SAT_ Rhetorical/stylistic devices

1. Ethos – or appeal to authority aiming to establish the credibility of a speaker

or source by citing their words. For example, a writer might say “As a veterinarian…” or
“a Harvard University study…” or “a constitutional scholar….”
2. Pathos – or appeal to the reader’s emotions. They’re trying to make you
FEEL something. Angry, perhaps. Guilty. Sad. Jealous. The list goes on…
3. Logos – or appeal to logic. When the author makes logical connections
between ideas, that’s logos. IF this happens, THEN this happens. Things like that.
4. Anecdote – A short personal story.
5. Allusion – A reference to a book, movie, song, etc.
6. Metaphor – Saying one thing IS another thing; using a concrete notion
abstractly
7. Simile – Saying one thing is LIKE another thing. – usually with: as, like, likely
8. Personification – Giving a nonhuman thing human quality.
9. Hyperbole – Exaggeration
10. Understatement – Making something sound much less than it is.
11. Symbolism – One thing represents something else.
12. Imagery – Language that appeals to the senses, most often visual
13. Diction – Word choice. Diction can be HIGH and fancy or LOW and informal.
Writers can also use specific words for their DENOTATIVE (dictionary definition)
meanings or their CONNOTATIVE (associative) meanings. It’s important to consider
these things if you choose to analyze word choice. Diction defines the tone of the
author.
14. Slang – A type of informal diction, often regional.
15. Jargon – Specialized language.
16. Alliteration – Several words that share the same first letter.
17. Assonance – Repeated vowel sounds.
18. Syntax – Sentence structure.
19. Repetition – Mentioning a word or phrase several times. ANAPHORA refers to
lines beginning with the same word or phrase.
20. Parallelism – Writing constructed in a similar, symmetrical manner.
21. Juxtaposition – Holding two things up to compare or contrast them.
22. Antithesis – Mentioning one thing and its opposite.
23. Analogy – A comparison between two things, typically to explain function.
Usually one thing is more complicated and the other is simple and common.
24. Inclusive Language – Words that make the reader feel part of a group. “We” is
an obvious one.
25. Tone – The way the author’s voice sounds. Is he silly? Sarcastic? Desperate? Etc.
26. Humor – Jokes and funny language.
27. Irony – Situational irony: the opposite thing happens from what is expected.
Dramatic irony: The reader knows more than the speaker or those being spoken about.
Verbal irony: Saying one thing and meaning the opposite.
28. Loaded Words–Loaded words is the use of connotative language to sway the
listeners emotions
29. Slippery Slope– Slippery Slope suggests that if one small change is made it will
automatically lead to disastrous consequences
30. Straw Man– Straw Man fallacy occurs when an argument is misrepresented or
exaggerated in order to make it easier to attack.
31. Bandwagon– Bandwagon occurs when a course of action is done by many and
there for is right or acceptable
32. Circular Reasoning (begging the question)– The conclusion is presented in the
premise
33. Ad Hominem–[towards the man] Attacking an opponent’s personal qualities in
order to undermine his/her argument