocent and truly christian people
were happy for the courts of Salem.
Litotes
The ironic minimizing of fact, understatement presents

something at less than it is.
• « Not bad, » meaning « Good. »

• « You're not wrong, » meaning « You're right. »
Logos
When the rhetor appeals to the audience with their good

sence of logic.
• Obama's speech was very logical.

• Water will put out fire.
Malapropism
Is the substitution of a word with a similar sound, in which

the resulting phrasemakes no sence but often creates a
comic effect.
• "He is the very pineapple of politeness." (Mrs. Malaprop

in Richard Sheridan's The Rivals)
• « A witness shall not bear falsies against thy neighbor."
Nemesis
Retribution; the inevitable payback or cosmic punishment for

acts of hubris.
• Marlin vs Santiago
• Capulet vs Montague
Oxymoron
A figure of speech that combines normally contadictory

terms.
• Jumbo shrimp
• Icy-hot stare
Pathos
Represents an appeal to the audience's emotions.
• Sympathetic conflict.
• Donate to the Animal hospitals.
Peripeteia
A pivotal or crucial action on the part of the protagonist that

changes the situation from seemingly secure to vulnerable.
• Fire on a hot-air balloon.

• A crack apears on Chickamauga Dam.
Persona
The character or voice an author or actor portrays to be.
• « Robin Hood and Allin a Dale, » in which an anonymous

Character recounts the events of the meeting and
adventures with Robin Hood.
• Nick telling the story of Gatsby through his own
perspective.
Personification
A figure of speech where in an inanimate objject is given

human qualities.
• The chair moaned as Craig began to sit on it.

• The wind whistled as the storm grew explosively.
Polyptoton
The stylistic scheme in which words clerived from the same

root are repeated.
• « Marge, what's wrong? Are you hungry? Sleepy?

Gassy? Gassy? Is it gas? It's gas, isn't it? »
• « Craig, what's wrong? Are you hungry? Sleepy?
Gassy? Gassy? Is it gas? It's gas, isn't it? »
Repetition
Just the repetition of a word or phrase within the same root

that is repeated.
• « I want to shake off dust of htis one horse town. I want

to explore the world. »
• What is that over there? What is that pile of tomato pie
for?
Rhetoric
Explains how communications works and presumes that the

speaker or writer is searching for methods to persuade
hearers or readers beause he or she has something valuable
to say, something that arises from his or her position as an
honest, inquiring, ethical person.
• « Fame was like a drug. But what was even more like a
drug were the drugs. »
• Rhetoric is the art of ruling the minds of men as said by
Plato.
Rhetorical Question
Is a figure of speech in the form of question posed for its

persuasive effect without the expectation of a reply.
• « Do I know what 'rhetorical' means? »

• « Do you really think that cow is floating in mid-air
Craig? »
Sarcasm
A mocking, often ironic or satinical remark intended to

wound.
• « Oh, a sarcasm detector. That's a really useful

invention. »
• The cow jumped over the moon.
Satire
A piece of work that tries to expose, attack, and/or ridicule

the foolishness, wrongdoings, or strange behavior of society.
• Example—South Park
• Example—Family Guy
Scheme
Any artful variation from the typical arrangement of words

ina sentence.
• « One binge does not a bulemic make. »

• « I got, so far as the immediate moment was concerned,
away. »
Situationaly Irony
Contradiction between whathappens and what is expected to

happen.
• The Crucible—Abigail started the witchcraft crap to get

John Proctor to leave his wive and be with her, he ended
up getting tried for witchcraft and getting killed.
• Expecting to play a violin concerto and your bridge
collapses.
Tone
The writer's or speacker's attitude toward the subject matter.
• The Crucible—Judge Danworth's tone towards the little

girls was sympathetic.
• Nick's tone was being disgusted by all the people who
did not attend the funeral for Gatsby.
Tragedy
An artistic imitation of an action that is serious, complete in

itself, and of adequate magnitude. The imitation is produced
in language embellished in more than one way and is itsekf
an action directly presented, not narrated. And as for the
proper function; it is to arouse the emotions of pity and fear;
and to arouse this puty and fear in such a way as to effect
that special purging off and relief of hese two emotions.
• The Crucible was a tragedy.

