AP English Language and Composition Study Guide

Credit: simple studies

1) The Structure of the AP Language Exam

2) Tips for the AP Exam

3) Terms and Vocabulary

4) Argumentation

5) Sentence Types and Structure

6) Literary and Poetic Devices

Section 1: Multiple Choice

• 45 multiple-choice questions

• 1 hour to answer them

• Section 1 counts for 45% of your total exam score

• The questions are separated into 5 sets, with short stimulus passages

• There will be 23 - 25 rhetorical analysis questions
  • Rhetorical analysis questions are where the student is asked to read and analyze nonfiction texts

• There will be 20 - 22 composition questions
  • Composition questions are where the student is asked to “read like a writer” and consider revisions to stimulus texts

Section 2: Free Response

• Students will write essays in response to 3 free-response prompts

• Students are given 2 hours and 15 minutes to answer these prompts
  • The time includes a 15 minutes reading period

• Section 2 counts for 55% of the total exam score

• The categories these prompts fall into are the synthesis question, rhetorical analysis, and the argumentative essay.
  • The rhetorical analysis asks students to read a nonfiction text and analyze how the language choices of the writer contribute to the meaning and purpose of the text
  • The synthesis question gives students 6 to 7 texts about a topic, this includes visual and quantitative sources. Students then create an argument that uses and cites at least three sources to support it
  • The argumentative essay asks students to create an argument that responds to a given topic that’s based on evidence

1 Focus on your thesis One of the most important parts of your essay is your thesis. If it’s a weak one, you’ll automatically get a lower score. Make sure that your thesis statement is clear and to the point. When you write your essay, make sure that it lives up to the claims that your thesis statement makes. In your conclusion, you should also at some point rephrase your thesis and include a tie-in to a larger universal idea.

2 Precise diction is more important than an expansive vocabulary If you aren’t used to using large and complex words in your essay, that’s fine. The AP English Language and Composition Rubric wants to see that student is “particularly impressive in their control of language.” As long as you write with precision and clarity, you won’t need to use fancy words to get a high score on your essay.

3 Spend time studying rhetorical devices and strategies There’s a reason you spend so much time learning them in class. Spending some time getting familiar with common rhetorical devices and strategies can go a long way towards helping you recognize them on the day of the exam. Learning about the effects of rhetorical strategies and devices will help you write a better essay by using them in your arguments.

4 Be ready to use outside sources In the argumentative essay, you’ll be expected to use some of your own outside knowledge. Think about topics that you know about, books you’ve read, experiences that you’ve had. These will come in handy when writing your essay.

5 Go further into your analysis Go beyond the obvious in your analysis. AP readers are looking for a well thought out, meaningful analysis. Analyze why the speaker used a specific strategy, how it applied to their specific audience, and the effect it had. Go beyond looking at what the speaker did, and try writing about why they did it, and the impact it had.

6 If you don’t know the answer, guess You will not be docked points for wrong answers, so if you’re having trouble with a question and don’t have time to come back to it, guess. There are 45 multiple-choice questions that you’ll have to answer in an hour, so plan your time accordingly. It’s important to focus on the passages that you understand best, in order to maximize your score.

7 Take the time to understand the format of the exam Before preparing for the exam, spend some time looking at the first section of this study guide. It talks about the structure of the test, including how many questions are in each section and what they entail, as well as the amount of time you have for each one. Knowing the format of the exam will help you better plan out your preparation time, and will make sure that you’re ready for everything.

8 Read books on your own time If you like to read in your spare time, then this one shouldn’t be an issue for you. However, if you’ve never really taken up pleasure reading as a hobby, maybe just start with one book a month. Reading books outside of class not only gives you more outside sources to use in your argumentative essay, but also helps expand your vocabulary. Reading more challenging books than you usually would is also a good idea since stepping out of your comfort zone in literature can help you discover new styles of writing and topics that you usually wouldn’t have found otherwise. Non-fiction is better for gaining more supporting evidence for essays, but as long as you’re reading more than you usually are then you’re on the right track!

Argumentative

• Ambiguity
  • The various meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage.

