AP Literary and Rhetorical Terms 1. 2. alliteration- Used for poetic effect, a repetition of the initial sounds of several words in a group. The following line from Robert Frost’s poem “Acquainted with the Night provides us with an example of alliteration,”: I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet. ” The repetition of the s sound creates a sense of quiet, reinforcing the meaning of the line 3. allegory – Where every aspect of a story is representative, usually symbolic, of something else, usually a larger abstract concept or important historical/geopolitical event.
Lord of the Flies provides a compelling allegory of human nature, illustrating the three sides of the psyche through its sharply-defined main characters. A form of extended metaphor, in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative, are equated with the meanings that lie outside the narrative itself. The underlying meaning has moral, social, religious, or political significance, and characters are often personifications of abstract ideas as charity, greed, or envy. Thus an allegory is a story with two meanings, a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning 4.
Allusion- A reference in one literary work to a character or theme found in another literary work. T. S. Eliot, in “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” alludes (refers) to the biblical figure John the Baptist in the line Though I have seen my head (grown slightly bald) brought in upon a platter, . . . In the New Testament, John the Baptist’s head was presented to King Herod on a platter 5. ambiguity-A statement which can contain two or more meanings. For example, when the oracle at Delphi told Croesus that if he waged war on Cyrus he would destroy a great empire, Croesus thought the oracle meant his enemy’s empire.
The Essay on The Player Piano Sound Line Word
Evaluate the effectiveness of diction as an adjunct to meaning in John Updike's "Player Piano." In "Player Piano", John Updike uses personification to give life to a unhuman' piano. By using diction to communicate his ideas, he effectively allows the reader to explore the psyche of a "Player Piano." In the first couple lines of the poem, assonance and consonance are present. In line one, these ...
In fact, the empire Croesus destroyed by going to war was his own 6. analogy- A comparison of two different things that are alike in some way (see metaphor and simile).
Analogy is the comparison of two pairs which have the same relationship. The key is to ascertain the relationship between the first so you can choose the correct second pair. Part to whole, opposites, results of are types of relationships you should find. Example: hot is to cold as fire is to ice OR hot:cold::fire:ice 7. antecedent- Grammar.
A word, phrase, or clause, usually a substantive, that is replaced by a pronoun or other substitute later, or occasionally earlier, in the same or in another, usually subsequent, sentence. In Jane lost a glove and she can’t find it, Jane is the antecedent of she and glove is the antecedent of it. Logic. the conditional element in a proposition, as “Caesar conquered Gaul,” in “If Caesar conquered Gaul, he was a great general. ” 8. Anthropomorphism: Where animals or inanimate objects are portrayed in a story as people, such as by walking, talking, or being given arms, legs, facial features, human locomotion or other anthropoid form.
(This technique is often incorrectly called personification. )The King and Queen of Hearts and their playing-card courtiers comprise only one example of Carroll’s extensive use of anthropomorphism in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland 9. Aphorism-A brief statement which expresses an observation on life, usually intended as a wise observation. Benjamin Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Almanac” contains numerous examples, one of which is Drive thy business; let it not drive thee. A brief saying embodying a moral, a concise statement of a principle or precept given in pointed words.
Example: Hippocrates: Life is short, art is long, opportunity fleeting, experimenting dangerous, reasoning difficult. Pope: Some praise at morning what they blame at night. Emerson: Imitation is suicide Franklin: Lost Time is never Found again. 10. Apostrophe- A figure of speech wherein the speaker speaks directly to something nonhuman. In these lines from John Donne’s poem “The Sun Rising” the poet scolds the sun for interrupting his nighttime activities: Busy old fool, unruly sun, Why dost thou thus, Through windows, and through curtains call on us? An absent person, an abstract concept, or an important object is directly addressed.
The Essay on A Raisin in the Sun vs. Julius Caesar
In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun themes, symbols, and characters can be compared. Both A Raisin in the Sun and Julius Caesar were written for the stage; therefore their characters become more obvious and more thoroughly portrayed than in a book, for example. Even though, these works were written by far different authors and in different centuries ...
