Transcript AP Language & Composition Unlocking the Rhetorical Devices

AP Language & Composition
Unlocking the Rhetorical Devices
Balance
Parallelism
Chiasmus
Antithesis
Parallelism-- is the repetition of a
grammatical structure. The effect of
parallelism is usually one of balance
arrangement achieved through
repetition of the same syntactic form.
Ex: To think carefully and to write precisely are
interrelated goals.
Vs.
To think carefully and precise writing are interrelated
goals.
By matching the cadence, the form, or the subjects, you’ll be able to make
your essay easier to read and digest and your speeches easier to listen to.
Understanding Balance
3
Chiasmus
Figure of speech—a pattern in
which the second part is balanced
against the first but with the parts
reversed. This may involve a
repetition of the same words.
Ex: “Pleasure’s a sin, and
sometimes sin’s a pleasure.” Bryon
Understanding Balance
4
Parallelism vs. Chiasmus
verb
adverb
verb
adverb
Parallelism: The code breakers worked constantly but succeeded rarely.
verb
adverb
adverb
verb
Chiasmus: The code breakers worked constantly but rarely succeeded.
Parallelism: What is learned unwillingly is
forgotten gladly.
Chiasmus: What is learned unwillingly is gladly
forgotten.
5
Antithesis—contrasting two ideas by
placing them next to each other
By contrasting legality and morality, wisdom and
learning, or success and happiness, you make your
reader think about the subtle shades of difference
between concepts.
Ex: “That’s one small step for man, one
giant leap for mankind.” Neil Armstrong
“We live within our limits, for we are
men, not gods.”
Emphasis 1
Climax
Asyndeton
Polysyndeton
Expletive
Climax—is the presentation of
ideas of increasing importance.
Random Order: When the bucket fell
off the ladder, the paint splashed
onto the small rug, the drop cloth,
the Rembrandt painting, and the
sofa.
Climactic Order: When the bucket fell
off the ladder, the paint splashed
onto the drop cloth, the small rug, the
sofa, and the Rembrandt painting.
Asyndeton (uh SIN duh tahn)–
consists of omitting conjunctions
between words, phrases, or
clauses in a list.
 Ex: When he returned, he received medals,
honors, riches, titles, fame.
Conj: He was a winner and a hero.
Asyndeton: He was a winner, a hero.
POLYSYNDETON (POL E SIN DUH THAN)
–IS THE USE OF A CONJUNCTION
BETWEEN EACH WORD, PHRASE, OR
CLAUSE AND IS THUS STRUCTURALLY
THE OPPOSITE OF ASYNDETON.
THE GENERAL FEEL OF POLYSYNDETON IS ONE OF AN
INCREASING URGENCY AND POWER, WITH AN ALMOST
HYPNOTIC RHYTHM FORMING QUITE QUICKLY.
Ex: “I slithered under the sheets, and under
the blankets, and under the top quilt to evade
the monsters.” The commas draw out the action and make escaping more suspenseful.
EXPLETIVE—A WORD OR SHORT
PHRASE, OFTEN INTERRUPTING A
SENTENCE, USED TO LEND EMPHASIS
TO THE WORDS
Without expletive: The lake was not drained before April.
With expletive: The lake was not, in fact, drained before April.
EMPHASIS II:
THE MOST EMPHATIC PART OF A SENTENCE IS AT THE
END, WHILE THE SECOND MOST EMPHATIC PART IS AT
THE BEGINNING.
HOW DO YOU WANT TO LEAVE YOUR READERS?
Irony
Understatement
Litotes
Hyperbole
IRONY—INVOLVES A
STATEMENT WHOSE HIDDEN
MEANING IS DIFFERENT
FROM ITS SURFACE OR
APPARENT MEANING.
Understatement
The opposite of exaggeration.
It deliberately expresses an idea
as less important than it
actually is.
“I know my actions were a
little inappropriate,” stated
Tiger Woods.
Litotes
 A form of understatement, created by
denying the opposite of the idea in mind.
Without litotes: Those who examine themselves will gain
knowledge of their failings.
With litotes: Those who examine themselves will
not remain ignorant of their failings.