• Anecdote
  • A brief recounting of a relevant episode. Anecdotes are often put into fictional or non-fictional texts as a method of developing a point or injecting humor.

• Concession
  • Accepting at least part or all of an opposing viewpoint.

• Deductive Argument
  • An argument in which it is thought that the premises provide a guarantee of the validity of the conclusion. In a deductive argument, the premises are intended to provide support for the conclusion that is so strong that, if the premises are true, it would be impossible for the conclusion to be false.

• Inductive Argument

• An argument in which it is thought that the premises provide reasons supporting the probable truth of the conclusion. In an inductive argument, the premises are intended only to be so strong that, if they are true, then it is unlikely that the conclusion is false.

• Logical fallacy
  • An attractive but unreliable piece of reasoning. Writers do not want to form obvious fallacies in their reasoning, but they are often used unintentionally, or when the author thinks they can get away with faulty logic.

• Syllogism
  • A deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises (the first one called

“major” and the second called “minor”) that inevitably lead to a sound conclusion.

• Example:
  • major premise: All men are mortal.
  • minor premise: Socrates is a man.
  • conclusion: Therefore, Socrates is a mortal.

Rhetorical

• Adage
  • A folk saying with a lesson.
  • Example: A penny saved is a penny earned.

• Allegory
  • A story, fictional or non-fictional, in which things, characters, and events represent concepts or qualities. The interaction of these things, characters, and events are meant to reveal an abstraction or a truth.

• Allusion
  • An indirect reference to something commonly known (usually a literary text, although it can be other things such as plays, songs, historical events) with which the reader is supposed to be familiar.

• Anaphora

• Repetition of a word or expression at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, sentences, or verses especially for rhetorical or poetic effect.

• Anastrophe
  • Deliberate changing of normal word order for emphasis or another rhetorical effect.
  • Example: She stared into the dog's eyes deep and menacing.

• Aphorism
  • A brief statement that expresses a general truth or moral principle. An aphorism can be a memorable summation of the author's point.
  • Example: A watched pot never boils.

• Appositive
  • A word or group of words placed beside a noun or noun substitute to supplement its meaning.

• Asyndeton
  • Where conjunctions are omitted in a series of words, phrases, or clauses. It is used to shorten a sentence and focus on its meaning.
  • Example: “I came. I saw. I conquered.”

• Atmosphere
  • The emotional nod created by the entirety of a literary work, established partly by the setting and partly by the author’s choice of objects that are described. Even such elements as a description of the weather can contribute to the atmosphere.

• Audience
  • Who the author is directing his or her message towards

• Bildungsroman
  • A literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood.

• Colloquialism
  • A common or familiar type of saying.

• Connotation

• The associations suggested by a word. Implied meaning rather than literal meaning.

• Denotation
  • The literal, explicit meaning of a word, without its connotations.

• Diction
  • Word choice, particularly as an element of style. Different types of words have significant effects on meaning.

• Didactic
  • A term used to describe fiction, nonfiction or poetry that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking.

• Ellipsis
  • The deliberate omission of a word or phrase from prose done for effect by the author.

• Euphemism
  • A more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts. Sometimes they are used for political correctness.

• Euphony
  • It can be defined as the use of words and phrases that are recognized as having a wide range of noteworthy melody in the sounds they create. It gives pleasing and soothing effects to the ear due to repeated vowels and smooth consonants.

• Extended metaphor
  • When the metaphor is developed throughout the written work.

• Figurative language/figure of speech
  • Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid.

• Genre
  • The major category into which a literary work fits.

• Hyperbole
  • Exaggeration

• Idiolect

• An individual's distinctive and unique use of language, including speech.

• Idiom
  • A common, often used expression that doesn’t make sense if you take it literally.

• Imagery
  • Word or words that create a picture in the reader's mind. Usually this involves the five senses. Authors often use imagery in conjunction with metaphors, similes, or figures of speech.

• Inflection
  • Letters added to nouns, adjectives, and verbs to show their different grammatical forms.

• Invective
  • A long, emotionally violent, attack using strong, abusive language.

• Irony
  • When the opposite of what you expect to happen does.

