Rhetorical Terms List + more :D

A work that targets human vices and follies or social institutions and conventions for reform or ridicule

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

A writer's style is comprised of a variety of elements that come together to form a distinct literary signature.

word or clauses that follow a linking verb and complements or completes the subject

dependent clause, cannot stand alone as a setence

an instance of a form of reasoning in which a conclusion is drawn (whether validly or not) from two given or assumed propositions (premises), each of which shares a term with the conclusion

something that represents something else usually abstract

a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa

way an auother chooses to put words in groups or sentences

central idea of a story usually teaching a life lesson

sentence that tell author’s opinion, argument, purpose, or postion

author’s attitude to his text

word or phrase that links two different ideas together

ironic minimizing of a fact

the attitude that may lie under the tone of the text

intellectually amazing language that surprises or delights

a noun or noun phrase that renames another name – The insect, a cockroach, is crawling on the wall.

repetition of vowel sounds – Try to light the fire.

argumentative ploy when the arguer sidesteps the question

in argumentation, an assertion of something as fact

when two or more things are compared, contrasted, or both

an accepted manner, model, or tradition

method of argument that moves from general to specific

method of argument that moves from specific to general

language & speech idiosyncracies of a specific region or group

repetition at the end of successive sentences (opposite of anaphora)

writing in praise of a dead person – most often inscribed upon a headstone

a word or phrase applied to a person to describe him or her – “Richard the Lion Hearted”

a speech or written praise of a deceased person – usually given at a funeral

retrospection – when an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronology of narration

a sign or warning of a future event

specialized or technical language of a trade, profession, or similar group

a joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word; wordplay

words or phrases that limited the scope of a claim – sometimes, most of the time, usually, I guess…

the audience physically present when a speech is delivered

an audience who is not physically present but is affected (television)

What prompts the speaker to speak or writer to write at this particular time? Why now?

What the speaker/writer wants the audience to feel & do as a result of reading or listening to the rhetoric – Sometimes – What does the speaker/writer want to change?