Many writers have created
litotes by using a non unconstruction: Instead of
saying, “We were willing,”
they would write, “We were not
unwilling.”
Hyperbole
A figure of speech,
emphasized by
exaggeration.
Ex. There were millions of
people at school.
Figurative Language I
 Clarifying the unfamiliar by comparing it with the familiar is one
of the “key” methods of teaching and learning.
Simile
Analogy
Metaphor
Simile
It compares two very different
things that have at least one
quality in common.
Ex: After long exposure to the direct
sun, the leaves of the houseplant
looked like pieces of overcooked bacon.
The difference between subject and image should be substantial!
Analogy
Ex: In order to solve a problem, you first have
to know what the problem really is, in the
same way that you can’t untie a knot until
you’ve found the knot. -Aristotle
Metaphor
It identifies the subject with the
image: That is, instead of saying
the subject is like the image, a
metaphor asserts that the subject
is the image in some sense.
Simile: A good book is like a friend.
Metaphor: A good book is a friend.
FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE II
Metonymy
Synecdoche
Personification
Metonymy (muh THAN uh me)
One entity is used to stand for
another associated entity
(The substitution of the name of a thing by the name of an attribute of it.)
Ex: the “crown” =monarchy
“John Hancock”=signature
The “big apple”=NYC
A “Mercedes” rear-ended me
(Ex: The word me stands for the car that the speaker was driving.)
Synecdoche (sin EK duh Ke)
(a kind of metonymy)
A part is used to
describe the whole
Ex: If I had some wheels, I’d put on my
threads and ask for Jane’s hand.
Wheels=automobile/motorcycle
Threads=clothes
Hand=part-for-whole substitution for Jane
Personification
 Human attributes to animals, objects, or
ideas.
Ex: This coffee is strong enough to get
up and walk away.
The ship began to creak and protest as it
struggled against the rising sea.
FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE III
Allusion
Eponym
Apostrophe
Allusion
A short, informal reference to a
famous person or event. The allusion often
functions as a brief analogy or example to highlight a point being made.
Ex: Plan ahead: It wasn’t raining when
Noah built the Ark. --Richard Cushing
“It was like Romeo and Juliet, only it ended
in tragedy.” (Milhouse from the Simpsons
implying the effects from his first love)
Eponym (EP uh nim)
 Is a specific type of allusion, substituting
the name of a person famous for some
attribute in place of the attribute itself.
The person can be a historical, mythological, literary, or Biblical figure.
Ex: This lid is stuck so tight I need a
Hercules to open it.
Is he smart? Why, the man is an
Einstein. Is he creative?
Apostrophe (uh POS truh fe)
A direct address to someone, whether
present or absent, and whether real,
imaginary, or personified.
Its most common purpose is to permit the writer to turn away from the subject under
discussion for a moment and give expression to built-up emotion.
Ex: O books who alone are liberal and free, who give
to all who ask of you and enfranchise all who serve
you faithfully! –Richard de Bury
After this last piece of unexpected news, the stock
collapsed completely, ending its fall from $84 a share a
year earlier to less than a dollar now. You poor
shareholders! If only you had known about those secret
partnerships! How much wiser you could have been!
Syntax I
The term syntax refers to the
way words and phrases are put
together to form sentences.
Zeugma (ZOOG muh)
 Linking together two or more words,
phrases, or clauses by another word that
is stated in one place and only implied in
the rest of the sentence.
Ex: Jane and Tom jogged along the trail together.
(One verb links two subjects.)
She grabbed her purse from the alcove, her gloves
from the table near the door, and her car keys from the
punchbowl.
(The verb grabbed is implied in front of her gloves
and her car keys.)
Diazeugma (di uh ZOOG muh)
 Consists of a single subject linking
multiple verbs or verb phrases.
 Ex: The book reveals the extent of
counterintelligence operations, discusses the
options for improving security, and argues
for an increase in human intelligence
measures.
(The word book links the verb phrases beginning with reveals, discusses, and argues.)
Restatement I
Anaphora
Epistrophe
Symploce
Anaphora
Rhetorical figure of repetition in which
the same word or phrase is repeated
(found often in prose and verse).