• Juxtaposition
  • Placing things side by side for the purposes of comparison. Authors often use juxtaposition of ideas or examples in order to make a point.

• Metaphor
  • Making an implied comparison, not using “like,” as,” or other such words.

• Metonymy
  • Replacing an actual word or idea, with a related word or concept.

• Mood
  • The atmosphere created by the literature and accomplished through diction. Syntax is often a creator of mood since word order, sentence length and strength and complexity also affect pacing and therefore mood. Setting, tone, and events can all affect the mood.

• Motif
  • A recurring idea in a piece of literature.

• Oxymoron
  • When apparently contradictory terms are grouped together and suggest a paradox.

• Example: Jumbo shrimp

• Pacing

The speed or tempo of an author’s writing

• Paradox
  • A seemingly contradictory situation which is actually true.

• Parody
  • A work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule.

• Persona
  • The fictional mask or narrator that tells a story.

• Personification
  • Giving human-like qualities to something that is not human.

• Point of view
  • In literature, the perspective from which a story is told.

• Polysyndeton
  • When a writer creates a list of items which are all separated by conjunctions.

• Pun
  • When a word that has two or more meanings is used in a humorous way.

• Rhetoric
  • The art of effective communication.

• Sarcasm
  • A bitter comment that is generally ironically or satirically worded. However, not all satire and irony are sarcastic. It is the bitter, mocking tone that separates sarcasm from mere verbal irony or satire.

• Satire
  • A work that reveals a critical attitude toward some element of life to a humorous effect. It targets human vices and follies, or social institutions and conventions.

• Semantics
  • The branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their historical and psychological development, their connotations, and their relation to one another.

• Simile
  • Using words such as “like” or “as” to make a direct comparison between two very different things.

• Symbol
  • Generally, anything that represents itself and stands for something else. Usually a symbol is something concrete – such as an object, action, character, or scene – that represents something more abstract. However, symbols and symbolism can be much more complex.

• Synecdoche
  • A figure of speech in which a part of something is used to represent the whole or, occasionally, the whole is used to represent a part.

• Synesthesia
  • When one kind of sensory stimulus evokes the subjective experience of another.

• Syntax
  • The way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences. Syntax is similar to diction, but you can differentiate them by thinking of syntax as groups of words, while diction refers to the individual words.

• Thesis
  • The sentence or groups of sentences that expresses the author's opinion, meaning, purpose, or proposition directly. It should be short and clear.

• Understatement
  • The ironic minimizing of fact, understatement presents something as less significant than it is. The effect can frequently be humorous.

• Vernacular
  • Language or dialect of a particular country, clan, or group. Also can mean plain everyday speech.

• Wit
  • Intellectually amusing language that surprises and delights. A witty statement is humorous, while suggesting the speaker’s verbal power in creating ingenious and

perceptive remarks. Wit usually uses terse language that makes a pointed statement.

• Zeugma
  • When a single word governs or modifies two or more other words, and the meaning of the first word must change for each of the other words it governs or modifies.
  • Example: He fished for trout and for compliments

Rhetorically Active/Accurate Verbs

Use these words in place of: “says,” “states,” “writes,” or a passive verb.

Words that describe tone or attitude

Foundations of Rhetoric

• What is rhetoric?
  • “The [ability] of observing, in any given case, the available means of persuasion”

- Aristotle

• The use of language to effectively communicate

• Rhetorical situation
  • The occasion and exigence that has brought the need to communicate. This includes time and place of communication, as well as history leading to communication, existing relationships among members of discussion, event, the mood, or weather.
  • The context of the argument
  • The goal that the speaker hopes to achieve, the purpose

• The rhetorical triangle
  • Consists of the speaker, audience, and subject

Reasoning in Argumentation

• Logic/Reasoning
  • The definition of reasoning is the use of evidence, assumptions with backing, and qualifiers, to come to interpretive conclusions.
  • Sound reasoning has little to no flaws or gaps in logic.
  • Flawed reasoning employs one or more logical fallacies.

