English 11 AP: Key Terminology and Common Fallacies
Key Terminology
Allegory: a narrative in which the characters, behavior, and even the
setting demonstrate multiple levels of meaning and significance. Often
there is one-to-one correspondence between one or more narratives.
Alliteration: the sequential repetition of a similar initial sound, usually
applied to consonants, usually in closely proximate stressed syllables.
Allusion: a literary, historical, religious, or mythological reference
Anaphora: the regular repetition of the same words or phrases at the
beginning of successive phrases of clauses.
Antithesis: the juxtaposition of sharply contrasting ideas in balanced or
parallel words, phrases, or grammatical structure, or ideas.
Aphorism: a concise statement designed to make a point or illustrate a
commonly held belief.
Apostrophe: an address or invocation to something inanimate.
Appeal to authority (ethos): rhetorical (persuasive) argument in which
the speaker or a representative of the speaker claims to be an authority
or expert in the field. Sometimes used as a logical fallacy.
Appeal to emotion (pathos): rhetorical (persuasive) argument in which
the speaker attempts to play upon the emotions of the audience.
Appeal to logic (logos): rhetorical argument in which the speaker
appeals to the audience’s reason by providing facts or other evidence.
Assonance: the repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds, usually in
successive or proximate words.
Asyndeton: a syntactical structure in which conjunctions are omitted in
a series, usually producing more rapid prose.
Attitude: the sense expressed by the tone of voice or the mood of a
piece of writing; the author’s feelings towards his or her subject.
Cannon: that which has been accepted as authentic, such as in cannon
law, or the literary cannon.
Chiasmus: a figure of speech and generally a syntactical structure
wherein the order of the terms in the first half of a parallel clause is
reversed in the second.
Claim: in argumentation, an assertion of something as a fact.
Colloquial: a term identifying the diction of the common, ordinary folks,
especially in a specific region or area.
Comparison and contrast: a mode of discourse in which two or more
things are compared, contrasted, or both.
Connotation: the implied, suggested, or underlying meaning of a word or
phrase. It is opposite of denotation which is the “dictionary definition”
of the word. “Loaded Language,” often used in pathos, frequently
depends upon the connotation of words.
Conceit: a comparison of two unlikely things that is drawn out within a
piece of literature, in particular an extended metaphor within a poem.
However, it can be used in non-fiction or prose.
Consonance: the repetition of two or more consonants with a change in
the intervening vowels, such as pitter-patter, splish-splash, or click-clack.
Convention: an accepted manner, model, or tradition.
Critique: an assessment of analysis of something, such as a passage of
writing, for the purpose of determining what it is, what its limitations
are, and how it conforms to the standard of the genre.
Deductive reasoning (deduction): the method of argument in which
specific statements and conclusions are drawn from established, general
principals.
Dialect: the language and speech idiosyncrasies of a specific area,
region, or group.
Diction: the specific word choice an author uses to persuade or convey
tone, purpose, or effect.
Didactic: writing or speech that has an instructive purpose or a lesson.
Elegy: a poem or prose work that laments, or meditates upon the death
of a person or persons.
Epistrophe: in rhetoric, the repetition of a phrase at the end of
successive sentences.
Epitaph: writing in praise of a dead person, most often inscribed upon a
headstone.
Ethos: in rhetoric, the appeal of a text to the credibility and character
of the speaker, writer, or narrator.
Euphemism: an indirect, kinder, or less harsh or hurtful way of
expressing unpleasant information.
Exposition: the interpretation of analysis of a text. Also, in writing,
prose that shares information with the reader.
Eulogy: a speech or written passage in praise of a person; an oration in
honor of a deceased person.
Extended Metaphor: a series of related comparisons within a piece of
writing, also known as a conceit.
Figurative Language/Figure of Speech: in contrast to literal, language
that has levels of meaning expressed through personification, metaphor,
hyperbole, irony, oxymoron, litotes, and others.
Flashback: an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronology of the
narration.
Genre: a type or class of literature, such as epic, narrative, poetry,
biography, history.
Homily: a sermon, but more contemporary uses include any serious talk,
speech, or lecture involving moral or spiritual life.
Hyperbole: overstatement characterized by exaggerated language,
usually to make a point or draw attention.
Imagery: broadly defined, any sensory detail or evocation in a work;
more narrowly, the use of figurative language to evoke a feeling, to call to
mind and idea, or to describe an object. Basically, it involves any or all of
the five senses.
Inductive reasoning (induction): the method of reasoning or argument in
which general statements and conclusions are drawn from specific
principals and data: movement from the specific to the general. In other
words, a general conclusion is made after investigating several specific
instances.
Inference: a conclusion or proposition arrived at by considering facts,
observations, or some other specific data, and moving towards a general
conclusion.
Irony (ironic): the contrast between what is stated explicitly and what
is really meant. The intended meaning is often the opposite of what is
stated, often suggesting light sarcasm. There is verbal, dramatic, and
situational irony
Isocolon: parallel structure in which the parallel elements are similar not
only in grammatical structure, but also in length.
Jargon: specialized or technical language of a trade, profession, or
similar group.
Juxtaposition: the location of one thing adjacent to another to create
and effect or contrast, reveal an attitude, or accomplish some other
purpose.
Litotes: a figure of speech that emphasizes its subject by conscious
understatement.
Loose Sentence: a long sentence that starts with its main clause and is
followed by dependent clauses or modifying phrases.
Metaphor: an implicit comparison of one object, person, or idea with
another—usually more concrete—object or person.
Metonymy: a figure of speech in which the attribute or commonly
associated feature is used to name the whole.
Mode of Discourse: the way in which information is presented in written
or spoken form—narration, description, exposition, and persuasion.
Mood: a feeling or ambience evoked by the tone of a piece; the
audience’s emotional reaction to a piece.