You’re beautiful, you’re
beautiful, you’re beautiful, it’s
true. --J. Blunt
Ex:
Your body is a wonderland. –John Mayer
The same word or phrase is repeated
at the end of successive clauses,
sentences, or lines.
Whitman’s Song of Myself:
The moth and the fish-eggs are in their
place.
The bright suns I see and the dark suns I
cannot see are in their place,
The palpable is in its place and the
impalpable
is in its place.
Symploce (SIM plo ke)
 Combines anaphora and epistrophe by
repeating words at both the beginning
and the ending of phrases, clauses, or
sentences.
Ex: Whenever Chef Robaire cooked, his soup du jour
began with chicken broth and garlic, his soup a la
Chef included vegetables and garlic, and his soup
Forentine was made with onions, cheese, and garlic.
Soup (repeated)
Garlic (repeated)
Restatement II
Anadiplosis
Conduplicatio
Anadiplosis (an uh di PLO sis)
 Formed by the repetition of the last word
or words of a sentence or clause at or
very near the beginning of the next
clause.
Ex: The treatment plant has a record
of uncommon reliability, a
reliability envied by every other
water treatment facility on the coast.
Conduplicatio (con doo plih KAHT e o)
 Takes an important word from anywhere
in one sentence and repeats it at the
beginning of the next sentence.
 Ex: Working adults form the largest single
group of customers for on-line courses in
the United States. On-line courses allow
them to schedule academic assignments
around full-time jobs and family
responsibilities.
Sound
 Alliteration
 Onomatopoeia
 Assonance
 Consonance
Alliteration
A sequence of repeated
consonantal sounds in a stretch
of language
Without Alliteration: Jonathan was the
child of mature parents, who were calm
and relaxed.
With Alliteration: Jonathan was the
product of a mature marriage, whose
partners were calm and relaxed.
Onomatopoeia
Words which
sound like the
noise they
describe.
Ex: Swish,
cuckoo, smack,
plonk, etc.
Assonance (As uh nuns)
 Repeating vowel sounds in the stressed
syllables of successive words or words
relatively close to each other.
 Ex: A city that is set on a hill cannot be
hid.—Matthew 5:14b
 To get within sight of the lava, the
geologists took a high-temperature hike.
Consonance (KON suh nuns)
 Repeating the same consonant sound at
the end of stressed syllables (or short
words) with different vowels before the
consonants.
 Ex: Without consonance: He was so thirsty
that he tried to tear the lid from the top.
With consonance: He was so thirsty that he
tried to rip the cap from the top.
Drama
 Rhetorical Question
 Aporia
Rhetorical Question
 The expected answer is implied by the
question itself, and is often just a yes or no.
 Ex: So, then, do we want to continue a
business model that guarantees we will lose
more money next year than this year and
more money than ever each coming year?
Aporia (uh POR e uh)
 Expresses doubt about a fact, idea, or
conclusion. The doubt may be real or
pretended.
 Ex: I cannot decide whether I approve of
dress codes for middle-school children: Dress
codes prevent gang clothing and conspicuous
consumption, but they also produce a gray
uniformity that suppresses personality and
individual taste.
Apophasis (uh POF uh sis)
 Brings up a subject by pretending not to
bring it up. Its legitimate use is to call
attention to something briefly, mentioning
the existence of an idea without going into it.
 Ex: I will not mention Houdini’s books on
magic, nor the tricks he invented, nor his
well-known escapes, because I want to focus
on the work he did exposing swindlers and
cheats.
Anacoluthon (an uh kuh LOO thun)
 A sentence whose two pieces do not fit
together grammatically.
 Ex: Suddenly we heard an explosion from
the direction of the hut. I turned to see the
windows blowing out and the roof coming
off. I began to—we were all knocked
down.
Word Play
 Oxymoron
 Pun
 Anthimeria
Oxymoron
 A condensed paradox, usually reduced to
two words. (Paradox= an apparent
contradiction)
 Ex: Your dog whimpers and scratches to be
picked up, but when I pick him up, he turns
his head away as if he doesn’t care that he’s
being held. It’s clearly a case of clinging
aloofness.