Evidence and Support

• What to do when you have no outside sources?
  • There are three domains of evidence
    • Events
      • Current
      • Historical
    • Culture
      • Pop - consists of things like television, films, celebrities
      • High - consists of things like literature, the arts, theater
    • Experiences
      • Yours
      • Others
  • The benefits and dangers of each
    • The benefits of events
      • They are fact-based, in that they happened.
      • They are relatable, they are known, and therefore are more convincing.
    • The dangers of events
      • They might be used poorly or misinterpreted.
    • The benefits of culture
      • It’s relatable, using a reference that someone knows can convince them.
      • It’s concrete and specific, people like what they can see and touch, plus you can go past the general and specify.
    • The dangers of culture
      • Making a poor choice in a pop culture reference can damage your argument.
      • Be careful not to over-summarize a book, show, film, or play.
    • The benefits of experiences

• They are moving. A strong and emotionally charged anecdote can be more convincing that any one fact.

• The dangers of experiences
  • They are the easiest to make up, and the hardest to disprove. If it doesn’t sound genuine, writing about an experience can cause your argument to lose steam and you to lose credibility.

• Evidence that can be found in outside sources
  • Facts
    • Are undeniable and concrete
    • They can be interpreted and manipulated to support data
    • Quotes from a story are fact-based evidence and can be used for literary analysis.
  • Expert testimony
    • Fact-based opinion
    • Expert is the key word. The testimony should be from someone whose life’s work is related to the topic.
  • Quantitative data
    • Statistical or numeric data
    • Is logical, study-driven, numbers-driven
    • People might come to different conclusions with the same data, so be careful of that
  • Anecdote
    • An often emotional, personal, and powerful argument
    • Can be seen as manipulative, so it shouldn’t be the only thing that supports a claim.

Aristotelian Appeals

• Ethos: Appeal to ethics
  • Depends on credibility and expertise to persuade the audience

• Pathos: Appeal to emotions
  • Creates an emotional response to convince the audience

• Logos: Appeal to logic
  • Depends on logic and facts to persuade the audience

Identifying Purpose

• Exigence: The event, incident, or occasion that lead to the text’s creation
  • The text is a response
    • Exigence might be a question, and the text is the answer
    • Exigence might be an event, and the text is the commentary on that event or subject

• To find purpose:
  • Consider the argument (what is the speaker trying to say through his text?)
  • What is the nature of the argument?
  • Though the text could seem informative in nature, is there an underlying argument?
  • Look for the central claim (thesis)
  • Look at the details
    • What’s included?
      • What does it use to support its argument?
        • Which definitions and evidence?
      • Which logic does it use?
    • What’s emphasized?
      • Is there a form of consistent imagery or a religious connection made?

• What’s excluded?
  • Is there a perspective that’s ignored?
  • Are there certain facts omitted?

• Look at tone
  • Tone: Speaker’s attitude
    • It’s achieved through diction, syntax, detail, and imagery
  • Tone can be used as a rhetorical strategy

• Look at the structure of the text
  • Are there shifts in mood or tone?
  • How does the text develop?

Logical Fallacies

Attractive but unreliable pieces of reasoning. Writers do not want to make obvious fallacies in their reasoning, but they are often used unintentionally, or when the writer thinks they can get

away with faulty logic. Below are the different types of logical fallacies, as well as examples of each.

• Ad hominem: Attacking the individual instead of the argument.
  • I figured that you couldn’t possibly be right, so I ignored your comment.

• Appeal to force: Telling the listener something bad will happen to them if they don't accept the argument.
  • You’ll get hurt if you don’t agree with what I say.

• Appeal to pity: Urging the audience to accept the argument based upon an appeal to emotions or sympathy.
  • You owe me because I really stuck my neck out for you.

• Appeal to the popular: Urging the listener to accept a position because a majority of people hold onto it.
  • If everyone else is doing it, why aren’t you?

• Appeal to patriotism: Using a person’s beliefs about politics, nationalism, or religion to convince them of an argument.
  • If you don’t support that politician then you hate America.

• Appeal to tradition: Trying to get someone to accept something because it has been done or believed for a long time.
  • This is the way we’ve always done it, therefore it’s the right way.

