English language - Barbara L. Murphy 2021

Appendixes

Glossary

Selected Bibliography

Websites

Glossary

Abstract refers to language that describes concepts rather than concrete images.

Ad Hominem In an argument, an attack on the person rather than on the opponent’s ideas. It comes from the Latin meaning “against the man.”

Allegory a work that functions on a symbolic level.

Alliteration the repetition of initial consonant sounds, such as “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”

Allusion a reference contained in a work.

Analogy a literary device employed to serve as a basis for comparison. It is assumed that what applies to the parallel situation also applies to the original circumstance. In other words, it is the comparison between two different items.

Analysis the process of taking apart a text by dividing it into its basic components for the purpose of examining how the author develops his/her subject.

Anecdote a story or brief episode told by the writer or a character to illustrate a point.

Annotate to make personal notes on a text in order to get a better understanding of the material. These notes can include questions, an argument with the author, acknowledging a good point, a clarification of an idea.

Antecedent the word, phrase, or clause to which a pronoun refers. The AP English Language and Composition exam often expects you to identify the antecedent in a passage.

Antithesis the presentation of two contrasting images. The ideas are balanced by word, phrase, clause, or paragraph. “To be or not to be . . .” “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country . . .”

Argument a single assertion or a series of assertions presented and defended by the writer.

Attitude the relationship an author has toward his or her subject, and/or his or her audience.

Balance a situation in which all parts of the presentation are equal, whether in sentences or paragraphs or sections of a longer work.

Cacophony harsh and discordant sounds in a line or passage in a literary work.

Character those who carry out the action of the plot in literature. Major, minor, static, and dynamic are types of characters.

Claim rhetorically, a statement that asserts something is true; often works as the topic sentence in support of the thesis; primary point in support of an argument.

Colloquial the use of slang in writing, often to create local color and to provide an informal tone. Huckleberry Finn is written in a colloquial style.

Comic Relief the inclusion of a humorous character or scene to contrast with the tragic elements of a work, thereby intensifying the next tragic event.

Complexity the recognition and discussion of multiple ways elements of a text interact within the text and/or in relation to the given context.

Conflict a clash between opposing forces in a literary work, such as man vs. man; man vs. nature; man vs. god; man vs. self.

Connective Tissue those elements that help create coherence in a written piece. See Chapter 8.

Connotation the interpretive level of a word based on its associated images rather than its literal meaning.

Deduction the process of moving from a general rule to a specific example.

Denotation the literal or dictionary meaning of a word.

Dialect the re-creation of regional spoken language, such as a Southern dialect. Zora Neale Hurston uses this in such works as Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Diction the author’s choice of words that creates tone, attitude, and style, as well as meaning.

Didactic writing whose purpose is to instruct or to teach. A didactic work is usually formal and focuses on moral or ethical concerns.

Discourse a discussion on a specific topic.

Ellipsis an indication by a series of three periods that some material has been omitted from a given text. It could be a word, a phrase, a sentence, a paragraph, or a whole section. Be wary of the ellipsis; it could obscure the real meaning of the piece of writing.

Epigraph the use of a quotation at the beginning of a work that hints at its theme. Hemingway begins The Sun Also Rises with two epigraphs. One of them is “You are all a lost generation” by Gertrude Stein.

Exigence a problem that needs to be addressed and which pushes the speaker to write or speak, why the author is writing.

Euphemism a more acceptable and usually more pleasant way of saying something that might be inappropriate or uncomfortable. “He went to his final reward” is a common euphemism for “he died.” Euphemisms are also often used to obscure the reality of a situation. The military uses “collateral damage” to indicate civilian deaths in a military operation.

Euphony the pleasant, mellifluous presentation of sounds in a literary work.

Exigence a problem that needs to be addressed and that pushes the speaker to write or speak.

Exposition background information presented in a literary work.

Extended Metaphor a sustained comparison, often referred to as a conceit. The extended metaphor is developed throughout a piece of writing.

Figurative Language the body of devices that enables the writer to operate on levels other than the literal one. It includes metaphor, simile, symbol, motif, and hyperbole, etc.

Flashback a device that enables a writer to refer to past thoughts, events, or episodes.

Form the shape or structure of a literary work.

Hyperbole extreme exaggeration, often humorous, it can also be ironic; the opposite of understatement.

Image a verbal approximation of a sensory impression, concept, or emotion.

Imagery the total effect of related sensory images in a work of literature.

Induction the process that moves from a given series of specifics to a generalization.

Inference a conclusion one can draw from the presented details.

Invective a verbally abusive attack.

Irony an unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended or expected to happen. It involves dialogue and situation and can be intentional or unplanned. Dramatic irony centers around the ignorance of those involved, whereas the audience is aware of the circumstance.

Line of Reasoning in AP English Language, the arrangement of claims and the evidence that supports the thesis.