Example: With how sad steps, O moon, thou climbest the skies. Busy old fool, unruly sun. 11. archetype-something that serves as a model or a basis for making copies; “this painting is a copy of the original” [syn: original] 12. atmosphere- the dominant mood or emotional tone of a work of art, as of a play or novel: the chilly atmosphere of a ghost story. 13. antithesis- opposition, or contrast of ideas or words in a balanced or parallel construction. *Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice, moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue. Barry Goldwater *Brutus: Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.
Shakespeare, Julius Caesar 14. Anecdote A very short tale told by a character in a literary work. In Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales,” “The Miller’s Tale” and “The Carpenter’s Tale” are examples a short account of a particular incident or event of an interesting or amusing nature, often biographical 15. antagonist- A person or force which opposes the protagonist in a literary work. In Stephen Vincent Benet’s “The Devil and Daniel Webster,” Mr. Scratch is Daniel Webster’s antagonist at the trial of Jabez Stone. The cold, in Jack London’s “To Build a Fire” is the antagonist that defeats the man on the trail 16.
Anticlimax- an event, conclusion, statement that is far less important, powerful, or striking than expected. A disappointing, weak, or inglorious conclusion. A noticeable or ludicrous descent from lofty ideas or expressions. 17. argumentation writing-the process of developing or presenting an argument; reasoning. The setting forth of reasons together with the conclusion drawn from them. 18. assonance- The repetition of vowel sounds in a literary work, especially in a poem 19. attitude- manner, disposition, feeling, position, etc. , with regard to a person or thing; tendency or orientation, esp.
The Essay on Trojan: Gothic Architecture And Word Meaning Word
What Trojan hero did the Romans considered themselves descended from? – Aeneas. What Greek historian described and explained Rome’s rise to power? – Polybius Who were the legendary twin brothers who founded Rome in 753 B.C.? – Romulus and Remus What three things did Polybius consider the main causes of Rome’s greatness? Which Hellenistic philosophy taught that we should strive for “ ...
of the mind: a negative attitude; group attitudes 20. audience- listeners or viewers collectively 21. caricature- a picture, description, etc. , ludicrously exaggerating the peculiarities or defects of persons or things: His caricature of the mayor in this morning’s paper is the best he’s ever drawn. any imitation or copy so distorted or inferior as to be ludicrous . a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others. 22. causal analysis writing- seeks to identify and understand the reasons why things are as they are and hence enabling focus of change activity.
Causal analysis links actions or events along a time line, but it differs from process analysis in that it tells us why something happens, is happening, or will probably happen. Therefore, a causal analysis can serve one or more of four main purposes: to entertain, to inform, to speculate, and to argue. Cause/Effect Writing 23. clause-a syntactic construction containing a subject and predicate and forming part of a sentence or constituting a whole simple sentence 24. cliche-a trite, stereotyped expression.
A sentence or phrase, usually expressing a popular or common thought or idea, that has lost originality, ingenuity, and impact by long overuse 25. colloquial- kuh-loh-kwee-uh[pic]l-characteristic of or appropriate to ordinary or familiar conversation rather than formal speech or writing; informal. 26. conceit- an elaborate, fanciful metaphor. A far-fetched metaphor when the speaker compares two highly dissimilar things. 27. connotation- the associated or secondary meaning of a word or expression in addition to its explicit or primary meaning: A possible connotation of “home” is “a place of warmth, comfort, and affection.
”Implied meaning of a word. The denotation of a word is its dictionary definition. In literary criticism, a word’s denotation is its primary or literal significance, whereas connotation is the range of secondary significance which a word commonly suggests. For instance, the word “sea” denotes a large body of water, but its connotative meaning includes the sense of overwhelming space, danger, instability; whereas “earth” connotes safety, fertility and stability. 28. claim-to assert or maintain as a fact: Ex.