• Circular argument: Restating the argument rather than actually proving it.
  • I am a good communicator because I speak effectively.

• Cause and effect: Assuming that the effect is related to a cause because the events occur together.
  • When the rooster crows, the sun rises. Therefore, the rooster causes the sun to rise.

• Fallacy of equivocation: Using the same term in an argument in different places but the word has different meanings.
  • I have the right to watch the show. Therefore it's right for me to watch the show

• False dilemma: Giving two choices when in actuality there could be more choices possible.
  • Either the glass is fine, or you broke it. (someone else could have broken it)

• Genetic fallacy: Attempting to endorse or disqualify a claim because of the origin or irrelevant history of the claim.
  • The Nazi regime developed the Volkswagen Beetle. Therefore, you should not buy a Volkswagen Beetle because the Nazi regime started it.

• Guilt by association: Rejecting an argument or claim because the person proposing it likes someone who is disliked by another.
  • Your friend is a thief. Therefore, I cannot trust you.

• Non sequitur: Comments or information that do not logically follow from a premise or the conclusion.
  • We know why it rained today, because I washed my car.

• Poisoning the well: Presenting negative information about a person before he/she speaks so as to discredit the person's argument.
  • Don’t listen to him because he’s a loser.

• Red herring: Introducing a topic not related to the topic at hand.
  • I know I forgot to pick up the milk yesterday. But, nothing I do makes you happy.

• Straw man argument: Producing an argument about a weaker representation of the truth and attacking it.
  • People that do not support the proposed minimum wage increase hate the poor.

• Slippery slope: An assertion that a relatively tiny first step will lead to a chain of related events that will culminate into some significant (usually negative) effect.
  • If we ban Jeeps because they are bad for the environment eventually the government will ban all cars, so we should not ban Jeeps.

• Hasty Generalization: This is a conclusion based on biased or insufficient evidence. In other words, a conclusion is hastily drawn before there are all the relevant facts.
  • Even though it's only the first day, I know that this is going to be a boring course.

• False Premise: A conclusion that is reached by a line of logic in which one or more of the premises/assumptions is false.
  • Only the good die young. Jimi Hendrix died at a young age. He must have been good.

• Faulty Analogy: Assuming that because two things are alike in one or more respects, they are necessarily alike in some other respect.
  • Medical Student: “No one objects to a physician looking up a difficult case in medical books. Shouldn't students that are taking a difficult examination be permitted to use their textbooks then?”

Sentence variety is an element of style. Understanding subjects means you know the main focus of a sentence. You can follow difficult texts much more easily. Understanding independent clauses means you can identify the main clause of a sentence.

Grammar Vocabulary

• Subject: A noun or pronoun that the sentence is about.

• Predicate: The part of a sentence that contains the verb and all of the information about what is being said about the subject.

• Complete predicate: Includes the verb and all modifiers of the verb.

• Simple subject: The main noun or pronoun of the sentence.

• Complete subject: Includes the subject and any modifiers of that subject.

• Direct object: The noun or pronoun in a sentence that receives the action of the verb.

• Indirect object: A noun or pronoun that identifies to whom or for whom the action of the verb is being done.

• Preposition: A word that links another part of the sentence to the prepositional object. Often suggests the position in time and space.

• Prepositional object: The noun that completes the thought of the preposition.

• Modifier: Any language that clarifies, details, emphasizes, or qualifies a noun or verb in a sentence.

• Clause: The combination of subject and predicate. Can be independent or dependent.

Parts of Sentences

• Prepositional phrase
  • They indicate placement in time and space.
  • Modifies a sentence by specifying time, place, or condition.
  • Examples:
    • After many tries
    • Around the world

• Appositive phrase
  • Any phrase that provides more details for, or provides another name for, a noun or noun phrase
  • Modifies the noun by giving more information or detail
  • Examples:
    • The boy, an avid sprinter, raced ahead to the finish line.
    • The puppy, a golden retriever, is my newest pet.
    • That ladybug, an insect, just landed on the rose bush.

