Unit Six - Glossary of Literary and Rhetorical Terms AP Language and Composition
This week you are responsible for all of the terms that begin with the letters S, T, U, and V.
Satire
A work that reveals a critical attitude toward some element of human behavior by portraying it in an extreme way. Satire doesn't simply abuse (as in invective) or get personal (as in sarcasm). Satire targets groups or large concepts rather than individuals.
Sarcasm
A type of verbal irony.
Simile
A figurative comparison of two things, often dissimilar, using the connecting words "like or as."
Straw Man
When a writer argues against a claim that nobody actually holds or is universally considered weak. Setting up a straw man diverts attention from the real issues.
Style
The choices in diction, tone, and syntax that a writer makes. In combination they create a work's manner of expression. Style is thought to be conscious and unconscious and may be altered to suit specific occasions. Style is often habitual and evolves over time.
Symbol
A thing, event, or person that represents or stands for some idea or event. Symbols also simultaneously retain their own literal meanings.
Syntactic Fluency
Ability to create a variety of sentence structures, appropriately complex and/or simple and varied in length.
Syntactic Permutation
Sentence structures that are extraordinarily complex and involved. Often difficult for a reader to follow.
Theme
The central idea of a work of fiction or nonfiction, revealed and developed in the course of a story or explored through argument.
Tone
A writer's attitude toward his or her subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language, and organization on the sentence and global levels.
Tricolon
Sentence consisting of three parts of equal importance and length, usually three independent clauses.
Unity
A work of fiction or nonfiction is said to be unified if all the parts are related to one central idea or organizing principle. Thus, unity is dependent upon coherence.
Verbal Irony
When the reader is aware of a discrepancy between the real meaning of a situation and the literal meaning of the writer's words.