The Essay on Edgar Allan Poe Life Writing Literary
Edgar Allen Poe By: Kirsten Essen preis Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allen Poe's contributions to American literature have become increasingly more prominent as the years have passed. As short fiction has become a more accepted genre in literary circles, Poe's theories are studied with more passion. Although he lived a rather melancholy life, Poe did experience moments of joy, and desired to capture the ...
She claimed that he was telling the truth.29. classification and division- In a classification essay, a writer organizes, or sorts, things into categories. Division separates items into categories. 30. coherence- logical interconnection; overall sense or understandability. The property of unity in a written text or a segment of spoken discourse that stems from the links among its underlying ideas and from the logical organization and development of its thematic content 31. climax- The decisive moment in a drama, the climax is the turning point of the play to which the rising action leads.
This is the crucial part of the drama, the part which determines the outcome of the conflict. In Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” the climax occurs at the end of Marc Antony’s speech to the Roman public. In the climax to the film “Star Wars,” the empire’s death star is ready to destroy the rebel base. Luke Skywalker and rebel pilots attack the base, and after the deaths of some rebel pilots, Skywalker successfully fires his missile into the death star’s vulnerable spot and destroys the death star, saving the rebel forces.
32.abstract- thought of apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances: an abstract idea. Expressing a quality or characteristic apart from any specific object or instance, as justice, poverty, and speed. 33. concrete- representing or applied to an actual substance or thing, as opposed to an abstract quality: The words “cat,” “water,” and “teacher” are concrete, whereas the words “truth,” “excellence,” and “adulthood” are abstract. 34. definition writing:
A definition essay is writing that explains what a term means 35.denotation- In literary criticism, a word’s denotation is its primary or literal significance. The explicit or direct meaning or set of meanings of a word or expression, as distinguished from the ideas or meanings associated with it or suggested by it; the association or set of associations that a word usually elicits for most speakers of a language, as distinguished from those elicited for any individual speaker because of personal experience. For instance, the word “sea” denotes a large body of water 36. diction- An author’s choice of words.
The Essay on Speech – The Meaning of Life
Is human life just a dream, from which we never really awake, as some great thinkers claim? Are we submerged by our feelings, by our loves and hates, by our ideas of good, bad, beautiful, and awful? Are we incapable of knowing beyond those ideas and feelings? Is the reality we know a reality imposed to us by nature? Are the reality and the meaning of life a creation of men, such as music, or love ...
Since words have specific meanings, and since one’s choice of words can affect feelings, a writer’s choice of words can have great impact in a literary work. The writer, therefore, must choose his words carefully. Discussing his novel “A Farewell to Arms” during an interview, Ernest Hemingway stated that he had to rewrite the ending thirty-nine times. When asked what the most difficult thing about finishing the novel was, Hemingway answered, “Getting the words right. ” 37. didactic- Literature designed explicitly to instruct. Teaching or intending to teach a moral lesson.
Ex. Fables (tortoise and hare) 38. details (choice of): the specific details used to support or illustrate a point 39. dialect: The way we speak. A regional or social variety of a language distinguished by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, especially a variety of speech differing from the standard literary language or speech pattern of the culture in which it exists: Cockney is a dialect of English. She had a Southern dialect. 40. dialogue: a conversation between characters 41. dramatic monologue: the occurrence of a single speaker saying something to a silent audience.
Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess” is an example wherein the duke, speaking to a non-responding representative of the family of a prospective new duchess, reveals not only the reasons for his disapproval of the behavior of his former duchess, but aspects of his own personality as well. 42. digression from topic: a temporary departure from one subject to another more or less distantly related topic before the discussion of the first subject is resumed.
A valuable technique in the art of storytelling, digression is also employed in many kinds of non?fictional writing and oratory. 43. discourse: communication of thought by words; talk; conversation: earnest and intelligent discourse. a formal discussion of a subject in speech or writing, as a dissertation, treatise, sermon. to communicate thoughts orally; talk; converse. to treat of a subject formally in speech or writing. 44. dominant impression: Dominant impression in descriptive writing is the principal effect the author wishes to create for the audience. a descriptive essay has one, clear dominant impression.