• Participial phrase
  • Modifies a noun in the sentence.
  • The condition of the modified noun or what the modified noun was doing.
  • Examples:
    • Injured during the soccer match, Marco had to leave the field.
    • Excited about dinner, Hari ran the whole way home.
    • Quickly checking over his answers, Patrick handed in his test just before time ran out.

• Absolute phrase
  • Has a noun and a participial
  • The difference between an absolute phrase and a participial phrase is that participials will allude to the action of a subject, while absolutes will explain a noun and its action, but as an incomplete sentence.
  • Examples:
    • God willing we shall meet again.
    • Weather permitting we shall meet in the evening.
    • The weather being fine, we went out for a picnic.

• Noun phrase
  • Combination of a noun and the modifiers that apply to it
  • Examples:
    • At the zoo, I saw a striped zebra.
    • Mary lives in an eclectic household.
    • She kindly offered water to the gardener working in the hot sun.

• Gerund phrase
  • A gerund phrase is a phrase consisting of a gerund and any modifiers or objects associated with it.
  • A gerund is the –ing form of a verb that functions the same as a noun.
  • Examples:
    • Running for president is a serious ambition.
    • I like fishing with lures.
    • A serious danger to motorists is driving under the influence.

• Infinitive phrase
  • The infinitive form of a verb is before it’s conjugated (e.g. to run, to eat, to swim)
  • It acts as a noun in most places.
  • Examples:
    • To travel all across Italy is Lucretia's New Year resolution.
    • To finish a new book is the only reason Kyle would stay up all night.
    • A good habit to have is to go for a walk in the evening.

Types of Sentences

• Simple sentences
  • They have one subject and one predicate.
  • Though they are simple, they can have many phrases inside them.
  • Examples:
    • Sarah and Amanda are going swimming.
    • I am out of paper for the printer.
    • Will you help me with the math homework?

• Compound sentences
  • Sentences that combine two or more independent clauses.

• An independent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate and expresses a complete thought. It is a simple sentence.

• The two independent clauses are joined by coordinating conjunctions.
  • The seven coordinating conjugations can be remembered by the mnemonic device FANBOYS.
    • FANBOYS stands for the words: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So

• Examples:
  • I am counting my calories, yet I really want dessert.
  • He ran out of money, so he had to stop playing poker.
  • They got there early, and they got really good seats.

• Complex sentences
  • Have one independent clause and at least one dependent clause
    • A dependent clause can also be called a subordinating clause
    • A dependent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and predicate but does not express a complete thought. A dependent clause cannot be a sentence.
  • Examples:
    • Because he was late again, he would be docked a day’s pay.
    • While I am a passionate basketball fan, I prefer football.
    • Although she was considered smart, she failed all her exams.

• Compound-complex sentences
  • Have two independent clauses and one dependent clause.
  • Examples:
    • While I slept, I had a strange dream, but I woke up before it ended.
    • I made varsity football when I was a senior, yet I never got to play in a game.
    • I left, but because there are rules in school, I was given detention.

• The use of a simple sentence as opposed to a compound, complex, or compound-complex sentence can alter the effect, appeal, beauty, or meaning of a text.

• Period sentence

• A sentence whose main clause is withheld until the end.

• Cumulative sentence
  • A sentence whose main clause is at the beginning, and then builds and adds on.

Literary Devices

• Allusion
  • An allusion references a place, person, thing, or event in the real world. You can use this to draw a clear picture or to even connect with your readers.
  • Allusions are often used as elements of literature that help connect the reader to the works. By referencing something that may be familiar, the reader becomes more invested than if you didn’t have any connections.

• Diction
  • Diction is the choice of words or style used by the writer in order to convey their message.
  • Formal diction

• This is when the word choice is more high class or formal. Oftentimes, writers use formal diction as a literary device when more educated individuals are speaking or the content is for those with higher education.

• Informal diction
  • When your characters (or you if writing a nonfiction) are speaking directly to everyday people, this type of diction would be used as it’s more conversational.

• Slang diction
  • Slang is commonly used for a younger audience and includes newly composed words or phrases.

• Colloquial diction
  • This is when words that are used in everyday life are written. These may be different depending on the culture or religions present in the writing.

