1. Primary Terms and Concepts
Terms You Must Understand in Advanced Placement and Composition
Rhetorical Analysis

2. Diction: choice of words
Diction – A speaker’s (or author’s) word choice.
Typically divided into two components: vocabulary and syntax.

3. Syntax: arrangement of words
A component of diction; the arrangement – the ordering, grouping and placement of words within a sentence.
Not the same thing as grammar
Syntax (order, grouping, and placement of words) works with vocabulary (word choice) to create diction

4. Syntax Devices
Parallelism: Similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases, or clauses
“Let both sides explore…Let both sides seek to invoke…Let both sides unite to heed…” John F. Kennedy
Juxtaposition: Placement of two things closely together to emphasize similarities or differences
“The nations of Asia and Africa are moving at jet-like speed toward gaining political independence, but we still creep at horse-and-buggy pace toward gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter. Martin Luther King, Jr.

5. Syntax Devices
Antithesis: Opposition, or contrast, of ideas or words in a parallel construction.
“(W)e shall…support any friend, oppose any foe…” John F. Kennedy
Also take note of kinds of sentences – simple, compound, complex, imperative, questions

6. Imagery
The actual language that a writer uses to convey a visual picture or representation of a sensory experience
Look for the writer’s or speaker’s use of detail
Use of figures of speech, often to express abstract ideas in a vivid and innovative way.

7. Imagery: Use of Figurative Language
Simile: Figure of speech comparing two things using “like” or “as”
“And the river was there – fascinating – deadly – like a snake.” Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, p. 74
Metaphor: Figure of speech comparing two things without using “like” or “as”
“…a mighty big river, that you could see on the map, resembling an immense snake…” Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, p. 71

8. Imagery: Use of Figurative Language
Metonymy: Figure of speech in which something is represented by another thing that is related to or emblematic of it
The pen is mightier than the sword
Personification: Attribution of a lifelike quality to an inanimate object of idea.
“…death skulking in the air, in the water, in the bush…” Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, p. 69

9. Imagery: Use of Figurative Language
Hyperbole: Deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or to produce a comic or ironic effect; an overstatement to make a point
“My first and last name together generally served the same purpose as a high brick wall.” Firoozeh Dumas

10. Tone
Tone – The attitude of the author toward the reader or the subject matter of a literary work.
An author’s tone may be serious, playful, mocking, angry, commanding, apologetic and so forth
Conveyed by the writer’s or speaker’s stylistic and rhetorical devices

11. Shift A shift can occur in Tone Mood purpose Point of view Diction
Syntax
Sentence structure
Transitions often indicate a shift in tone, mood, or purpose

12. Denotation
A word's precise, dictionary definition is its denotation.

13. Connotation
The associations that a word creates due to literary or cultural context is its connotation.
Some words can have either a positive or negative connotation depending on how they are used. For example, the word "thrifty" can describe someone who is stingy, or someone who spends money carefully. Therefore, you will be expected to use the tone of the passage to determine the connotation of the word.

14. Point of View
First-person point of view is in use when a character narrates the story with I-me-my-mine in his or her speech.
Second-person point of view, in which the author uses you and your, is rare; authors seldom speak directly to the reader. When you encounter this point of view, pay attention. Why? The author has made a daring choice, probably with a specific purpose in mind. Most times, second-person point of view draws the reader into the story, almost making the reader a participant in the action.
Third-person point of view is that of an outsider looking at the action. The writer may choose third-person omniscient, in which the thoughts of every character are open to the reader, or third-person limited, in which the reader enters only one character's mind, either throughout the entire work or in a specific section. Third-person limited differs from first-person because the author's voice, not the character's voice, is what you hear in the descriptive passages