The Essay on Confusion Class Words Number Speech
Nomads College scouts everywhere; All have tags with a name Act like I don't care; My play must remain the same. Try not to stare; Must stay focused on the game To lose can not bare; Can not have any shame The pressure is on for all; Starting to feel sick Their sweeper has the ball; In I know I must stick I now have control and mustn't stall; I now quickly I must kick There is the goal; To which ...
If, for example you are describing a snowfall, it is important for you to decide and to let your reader know if it is threatening or lovely; in order to have one dominant impression it cannot be both. The dominant impression guides the author’s selection of detail and is thereby made clear to the reader in the thesis sentence. 45. editorializing: to set forth one’s position or opinion on some subject in, or as if in, an editorial. To inject personal interpretations or opinions into an otherwise factual account 46. emotive imagery: Imagery that is relating to emotion: the emotive aspect of symbols.
Characterized by, expressing, or exciting emotion: 47. euphemism: is the use of roundabout language to replace colloquial terms that are considered too blunt or unpleasant. “Passed away” replaces “died, croaked, kicked the bucket”; Upset stomach replaces “puked, yakked, barfed” 48. extended metaphor: also called a conceit, is a metaphor that continues into the sentences that follows.
An extended metaphor is also a metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work 49. evidence: that which tends to prove or disprove something; ground for belief; proof.something that makes plain or clear; an indication or sign: His flushed look was visible evidence of his fever. 50. epiphany: a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience.
A literary work or section of a work presenting, usually symbolically, such a moment of revelation and insight. Ex. Rainsford has an epiphany in “The Most Dangerous Game” once he realizes that General Zaroff hunts humans, not animals. 51.epithet: a word which makes the reader see the object described in a clearer or sharper light.
It is both exact and imaginative. Distinctive epithets are found in the ancient Greek classic, The Odyssey: wine-dark sea…… wave-girdled island,” blindfolding night. ” Our national flag is a star- spangled banner. ” In “Thanatopsis” Bryant (more poems) speaks of the ocean’s “gray and melancholy waste. In literature, a word of phrase preceding or following a name which serves to describe the character. Consider the following from Book 1 of Homer’s “The Iliad:” Zeus-loved Achilles, you bid me explain the wrath of far-smiting Apollo.
52. escape literature: Escape literature is written for entertainment. This type of work may still have some literary value, but its primary purpose is to help us pass the time or to escape into an alternate reality. Literature written purely for entertainment, with little or no attempt to provide insights into the true nature of human life or behavior Ex. Romance novels, science fiction, 53. exposition: In drama, the presentation of essential information regarding what has occurred prior to the beginning of the play.
In the exposition to William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” two servants of the house of Capulet discuss the feud between their master and the house of Montague, thereby letting the audience know that such a feud exists and that it will play an important role in influencing the plot. 54. equivocation: the use of equivocal or ambiguous expressions, esp. in order to mislead or hedge; prevarication. a fallacy caused by the double meaning of a word. intentionally vague or ambiguous. Equivocation is the use in a syllogism (a logical chain of reasoning) of a term several times, but giving the term a different meaning each time.
For example: A feather is light. What is light cannot be dark. Therefore, a feather cannot be dark. 55. Ethos: Ethos (Credibility), or ethical appeal, means convincing by the character of the author. We tend to believe people whom we respect. One of the central problems of argumentation is to project an impression to the reader that you are someone worth listening to, in other words making yourself as author into an authority on the subject of the paper, as well as someone who is likable and worthy of respect.
A rhetoric technique used to directly appeal to an authority in order to strengthen your argument. It is important to notice that ethos does not belong to the speaker, but to the audience. If you are the speaker, your audience determines whether you are a high or low ethos speaker. Violations of ethos can entail some of the following: The speaker has a direct interest in the outcome of the debate (e. g. a person pleading innocence of a crime); The speaker has a vested interest or ulterior motive in the outcome of the debate;The speaker has no expertise (e. g.a lawyer giving a speech on space flight carries less gravity than an astronaut giving the same speech).