Pun
It plays with multiple meanings of a
word or words. It is considered the
“lowest form of humor,” but historically
puns were considered witty and elegant
because they were often well done.
Ex: Tell me, what’s the scoop on cat
litter?
I can’t believe you ducked up like that!
Anthimeria (an thi MER e uh)
 Uses one part of speech as if it were
another.
 Ex: I can keyboard that article this
afternoon.
 Friends who Internet together, stay
together!
Connotation/Denotation
Connotation-emotional response
evoked by a word
Ex. Kitten=soft, warm, cuddly
Denotation-literal meaning
Epithet (EP uh thet)
An adjective, or adjectival
phrase, that describes a key
characteristic of the noun.
 (The characteristic poetic diction of the 18th century
was replete with epithets.)
 Ex: Brightening dawn, smirking
billboards, joyous firefly, sleeping night
Prozeugma (pro ZOOG muh)
 The linking word is presented once and then
omitted from the subsequent sets of words
or phrases linked together.
 Ex: The freshman excelled in calculus; the
sophomore, in music; the senior, in drama.
Mesozeugma (mez uh ZOOG muh)
 The linking word (often a verb) comes in
the middle of the sentence.
 Ex: A center speaker is included, and a
subwoofer.
Hypozeugma (hi po ZOOG muh)
 The linking word follows the words it links
together.
 (Commonly done with Periodic Sentences)
 Ex: Monkeys, giraffes, elephants, and even
lions had escaped from the zoo after the
earthquake.
Syllepsis (si LEP sis)
 The terms are linked in different senses or
meanings of the linking word.
 Ex: She was unwilling to drive to that party
because she was afraid to damage her car or
her reputation.
Cumulative Sentences
 Presents the main idea first and then adds
modification, detail, and qualification
afterwards.
 Ex: The joint leaked after the third pressure
test at low temperature and high vibration.
Periodic Sentence
 It presents modification first or in some
other way holds off the completion of the
main idea until the very end.
Ex: When the students knew they were being observed,
they scored less well on the test.
Transition
 One of the keys to good writing is the
ability to take your reader with you as you
move along in your discussion. Transitions
allow you to signal clearly when you are
changing directions.
Metabasis
Procatalepsis
Hypophora
Metabasis (muh TAB uh sis)
It is a device used to sum up a body of
work that has come before, so that you
can move on to a new point.
Ex: “I have discussed various reasons that show why we need
to vote for a new president of this company: our present
leader has run the organization for twelve years, she has not
had any profitable ideas in years, her salary has doubl3ed
since 2005, the company’s stocks has not moved, and her
daughter has recently been hired as a consultant. But last
week, the final incident occurred that has led me to
recommend that she be replaced.”
Procatalepsis (pro kat uh LEP sis)
Anticipates an objection that might be
raised by a reader and responds to it,
thus permitting an argument to continue
moving forward while taking into
account opposing points.
Ex: It is usually argued at this point that if the
government gets out of the mail delivery
business, small towns like One Tree will not
have any mail service. The answer to this can
be found in the history of the Pony Express…
Hypophora (hi POF or uh)
 It involves asking one or more questions
and then proceeding to answer them,
usually at some length.
Ex: Why should you vote in the next
election? Your future may depend on
who is elected.
Clarity
 Writing so that your reader has an accurate
understanding of your ideas—at the heart of
good writing.
 Distinctio
 Exemplum
 Amplification
 Metanoia
Amplification
 Consists of restating a word or idea and
adding more detail. This device allows a
writer to call attention to an expression that
may otherwise be passed over.
Ex: The subway car came to a halt with a jolt: a wrenching,
neck-snapping jolt.
Distinctio (dis TINK te o)
 The presentation of a specific meaning for a
word in order to prevent ambiguity or
confusion.
Ex:
Ambiguous: It is impossible to make methanol for twenty-five
cents a gallon.
Clarified with distinctio: To make methanol for twenty-five
cents a gallon is impossible; by impossible I mean currently
beyond our technological capabilities.