• Romeo and Juliet
Tricolon
A sentence with three clearly defined parts of equal length,

usually independent clauses and of increasing power.
• « Television! Teacher, mother, secret lover. »

• « I think we've all arrived at a very special place.
Spritually, ecumenically, grammatically. »
Trope
Any artful variation from the typical or expected way a word

or idea is expressed.
• "For the Roman rhetorician Quintilian, tropes were

metaphors and metonyms, etc., and figures were such
forms of discourse as rhetorical questions, digression,
repetition, antithesis, and periphrasis (also referred to as
schemes). He noted that the two kinds of usage were
often confused (a state of affairs that has continued to
this day)."
• "What was abandoned in the course of the 19th century
was the traditionally strict distinction between tropes
and figures/schemes (Sharon-Zisser, 1993). It gave way
to the overall terms 'figures du discours' (Fontanier),
'figures of speech' (Quinn), 'rhetorical figures' (Mayoral),
'figures de style' (Suhamy, Bacry), or simple 'figures'
(Genette)."
Verbal Irony
Contradiction between what is said and what is expected to

be said.
• The Crucible—Abigail claimed to be so « pure » and

« holy » when she was accusing innocent people of
witchcraft and sending them to their deaths, she also
had an affair with a married man.
• The Crucible—In Scene II, Paris says « All innocent and
Christian people are happy for the courts in Salem, »
When, in fact, few innocent and truly christian people
were happy for the courts of Salem.
Wit
Powers of thinking and reasoning; intellectual and perceptive

powers.
• « It is a truth universaly acknowledged that a young

man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of
a wife. » (Pride and Prejudice)
• « I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural
ignorance. Ignorance is a delicate exotic fruit, touch it
and the bloom is gone. » (The Importance of Being
Earnest.)

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A narrative that serves as an extended metaphor. The main

• The Crucible – The Salem Witch Trials vs. McCarthyism.

Repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning or in the

A direct or indirect reference to something the is presumably

• The Great Gatsby--”He's one the one who fixed the

Repetition of th last word of one clause at the beginning of

• Example—Mental preparation leads to training; training

A moment of clairvoyant insight or understanding in the mind

• The Crucible—John Proctor

• Example—Glove is to hand as paint is to wall.

The use of the same word or phrase at the beginning of

• Example—Excercise builds stamina in young children;

◦ Mine-by the Right of the White Election!

A sudden break in speaking, giving the impression that the

• « I won't sleep in the same bed with a woman who

A rhetorical passage in which an absent or imaginary person

• Example-- »Hello darkness, my old friend Ive come to

A pattern from which copies can be made.

• Ex. Santiago in The Old Man and the Sea.

• Repetition of vowel sounds in the stressed syllables of

To arouse the feeling of pity and fear in such a way as to

• The climax of the Crucible—John Proctor's death.

A rhetorical construction in which the order of the words in

• « Nice to see you, to see you, nice! »

Repetition of words, phrases, or clauses in ordewr of

• Example—Excellent Schools need tob e respectful of

A literary technique that authors use to draw allusions

• Santiago in the Old Man and the Sea.

Every speech or written composition arises from a context ..

• The context of a speech or written composition strongly

Dissuasion; advice against something.

• Example-- »Never look down on anybody unless you're

The writers or speakers word choice viewed on scales of

• « Words Strain, Crack and sometimes break, under the

When the audience nows something that the character(s)

• Oedipus – Killed his mother and married his mother.

A formal expression of praise.

• "Mark Twain has been called the inventor of the

Repetition of the same group of words at the end of

• To become a top-notch player, I thought like an athlete, I

Repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis, usually with no

• « When it comes to compliments, women are ravenous

A figure of speech whereby a question is asked in confident

• « Donuts. Is there anything they can't do? »

People's belief in you based upon your credibility.

• "I'm not a doctor, but I play one on TV."

A use of a word that diverges from its normal meaning or a

• « It's rainging cats and dogs » means it is raining

A fatal error or simple mistake on the part of the protagonist

• The Crucible—John Proctor's affair with Abigail

Insolent daring that gets a person in deep trouble. Other

• The Crucible—John Proctor challenges authority.

A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or

• « These books weigh a ton. »

A figure of speech where the speaker poses a qustion and

• « What's a wedding? Webster's dictionary describes it as

What the rhetor wants to happen as a result of the text, or

• The Crucible—Arthur Miller's intention in writing the

A contradiction between what is expected and what actually

• The Crucible—Abigail claimed to be « pure » and

The ironic minimizing of fact, understatement presents