The moral element in dramatic literature that determines a character’s action rather than his or her thought or emotion. Persuasion through convincing listeners of one’s moral competence 56. farce: A type of comedy based on a humorous situation such as a bank robber who mistakenly wanders into a police station to hide. It is the situation here which provides the humor, not the cleverness of plot or lines, nor the absurdities of the character, as in situational comedy.
A light, humorous play in which the plot depends upon a skillfully exploited situation rather than upon the development of character. foolish show; mockery; a ridiculous sham. humor of the type displayed in such works. Mrs. Doubtfire 57. figurative language: A way of saying one thing and meaning something else. Take, for example, this line by Robert Burns, My luv is a red, red rose. Clearly Mr. Burns does not really mean that he has fallen in love with a red, aromatic, many-petalled, long, thorny-stemmed plant.
He means that his love is as sweet and as delicate as a rose. Language enriched by word meanings and figures of speech (ie, similes, metaphors, personification, hyperbole).
Words in figurative expressions connote additional layers of meaning 58. figure of speech: An example of figurative language that states something that is not literally true in order to create an effect. Similes, metaphors and personification are figures of speech which are based on comparisons. Metonymy, synecdoche, apostrophe, oxymoron, and hyperbole are other figures of speech. Literary
device used to create a special effect or feeling, often by making some type of comparison. See Hyperbole, Metaphor, Simile, Understatemen 59. foil: A foil is a character that contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist and, in so doing, highlights various facets of the main character’s personality. A character in a play who sets off the main character or other characters by comparison. In Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” Hamlet and Laertes are young men who behave very differently. 60. foreshadowing: a method used to build suspense by providing hints of what is to come 61.
ellipsis: the omission from a sentence or other construction of one or more words that would complete or clarify the construction, as the omission of who are, while I am, or while we are from I like to interview people sitting down. The omission of one or more items from a construction in order to avoid repeating the identical or equivalent items that are in a preceding or following construction, as the omission of been to Paris from the second clause of I’ve been to Paris, but they haven’t. 62. epigraph: A brief quotation which appears at the beginning of a literary work 63. genre: A literary type or form.
Drama is a genre of literature 64. homily: a sermon, usually on a Biblical topic and usually of a nondoctrinal nature. an admonitory or moralizing discourse. an inspirational saying or cliche. n colloquial usage, homily often means a sermon concerning a practical matter, a moralizing lecture or admonition, or an inspirational saying or platitude 65. hyperbole: figure of speech in which an overstatement or exaggeration occurs. Ex. I’m so hungry I could eat a horse 66. imagery:
A word or group of words in a literary work which appeal to one or more of the senses: sight, taste, touch, hearing, and smell. 67.infer(ence): A judgment based on reasoning rather than on direct or explicit statement. A conclusion based on facts or circumstances. For example, advised not to travel alone in temperatures exceeding fifty degrees below zero, the man in Jack London’s “To Build a Fire” sets out anyway.
One may infer arrogance from such an action. the act or process of deriving a conclusion based solely on what one already knows 68. invective: vehement or violent denunciation, censure, or reproach. an insulting or abusive word or expression. Denunciatory or abusive language. 69. irony (verbal, situational, dramatic): Irony takes many forms.
In irony of situation, the result of an action is the reverse of what the actor expected. Macbeth murders his king hoping that in becoming king he will achieve great happiness. Actually, Macbeth never knows another moment of peace, and finally is beheaded for his murderous act. In dramatic irony, the audience knows something that the characters in the drama do not. For example, the identity of the murderer in a crime thriller may be known to the audience long before the mystery is solved. In verbal irony, the contrast is between the literal meaning of what is said and what is meant.