The clarification assures that your readers know what you mean when you use the word.
Exemplum (eg ZEM plum)
 Provides a specific example.
Ex: Snow cones flavors, such as bubble gum and
mango, are often named after candy or fruit.
The conifers (evergreens like pine and cypress trees)
produce seeds in hard, cone-shaped structures.
Metanoia (met uh NOI uh)
 Qualifies a statement or part of a statement
by rejecting it or calling it back and
expressing it in a better, milder, or stronger
way.
Ex: Most bottled water companies try to
capture the mountain spring water taste; or
rather, they do not so much capture it as
manufacture it by adding minerals and
ozone.
Syntax II
Hyperbaton (hi PUR buh tahn)
 Refers to any departure from normal word
order.
Ex: Disturb me not! (Do not disturb me!)
Books they have demanded and books they will get.
(They have demanded books.)
Anastrophe (uh NAS tro fe)
 Involves the reversal or transposition of
words.
Ex:
Normal Word Order: His was a sad countenance.
Anastrophe: His was a countenance sad.
Welcome to our home comfortable.
She displayed an air of confidence unusual.
Appositive
 A noun that redescribes another noun
standing next to it.
Ex: Mrs. Wilkins, the manager, told me about the
plans for expansion.
Parenthesis
 A word, phrase, or entire sentence inserted
as an aside into the middle of another
sentence.
Ex: But the new calculations—and here we
see the value of relying on up-to-date
information—showed that man-powered
flight was possible with this design.
Epanelepsis (ep an uh LEP sis)
 Repeats the beginning word or words of a
clause or sentence at the end.
 Ex: Water alone dug this giant canyon; yes,
just ordinary water.
 Our eyes saw it, but we could not believe
our eyes.
Restatement III
 Diacope
 Epizeuxis
 Antimetabole
 Scesis Onomaton
Diacope (di AK uh pe)
 The repetition of a word or phrase after an
intervening word or phrase.
 Ex: They dynamited the statue, those
villains; they dynamited the statue.
 The stock market didn’t fall—will you
believe it? --the stock market didn’t fall.
Epizeuxis (ep i ZOOK sis)
 The repetition of one word or short phrase.
The most common and most natural effect
is produced by three occurrences of the
word or phrase, while two can be effective
as well.
 Ex: The best way to describe this AP
Language students is cool, cool, cool!
Antimetabole (an te muh TAB uh le)
 Reverses the order of repeated words or
phrases to call attention to the final
formulation, present alternatives, or show
contrast.
 Ex: All play and no work can be as stressful
as all work and no play.
 Sarah’s job is to find a location suitable for
the wedding, while Alison’s job is to design
a wedding suitable for the location.
Scesis Onomaton (SKE sis uh NO muh tahn)
 Emphasizes an idea by expressing it in a
string of generally synonymous phrases or
statements.
 Ex: Wendy lay there, motionless in a
peaceful slumber, very still in the arms of
sleep.
 The fog rolled in so thick that we had no
visibility; we were completely blinded; we
just could not see anything.
Apophasis (uh POF uh sis)
 Brings up a subject by pretending not to
bring it up. Its legitimate use is to call
attention to something briefly, mentioning
the existence of an idea without going into it.
 Ex: I will not mention Houdini’s books on
magic, nor the tricks he invented, nor his
well-known escapes, because I want to focus
on the work he did exposing swindlers and
cheats.
Anacoluthon (an uh kuh LOO thun)
 A sentence whose two pieces do not fit
together grammatically.
 Ex: Suddenly we heard an explosion from
the direction of the hut. I turned to see the
windows blowing out and the roof coming
off. I began to—we were all knocked
down.
Word Play
 Oxymoron
 Pun
 Anthimeria
Oxymoron
 A condensed paradox, usually reduced to
two words. (Paradox= an apparent
contradiction)
 Ex: Your dog whimpers and scratches to be
picked up, but when I pick him up, he turns
his head away as if he doesn’t care that he’s
being held. It’s clearly a case of clinging
aloofness.
Pun
It plays with multiple meanings of a
word or words. It is considered the
“lowest form of humor,” but historically
puns were considered witty and elegant
because they were often well done.