Logic the process of reasoning.

Logical Fallacy a mistake in reasoning (see Chapter 9 for specific examples).

Metaphor a direct comparison between dissimilar things. “Your eyes are stars” is an example.

Metonymy a figure of speech in which a representative term is used for a larger idea (The pen is mightier than the sword).

Monologue a speech given by one character (Hamlet’s “To be or not to be . . .”).

Motif the repetition or variations of an image or idea in a work used to develop theme or characters.

Narrator the speaker of a literary work.

Onomatopoeia words that sound like the sound they represent (hiss, gurgle, pop).

Oxymoron an image of contradictory terms (bittersweet, jumbo shrimp).

Pacing the movement of a literary piece from one point or one section to another.

Parable a story that operates on more than one level and usually teaches a moral lesson. (The Pearl by John Steinbeck is a fine example.)

Parody a comic imitation of a work that ridicules the original. It can be utterly mocking or gently humorous. It depends on allusion and exaggerates and distorts the original style and content.

Pathos the aspects of a literary work that elicit pity from the audience. An appeal to emotion that can be used as a means to persuade.

Pedantic a term used to describe writing that borders on lecturing. It is scholarly and academic and often overly difficult and distant.

Periodic Sentence presents its main clause at the end of the sentence for emphasis and sentence variety. Phrases and/or dependent clauses precede the main clause.

Personification the assigning of human qualities to inanimate objects or concepts. (Wordsworth personifies “the sea that bares her bosom to the moon” in the poem “London 1802.”)

Persuasion a type of argument that has as its goal an action on the part of the audience.

Plot a sequence of events in a literary work.

Point of View the method of narration in a literary work.

Pun a play on words that often has a comic effect. Associated with wit and cleverness. A writer who speaks of the “grave topic of American funerals” may be employing an intentional or unintentional pun.

Reductio ad Absurdum the Latin for “to reduce to the absurd.” This is a technique useful in creating a comic effect (see Twain’s “At the Funeral”) and is also an argumentative technique. It is considered a rhetorical fallacy, because it reduces an argument to an either/or choice.

Rhetoric refers to the entire process of written communication. Rhetorical strategies and devices are those tools that enable a writer to present ideas to an audience effectively.

Rhetorical Question one that does not expect an explicit answer. It is used to pose an idea to be considered by the speaker or audience. (François Villon [in translation] asks, “Where are the snows of yesteryear?”)

Rhetorical Situation the context around which the author, subject, and audience are involved.

Sarcasm a comic technique that ridicules through caustic language. Tone and attitude may both be described as sarcastic in a given text if the writer employs language, irony, and wit to mock or scorn.

Satire a mode of writing based on ridicule, that criticizes the foibles and follies of society without necessarily offering a solution. (Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels is a great satire that exposes mankind’s condition.)

Says/Does a rhetorical analysis that observes/summarizes what the author says (content), plus discusses the purpose and/or effects of what the author presents (form + function).

Setting the time and place of a literary work.

Simile an indirect comparison that uses the word like or as to link the differing items in the comparison. (“Your eyes are like stars.”)

SOAPStone an acronym for Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, Subject, and Tone.

Sophistication for the purposes of AP English, presenting a variety of insights or viewpoints while rhetorically analyzing a specific text or arguing a point of view.

Stage Directions the specific instructions a playwright includes concerning sets, characterization, delivery, etc.

Stanza a unit of a poem, similar in rhyme, meter, and length to other units in the poem.

Structure the organization and form of a work.

Style the unique way an author presents his ideas. Diction, syntax, imagery, structure, and content all contribute to a particular style.

Summary reducing the original text to its essential parts.

Syllogism the format of a formal argument that consists of a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion.

Symbol something in a literary work that stands for something else. (Plato has the light of the sun symbolize truth in “The Allegory of the Cave.”)

Synecdoche a figure of speech that utilizes a part as representative of the whole. (“All hands on deck” is an example.)

Syntax the grammatical structure of prose and poetry.

Synthesis locating a number of sources and integrating them into the development and support of a writer’s thesis/claim.

Theme the underlying ideas the author illustrates through characterization, motifs, language, plot, etc.

Thesis a statement that introduces the position/viewpoint/insight that will be developed throughout the entire presentation.

Tone the author’s attitude toward his subject.

Transition a word or phrase that links one idea to the next and carries the reader from sentence to sentence, paragraph to paragraph. See the list of transitions in Chapter 8.

Understatement the opposite of exaggeration. It is a technique for developing irony and/or humor where one writes or says less than intended.

Voice can refer to two different areas of writing. The first refers to the relationship between a sentence’s subject and verb (active voice and passive voice). The second refers to the total “sound” of a writer’s style.