A character may refer to a plan as brilliant, while actually meaning that (s)he thinks the plan is foolish. Sarcasm is a form of verbal irony. 70. jargon: the terminology that relates to a specific activity, profession or group. Much like slang it develops as a kind of shorthand, to quickly express ideas that are frequently discussed between members of a group. In many cases a standard term may be given a more precise or specialized usage among practitioners of a field. Ex. Sailors-bow, stern, deck : Teachers-EOC, IGP, PEP: 71. juxtaposition: an act or instance of placing close together or side by side, esp.
for comparison or contrast. A side-by-side position. 72. language devices: the variety of tools that writers use to express their thoughts. Ex. Figurative language such as simile, metaphor, personification; sound devices such as alliteration, onomatopoeia, assonance; rhetorical devices such as ethos, pathos, logos, etc. 73. loose sentence: A loose sentence opens with its subject, predicate, and object; the main part of the sentence comes first. As a result, the relationship of modifiers to this main part will become more tenuous as the sentence lengthens.
The reader, having focused upon agent and action, will have increasing difficulty connecting the modifiers to them. Example: Root ideas: I ate the pizza. I ate the pizza that my sister baked. I ate the pizza that my sister baked after I got home from work. (Did your sister bake the pizza after you got home from work or did you only eat the pizza after you got home from work? ) Use loose sentences for dramatic and powerful brief statements, “I have a Dream! ” 74. logos: Logos (Logical) means persuading by the use of reasoning. Giving reasons is the heart of argumentation, and cannot be emphasized enough.
An argument based on logos needs to be logical, and in fact the term logic derives from it. Logos normally implies numbers, polls, and other mathematical or scientific data. 75. metaphor: A figure of speech wherein a comparison is made between two unlike quantities without the use of the words “like” or “as. ” Jonathan Edwards, in his sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” has this to say about the moral condition of his parishioners: There are the black clouds of God’s wrath now hanging directly over your heads, full of the dreadful storm and big with thunder;
76. metonymy: A figure of speech in which a word represents something else which it suggests. For example in a herd of fifty cows, the herd might be referred to as fifty head of cattle. The word “head” is the word representing the herd. Substituting a word for another word closely associate with it. “Crown” for royalty. Metonymy is also the rhetorical strategy of describing something indirectly by referring to things around it: for instance, describing someone’s clothing in order to characterize the individual. The pen is mightier than the sword. ” (Edward Bulwer-Lytton}
“Her voice is full of money. ” (F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby) 77. mood: the emotional attitude the author takes towards his subject. The atmosphere or feeling created by a literary work, partly by a description of the objects or by the style of the descriptions. A work may contain a mood of horror, mystery, holiness, or childlike simplicity 78. maxim: a saying that is widely accepted on its own merits. Ex. “A friend in need is a friend indeed. ” “Birds of a feather flock together. ” 79. monologue: A monologue is an extended, uninterrupted speech by one person only.
The person may be speaking his or her thoughts aloud or directly addressing other persons, e. g. an audience, a character, or a reader 80. motif: In a narrative, such as a novel or a film, motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to develop and inform the text’s major themes. The motif can be an idea, an object, a place, or a statement. The flute in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is a recurrent motif that conveys rural and idyllic notions. The green light in The Great Gatsby 81. narrative/narration writing: Tells a story
82. naturalistic detail: a manner or technique of treating subject matter that presents, through volume of detail, a deterministic view of human life and actions. deterministic theory of writing in which it is held that a writer should adopt an objective view toward the material written about, be free of preconceived ideas as to form and content, and represent with clinical accuracy and frankness the details of life. Factual or realistic representation, especially: The practice of describing precisely the actual circumstances of human life in literature.
83. inverted sentence-An inverted sentence is one in which the subject appears after the verb. This construction causes the subject to receive more emphasis. Ex. Never will I do that again! Rarely have I eaten better food. Hardly ever does he come to class on time 84. flashback-action that interrupts to show an event that happened at an earlier time which is necessary to better understanding 85. modes of discourse-Rhetorical modes (also known as modes of discourse) describe the variety, conventions, and purposes of the major kinds of writing.