Narrative: a mode of discourse that tells a story of some sort and is
based on connected sequences of events.
Onomatopoeia: a word capturing or approximating the sound of what it
describes.
Oxymoron: a figure of speech that combines two apparently
contradictory elements as in “wise fool,” “baggy tights,” or “deafening
silence.”
Paradox: a statement that seems contradictory but is true in some way.
Parallel Structure: the use of similar forms or grammatical structures
in writing for nouns, verbs, phrases, or thoughts. In prose, recurrent
grammatical similarity where several parts of a sentence or several
sentences are expressed alike to show that their ideas are equal in
importance.
Pathos: that element in literature that stimulates pity or sorrow. In
argument or persuasion it tends to evoke strong emotions in the reader.
Periodic Sentence: a long sentence in which the main clause is not
completed until the end. It generally begins with the subordinate clauses
and modifiers.
Personification: treating an abstraction or nonhuman object as if it were
a person by endowing it with human features or qualities.
Point of View: the relation in which a narrator/author stands to a
subject of discourse.
Prose: the ordinary form of written language without metrical structure
in contrast to verse and poetry.
Realism: attempting to describe nature and life without idealization and
with attention to detail.
Rebuttal/refutation: an argument technique wherein opposing arguments
are anticipated and countered.
Rhetoric: the art of using words to persuade in writing or speaking.
Rhetorical question: a question that is asked simply for the sake of
stylistic effect and is not expected to be answered.
Sarcasm: a form of verbal irony in which apparent praise is actually
critical.
Satire: a literary work that holds up human failings to ridicule and
censure.
Simile: a direct, explicit comparison of one thing to another, usually
using the words like or as to draw the connection.
Style: the manner in which a writer combines and arranges words,
shapes ideas, and utilizes syntax and structure.
Symbolism: use of a person, place, thing, event, or pattern that
figuratively represents or “stands for” something else.
Synecdoche: a figure of speech in which a part signifies the whole, such
as “fifty masts” representing fifty ships or “100 head of steer had to
moved to their grazing land.”
Syntax: the way words are put together to form phrases, clauses, and
sentences.
Theme: the central or dominant idea or focus of a work.
Tone: the attitude the narrator/writer takes toward a subject or
theme; the tenor of a piece of writing based on particular stylistic
devices employed by the writer.
Voice: the acknowledged or unacknowledged source of the words of the
story; the speaker’s or narrator’s particular “take” on an idea based on a
particular passage and how all the elements of the style of the piece
come together to express his or her feelings.
Zeugma: a grammatically correct construction in which a word, usually a
verb or adjective, is applied to two or more nouns without being repeated.
Often used to comic effect.
List of Common Fallacies
Ad hominem: Latin for “the man.” The arguer attacks the person
instead of the argument. Also called “Attacking the person, not the
issue.”
Appeal to ignorance: appealing to ignorance, or a lack of evidence, as
evidence of something’s existence or nonexistence. (“We have no
evidence that God doesn’t exist, therefore, he must exist.”)
Argument from omniscience: Uses words like “all” and “everyone.” The
arguer assumes to know what everyone’s beliefs are in order to support
the argument. (“Everyone knows that the Wii is better than the XBOX
360.)
Appeal to faith: the arguer relies on faith as the basis of the argument.
Appeal to tradition: the arguer relies on what’s been done in the past to
support the argument. (“You should vote for me because I’m a democrat,
and this city has always voted democrat.”
Argument from authority: using the testimony of an “expert” to support
the argument instead of relying on logic or evidence.
Argument from adverse consequences: the arguer uses possible
negative consequences to support a claim. (“We should judge the accused
as guilty, otherwise others will commit similar crimes.”)
Argumentum ad baculum: An argument based on an appeal to fear or a
threat.
Argumentum ad ignorantiam: a misleading argument used in reliance on
people’s ignorance.
Argumentum ad populum: an argument aimed to sway popular support by
appealing to sentimental weakness rather than facts and reasons.
Bandwagon fallacy: concluding that an idea has merit simply because
many people believe it or practice it. An argument based on peer
pressure.
Begging the Question (circular reasoning): an argumentative ploy in
which the arguer sidesteps the question or the conflict, evades or
ignores the real question. Usually, the conclusion is exactly the same as
the premise.
Composition fallacy: when the conclusion of an argument depends on an
erroneous characteristic from parts of something to the whole or vice
versa. (“Humans have consciousness and human bodies and brains consist
of atoms: therefore, atoms have consciousness.”)
Confirmation bias: this refers to a form of selective thinking that
focuses on evidence that supports what believers already believe while
ignoring evidence that refutes their beliefs. This logical fallacy plays a
stronger role when people base their beliefs upon faith, tradition, and
prejudice. (“My prayer that Bozo would win the election was answered;
this is proof of the power of prayer.”)
Confusion of correlation and causation: this fallacy assumes that
circumstances determine erroneous conclusions. (“More men play chess
than women; therefore, men are better chess players than women.”)
Either-or fallacy: this argument offers only two alternatives as
solutions to the argument, one of which is most likely an extreme case.
It ignores the middle or other possibilities.
Half truths: a statement usually intended to deceive that omits some of
the facts necessary for an accurate description.
Loaded questions: embodies an assumption that, if answered, indicates
an implied agreement. (“John, so how long have you been taking drugs?”)
Meaningless question: asking a question of the audience that has either
infinite possible answers or a basis in absurdity. There is no point in
asking such a question. (“How high is up?”)
Misunderstanding the nature of statistics: the arguer intentionally
misleads the audience by manipulating statistical evidence.
Non sequitur: literally, “it does not follow” that in argument means an
inference that does not follow from the premises. The condition and the
consequent may be transposed.