Selected bibliography

The following is a select listing of both fiction and nonfiction writers, past and present, whose works include: essays, news articles, novels, short stories, journals, biographies, histories, autobiographies, diaries, satire, and political treatises. Each of these writers presents ideas in original, thought-provoking, and enlightening ways. Our recommendation is that you read as many and as much of them as you can. The more you read, discuss, and/or analyze these writers and their work, the better prepared you will be for the AP English Language and Composition exam. And, there is another wondrous benefit. You will become much more aware of the marvelous world of ideas that surrounds you. We invite you to accept our invitation to this complex universe.

Personal Writing: Journals, Autobiographies, Diaries

Maya Angelou

Annie Dillard

Frederick Douglass

Lillian Hellman

Helen Keller

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Maxine Hong Kingston

Mary McCarthy

Samuel Pepys

Richard Rodriguez

May Sarton

Richard Wright

Malcolm X

Biographies and Histories

Walter Jackson Bate

James Boswell

Thomas Carlyle

Bruce Catton

Winston Churchill

Shelby Foote

George Trevelyan

Barbara Tuchman

Journalists and Essayists

Joseph Addison

Michael Arlen

Matthew Arnold

Francis Bacon

Russell Baker

Harold Bloom

G. K. Chesterton

Ta Nehisi Coates

Kenneth Clark

Joan Didion

Ellen Goodman

Pauline Kael

Garrison Keillor

John McPhee

N. Scott Momaday

Anna Quindlen

John Ruskin

Marjorie Sandor

Susan Sontag

Richard Steele

Maureen Dowd

Nora Ephron

Anne Fadiman

William Hazlett

John Holt

Paul Russell

Henry David Thoreau

Calvin Trillin

Eudora Welty

E. B. White

Paul Zimmer

Political Writing and Satire

Hannah Arendt

Simone de Beauvoir

W. E. B. DuBois

William F. Buckley

Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Jefferson

John Locke

Machiavelli

John Stuart Mill

Sir Thomas More

Lincoln Steffens

Jonathan Swift

Alexis de Tocqueville

T. H. White

Tom Wolfe

Writers Known for Their Fiction and Nonfiction

Charlotte Perkins

Zora Neale Hurston

Norman Mailer

Gilman George Orwell

Virginia Woolf

Naturalists, Scientists, Adventurers

Edward Abbey

Rachel Carson

Charles Darwin

Loren Eisley

Stephen Jay Gould

William Least Heat-Moon

Verlyn Klinkenborg

Barry Lopez

Peter Matthiessen

Margaret Mead

Carl Sagan

Websites

Literally thousands of websites are, in some way, related to the study of college-level English. We are not attempting to give you a comprehensive list of all these websites. What we want to do is to provide you with a list that is most relevant to your preparation and review for the AP English Language and Composition exam. You can decide which websites may be of interest and/or offer you special benefits.

Note: These websites were available and online at the time this book was revised. Please be aware that we cannot guarantee that a site you choose to explore will be operating when you go to that URL.

“After I found an AP chat room on the net, I felt a lot better knowing that there were other AP students out there I could talk to and share ideas and questions with. I know I’m not alone.”

—Tyler W., AP student

✵ Because this is an Advanced Placement exam you are preparing for, why not go to the source as your first choice: http://apcentral.collegeboard.com.

✵ McGraw-Hill has several sites that can be very helpful as you work your way through the AP English Language course and prepare for the exam in May: www.mhpracticeplus.com

✵ Dogpile: www.dogpile.com is a good search engine that finds topics via categories and other search engines.

✵ Search.com is one of the newest and best search engines that accesses the biggest of the search engines available at www.search.com.

✵ Bowling Green University Writer’s Lab: http://www.firelands.bgsu.edu/library/writing-lab.html is chock full of information.

✵ Purdue On-Line Writing Lab (OWL): https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/1/ is a helpful online writing center with a huge set of links.

✵ A+ Research and Writing: http://www.ipl.org/div/aplus/ is a comprehensive guide to writing research papers.

✵ A portal site that links to the best of library and research sites is available at www.libraryspot.com. It consists of three sections: libraries (academic, film, government, and so forth), reference desk (almanacs, biographies, dictionaries, and so forth), and reading room (books, journals, newspapers, magazines).

✵ www.americanrhetoric.com has political speeches and speeches from movies.

✵ For terms, exercises, tips, and rules from a primate with attitude, go to Grammar Bytes: http://chompchomp.com.

✵ Two useful sites that provide help with rhetorical and literary terms are: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/terms/index.html and http://humanities.byu.edu/rhetoric/Silva.htm

✵ You can compare coverage of major events in newspapers from around the world at www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages.

✵ A website that provides access to the world of arts and letters—including newspapers, literary magazines, and blogs—is: https://www.aldaily.com/.

Each of these websites will lead you to many more. Take the time to explore the various sites and make your own evaluations about their value to you. You might even decide to set up your own AP Language website, or chat room!

Notes