Ex: Tell me, what’s the scoop on cat
litter?
I can’t believe you ducked up like that!
Anthimeria (an thi MER e uh)
 Uses one part of speech as if it were
another.
 Ex: I can keyboard that article this
afternoon.
 Friends who Internet together, stay
together!
Connotation/Denotation
Connotation-emotional response
evoked by a word
Ex. Kitten=soft, warm, cuddly
Denotation-literal meaning
Concrete Language
Concrete- nouns, verbs,
and adjectives that help
you imagine specific
sensations or form mental
pictures.
Ex: yellow mustard
Abstract Language
Language that appeals more to the mind
than to the senses.
Ex:
Color is abstract, a category name that
covers every specific color there is.
However, yellow mustard is concrete.
Ex: courage, worthlessness, etc.
Allegory
A work that functions on a
symbolic level. Example: The
Lord of the Flies is an allegory
of society.
Anecdote
A story or brief episode told by
the writer or a character to
illustrate a point.
Cacophony
Harsh and discordant sounds in a
line or passage in a literary work.
Didactic
Writing whose purpose is to
instruct or to teach. A didactic
work is usually formal and focuses
on moral and ethical concerns.
Epigraph
The use of a quotation at the
beginning of a work that hints at its
theme. Hemingway begins The Sun
Also Rises with two epigraphs.
Example: “You are all a lost
generation” by Gertrude Stein
Euphemism
A more acceptable and usually
more pleasant way of saying
something that might be
inappropriate or uncomfortable.
Example: “He went to his final
reward.”
Euphony
The pleasant, mellifluous
presentation of sounds in
a literary work.
Aphorism
A terse (short, abrupt)
statement of known
authorship, which
expresses a general truth
or a moral principle.
Parody
A comic imitation of a work
that ridicules the original
(mocking or humorous).
The Simpson’s Show is a
parody of _____________.
Pedantic
Stream of Consciousness
Narrative that presents the
private thoughts of a
character without
commentary or
interpretation by the author.
Sarcasm
A comic technique
that ridicules through
caustic language.
Satire
A mode of writing based on
ridicule, that criticizes the
foibles and follies of society
without necessarily offering
a solution.
Synaesthesia
A blending or confusion of different kinds
of sense-impression, in which one type of
sensation is referred to in terms more
appropriate to another.
Ex:
Sounds in terms of color“yellow cocktail music”
Sounds in terms of taste “how sweet the sound”
Color in terms of sound “loud shirt”
Color in terms of temp. “cool green”
Sound as “smooth”
Color as “warm” “loud”
Motif
A simple element that serves
as a basis for expanded
narrative; in literature,
recurrent images, words,
objects, phrases, or actions
that unify a work.
Denouement
The clearing up or “untying” of
the complications of the plot in a
play or story; usually a final
scene or chapter in which
mysteries, confusions, and
doubtful destinies are clarified.
Ex: …the final scene in the Beauty & The Beast
Anticlimax
 A sudden drop from the dignified or
important thought of expression to the
commonplace or trivial, often for humorous
effect.
Inverted Syntax
Reversing the normal word order of a
sentence
Ex: Star Wars, Yoda speaks in
inverted syntax.
Robert Frost, “Whose woods these
are I think I know.”
Argument Terms
Ad Hominem-an attack on the
person rather than on the
opponent’s ideas
Inductive Reasoning
Flowing from the specific to the
general in an argument
Deductive Reasoning
 Flowing from the general to the
particular in an argument
Logical Fallacy
 A mistake in reasoning
Pathos
 An appeal to the emotions that can be
used to persuade.
Logos
 An appeal to the facts in order to
persuade.
Ethos
An appeal to the ethical senses in
order to persuade.
Syllogism
The format of a formal
argument that consists of a
major premise, minor
premise, and a conclusion.
Non sequitur
Stating a conclusion that
doesn’t follow from the first
premise.
Post hoc, ergo propter hoc
Assuming that because B
follows A, B was caused by A.
Example: Because I wore my
red polo shirt, I won the U.S.
Open.