• Allegory
  • An allegory is a figure of speech where abstract ideas are described using characters, events, or other elements.

• Colloquialism
  • Colloquialisms are expressions, words, and phrases that are used in informal, everyday speech, including slang.

• Irony
  • When the opposite of what you expect to happen does.
  • Verbal irony
    • When you say something and mean the opposite/something different.
  • Dramatic irony
    • When the audience of a drama, play, movie, etc. knows something that the character doesn't and would be surprised to find out.
  • Situational irony
    • Found in the plot of a book, story, or movie. A situation in which actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was expected.

• Flashbacks

• When the narrator goes back in time for a specific scene or chapter in order to give more context for the story.

• Foreshadowing
  • Foreshadowing is when the author places details within the writing that gives clues about what will happen in the future of the story.

• Imagery
  • Imagery is when you use visually descriptive or figurative language in your writing.

• Juxtaposition
  • Juxtaposition means placing contrasting elements next to one another in order to emphasize one or both, including words, scenes, or themes.

• Tone
  • The tone of a book is something that conveys the narrator’s opinion, attitude, or feelings about what is written.

• Parallelism:
  • Sentence construction which places equal grammatical constructions near each other, or repeats identical grammatical patterns. Parallelism is used to add emphasis, organization, or sometimes pacing to writing.
  • Anaphora
    • Repetition of a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of two or more sentences or clauses in a row. This is a deliberate form of repetition and helps make the writer's point more coherent.
  • Chiasmus
    • When the same words are used twice in succession, but the second time, the order of the words is reversed.
  • Antithesis
    • Two opposite or contrasting words, phrases, or clauses, or even ideas, with parallel structure.
  • Zeugma

• When a single word governs or modifies two or more other words. The meaning of the first word must change for each of the other words it governs or modifies.

Poetic Devices

• Alliteration
  • Alliteration is a literary device that uses the same letters or sounds at the beginning of words in a sentence or title.
  • Example: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers

• Assonance
  • Repeated vowel sounds in words placed near each other, usually on the same or adjacent lines. These should be in sounds that are accented, or stressed, rather than in vowel sounds that are unaccented.
  • Example: Try to light the fire.

• Consonance
  • Repeated consonant sounds at the ending of words placed near each other, usually on the same or adjacent lines.
  • Example: Mike likes his new bike.

• Cacophony

• A discordant series of harsh, unpleasant sounds helps to convey disorder.

• Caesura
  • A strong pause within a line of poetry that contributes to the rhythm of the line.

• Dissonance
  • The juxtaposition of harsh, jarring sounds in one or more lines of a poem.

• Euphony
  • A series of musically pleasant sounds, conveying a sense of harmony and beauty to the language.

• Free verse
  • Poetry that doesn’t have much meter or rhyme

• Personification
  • Personification is a literary device where you give human-like qualities to non-human elements.
  • Example: Lightning danced across the sky.

• Rhyme
  • Correspondence of sound between words or the endings of words, especially when these are used at the ends of lines of poetry.
  • Internal rhyme
    • When a line of poetry contains a rhyme within a single line.
  • Slant rhyme
    • When a poet creates a rhyme, but the two words do not rhyme exactly – they are merely similar.
  • End rhyme
    • When the last word of two different lines of poetry rhyme.

• Meter
  • A regular pattern to the syllables in lines of poetry.

• Onomatopoeia
  • The use of a word which imitates or suggests the sound that the thing makes.
  • Examples: Snap, rustle, boom, murmur

• Iambic pentameter

• Poetry that is written in lines of 10 syllables, alternating stressed and unstressed syllables.

• Rhythm
  • The recurrence of stressed and unstressed sounds in poetry.

• Run-on line
  • A line that ends without a pause and continues into the next line for its meaning.

• Rhetorical question
  • A question that’s not asked for information but for effect.

• Sonnet
  • A 14 line poem written in iambic pentameter. Usually divided into three quatrains and a couplet.

• Stanza
  • A grouping of lines, set off by a space, which usually has a set pattern of meter and rhyme.