Rhetorical Terms Review

Alliteration The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words

Allusion Brief reference to a person, event, place (real or fictional) designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference

Anaphora The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses

Antimetabole Repetition of words in reverse order eg. Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country

Antithesis Opposition or contrast of ideas in a balanced or parallel construction

Asyndeton Omission of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words

Concession An acknowledgment that an opposing argument may be true or reasonable.

Connotation Meanings or associations that readers have with a word beyond its dictionary definition, or denotation.

Context The circumstances, atmosphere, attitudes, and events surrounding a text.

Enthymeme An argument in which one premise is not explicitly stated

Juxtaposition Placement of two things closely together to emphasize comparison or contrast

Metaphor Figure of speech that says one thing in order to explain by comparison (Differs from Simile, which uses like or as

Occasion The time and place a speech is given or a piece is written.

Oxymoron Paradoxical juxtaposition of words that seem to contradict one another

Parallelism Similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases, or clauses

Persona The face or character that a speaker shows to his or her audience.

Purpose The goal the speaker wants to achieve

Refutation A denial of the validity of an opposing argument

Rhetorical Appeals Ethos—appeal to the character and credibility of the speaker Logos—appeal to logic and reason Pathos—appeal to emotion

Speaker The person or group who creates a text

Subject The topic of a text. What the text is about.

Syllogism A formal argument with a major premise, minor premise, and conclusion All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

Toulmin Model Classical argument arranged in standard English Claim Grounds Warrant Backing Counter Argument/Rebuttal Qualification

Claim Assertion the speaker wishes to prove

Grounds Support or rationale for the claim The “because” clause that accompanies the claim

Warrant  The underlying connection between the claim and groungs, or why the evidence supports the claim

Backing Tells audience why the warrant is a rational one.

Counterargument/Rebuttal Addresses potential objections to the claim

Qualifier Additions to the claim that add nuance and specificity to its assumption, helping to counter rebuttals.

Zuegma Use of two different words in a grammatically similar way but producing different, often incongruous, meanings Ex. All over Ireland the farmers grew potatoes, barley, and bored. In quick succession, Susan lost her job, her house and her mind!