Preparing for the AP exam Rhetorical Devices Preparing for the AP exam

Diction (Choice of Words) Monosyllabic or Polysyllabic Colloquial (slang), Informal (conversational), Formal (literary), or Anachronistic (Old-fashioned) Denotative or Connotative Concrete or Abstract Euphonious (pleasant sounding) or Cacophonous (harsh sounding)

Syntax—sentence structure Telegraphic (<than 5 words), Short (5 words), Medium (18 words), Long and Involved (30 words) Declarative (statement), Imperative (command), Interrogative (question), Exclamatory (exclamation) Simple (1 subject, 1 verb), Compound (2 independent clauses with a conjunction, Complex (1 independent and 1 subordinate clause), Compound-Complex (2 or more independent and 1 or more subordinate clauses)

Organization of the sentence Loose—makes sense if brought to a close before the actual ending Periodic—makes sense only at the end of the sentence Balanced—phrases or clauses balanced each other—similar structure, meaning and/or length Inverted-verb-subject

Syntax Stylistic Devices Juxtaposition—normally unassociated ideas, words, or phrases are placed next to one another to create an effect of surprise Parallelism—structural similarity in the arrangement of words, phrases, sentences and paragraphs. Repetition—words, sounds, and ideas are repeated for enhancing rhythm and creating emphasis Rhetorical Question—a question which expects no answer—Why have you forsaken me? Antithesis—A direct contrast of structurally parallel word groupings—sink or swim.

Treatment of Subject Matter Subjective (conclusions based on opinions, personal in nature) Objective (based on facts, impersonal, scientific) Supportive (use of evidence and opinions)

Figurative Language you should already know Alliteration Assonance Consonance Simile Metaphor Personification Onomatopoeia Hyperbole Irony Allusion

Other Must-Knows Figurative Language Understatement (irony to represent something as much less than it is)—I could probably manage to survive on a salary of two million dollars per year. Paradox (statement that contradicts itself—the more you know the more you know you don’t know--Socrates

Figurative Language Oxymoron (a paradox that combines contrary terms into a single expression—jumbo shrimp) Pun (play on words which are identical or similar in sound but have radically different meanings) Sarcasm (verbal irony where what is praised is actually meant to be insulted) Apostrophe (absent or dead are spoken to as if present, and the inanimate as if animate—The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind. Synecdoche/Metonymy (type of metaphor which a part is used to signify the whole or the whole can represent a part

Rhetorical Purposes Narration Description Example Definition Comparison and Contrast Division and Classification Causal Analysis

Flaws in Appeal Appeal to Authority—using an expert that is not qualified or with whom other experts disagree Appeal to Force—predicts dangerous outcomes Appeal to Popularity—Bandwagon—Everyone is doing it Attacking the Person—Ad Hominem False Dilemma—offers limited options Hasty Generalizations—sample too small Slippery Slope—threatens a series of increasingly dire consequences from taking a simpler course of action