Four of the most common rhetorical modes and their purpose are exposition, argumentation, description, and narration. 86. onomatopoeia–A literary device wherein the sound of a word echoes the sound it represents. The words “splash. ” “knock,” and “roar” are examples. 87. oxymoron- A combination of contradictory terms, such as used by Romeo in Act 1, scene 1 of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet: Why then, O brawling love! O loving hate! O heavy lightness, serious vanity; Misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms! Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health! 88.
objective description- a descriptive essay can be objective or subjective, giving the author a wide choice of tone, diction and attitude. For instance, an objective description of one’s dog would mention such facts as height, weight, coloring and so forth. A subjective description would include the above details, but would also stress the author’s feeling toward the dog, as well as its personality and habits. 89. paradox-A situation or a statement that seems to contradict itself, but on closer inspection, does not. This line from John Donne’s “Holy Sonnet 14” provides an example: That I may rise, and stand, o’erthrow me,
The poet paradoxically asks God to knock him down so that he may stand. What he means by this is for God to destroy his present self and remake him as a holier person. reveals a kind of truth which at first seems contradictory. Two opposing ideas. Example: Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cage. 90. parallelism-A repetition of sentences using the same structure. This line from Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address provides an example: a. The world will little not nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. 91.
parody-A literary work that imitates the style of another literary work. A parody can be simply amusing or it can be mocking in tone, such as a poem which exaggerates the use of alliteration in order to show the ridiculous effect of overuse of alliteration 92. pathetic fallacy-The attribution of human traits to nature or inanimate objects. A fallacy of reason in suggesting that nonhuman phenomena act from human feelings, as suggested by the word “pathetic” from the Greek pathos; a literary device wherein something nonhuman found in nature-a beast, plant, stream, natural force, etc.
-performs as though from human feeling or motivation. In Jack London’s To Build a Fire, “The cold of space,” London writes, “smote the unprotected tip of the planet, . . . ” The word “smote” suggests nature deliberately striking the northern tip of the earth with severe cold. The poetry of William Wordsworth is replete with instances of pathetic fallacy-weeping streams, etc 93. pedantic-overly concerned with minute details or formalisms, esp. in teaching. Characterized by a narrow, often ostentatious concern for book learning and formal rules: a pedantic attention to details.
pedantic writing style; an academic insistence on precision; a bookish vocabulary 94. periodic sentence- A periodic sentence (also called a period) is a sentence that is not grammatically complete until its end. Periodicity is accomplished by the use of parallel phrases or clauses at the opening or by the use of dependent clauses preceding the independent clause; that is, the kernel of thought contained in the subject/verb group appears at the end of a succession of modifiers. It is the opposite of a nuclear sentence.
The periodic sentence is effective when it is used to arouse interest and curiosity, to hold an idea in suspense before its final revelation. Ex. a. “Out of the bosom of the Air, Out of the cloud-folds of her garment shaken, Over the woodlands brown and bare, Over the harvest-fields forsaken, Silent and soft, and slow, Descends the snow. ” 95. personification-A figure of speech in which something nonhuman is given human characteristics. Ex. a. Stormy, husky, brawling, b. City of the big Shoulders: 96.
persuasion writing: Persuasive writing is used to convince the reader of the writer’s argument. This may involve persuading the reader to perform an action, or simply consist of an argument convincing the reader of the writer’s point of view. 97. point of view (1st, 2nd, Third Limited, Third Omniscient)- A piece of literature contains a speaker who is speaking either in the first person, telling things from his or her own perspective, or in the third person, telling things from the perspective of an onlooker.
The perspective used is called the Point of View, and is referred to either as first person or third person. If the speaker knows everything including the actions, motives, and thoughts of all the characters, the speaker is referred to as omniscient (all-knowing).
If the speaker is unable to know what is in any character’s mind but his or her own, this is called limited omniscience.
An even rarer, but stylish version of second person narration takes the form of a series of imperative statements with the implied subject “you” (Example: Edward’s “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”) Choose Your Own Adventure books are also 2nd person point of you because the reader chooses how the text will read. 98. prose-the ordinary form of spoken or written language, without metrical structure, as distinguished from poetry or verse. Example: Essays, newspapers, articles, etc. 99. pedestrian-lacking in vitality, imagination, distinction, etc. ; com
