Rhetorical Terms Defined
Malik Moore
Ms. Boeckle
AP English Language and Composition
9 July 2014
Allegory – A narrative that can be interpreted to reveal a second meaning
Example: Arthur Miller’s Crucible (“Red Scare”). Allusion – A reference to something well-known in literature or history
Example: “I was not born in a manger, I was actually born on Krypton and sent here by my father Jor-el, to save the planet Earth” – Barack Obama Analogy - Comparison to a directly parallel case
Example: Saying you hate poetry is like saying you hate music. Anaphora – Repeating a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of multiple sentences in a row.
Example: “So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado…” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Anecdote – A short narrative of an incident; used for humor or to make a point.
Example: I never forget one day when I met a lady who was dying of cancer and I could see the way she was struggling with that terrible pain. And I said to her, I said, you know this is but the kiss of Jesus, a sign that you have come so close to Him on the cross that He can kiss you. And she joined her hands together and said, “Mother Teresa, please tell Jesus to stop kissing me.” – Mother Teresa Aphorism – An observation expressing a general truth or wise idea.
Example: “Having nothing, nothing can he lose.” (Henry VI) – William Shakespeare Apostrophe – A digression addressed to someone not present, or to a personified object or idea.
Example: “O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?” – Romeo and Juliet Euphemism – a mild word or expression substituted for one thought to be too harsh
Example: The elderly man passed away. Hyperbole – Exaggeration not meant to be taken literally
Example: It took an eternity
Ms. Boeckle
AP English Language and Composition
9 July 2014
Allegory – A narrative that can be interpreted to reveal a second meaning
Example: Arthur Miller’s Crucible (“Red Scare”). Allusion – A reference to something well-known in literature or history
Example: “I was not born in a manger, I was actually born on Krypton and sent here by my father Jor-el, to save the planet Earth” – Barack Obama Analogy - Comparison to a directly parallel case
Example: Saying you hate poetry is like saying you hate music. Anaphora – Repeating a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of multiple sentences in a row.
Example: “So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado…” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Anecdote – A short narrative of an incident; used for humor or to make a point.
Example: I never forget one day when I met a lady who was dying of cancer and I could see the way she was struggling with that terrible pain. And I said to her, I said, you know this is but the kiss of Jesus, a sign that you have come so close to Him on the cross that He can kiss you. And she joined her hands together and said, “Mother Teresa, please tell Jesus to stop kissing me.” – Mother Teresa Aphorism – An observation expressing a general truth or wise idea.
Example: “Having nothing, nothing can he lose.” (Henry VI) – William Shakespeare Apostrophe – A digression addressed to someone not present, or to a personified object or idea.
Example: “O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?” – Romeo and Juliet Euphemism – a mild word or expression substituted for one thought to be too harsh
Example: The elderly man passed away. Hyperbole – Exaggeration not meant to be taken literally
Example: It took an eternity