Literary Terms Lightning
When a sentence runs over from one line to the next without terminal punctuation, accelerating the pace.
What is enjambment?
“The wind whispered through the trees.”
What is Personification?
This refers to the logical progression of ideas throughout the essay.
What is Line of Reasoning?
Read the following brief passage:
The dusk settles softly on the lake’s still face,
A mirror dimmed by time’s unyielding hand;
The trees lean close, as if to leave no trace
Of all the moments they cannot command.
A single bird breaks silence with its cry,
Then disappears into the darkening air;
And though the world seems paused, it hurries by,
Unseen, beneath the calm it seems to wear.
What is the primary theme?
A. Beauty of nature
B. Stillness of time
C. Change beneath apparent calm
D. Loneliness
What is C. Change beneath apparent calm?
How long per FRQ?
What is 40 minutes?
A literary device characterized by the repetition of hissing or hushing sounds ("sibilants") in close proximity, typically involving consonants like "s," "sh," "z," "ch," and soft "c"
What is sibilance?
“My thoughts are a tangled web.”
What is Metaphor?
What are two of the best ways to organize paragraphs for the Poetry and Prose essays?
What is "organize by complexity (separate paragraphs for each side of the complexity) AND chronological insight?
Read the following passage:
The dusk settles softly on the lake’s still face,
A mirror dimmed by time’s unyielding hand;
The trees lean close, as if to leave no trace
Of all the moments they cannot command.
A single bird breaks silence with its cry,
Then disappears into the darkening air;
And though the world seems paused, it hurries by,
Unseen, beneath the calm it seems to wear.
“Time’s unyielding hand” is an example of:
A. Simile
B. Personification
C. Irony
D. Hyperbole
What is B. Personification?
What should you do first when reading a prompt?
What is identify what the question is asking (so you can ANSWER the PROMPT!)
A statement that seems contradictory but reveals a truth.
What is a Paradox?
“She ran like the wind.”
What is Simile?
What is wrong with this thesis statement?
In "The Rock Eaters," Peynado illustrates the complex experience of returning home for the narrator.
What is "thesis did not define the complexity"?
This thesis would NOT earn the thesis point because it does not Answer the Prompt!
Read the following passage:
Mrs. Alvarez prided herself on routine. Each morning, she arranged her desk with meticulous care, aligning papers as though their order might impose clarity upon the day. Yet today, her hands faltered. The letter... creased, unfamiliar... rested at the center of her otherwise perfect arrangement. She had not opened it. Instead, she adjusted the pens once more, as if their symmetry might delay what she already feared to know.
What best describes Mrs. Alvarez’s state of mind?
A. Confident
B. Anxious
C. Excited
D. Indifferent
What is B. Anxious?
True or False: When writing your response for FRQ 3, you need to use one of the books that's on the recommendation list.
What is False?
A rhetorical device where a speaker directly addresses an absent person, an inanimate object, or an abstract concept as if it were present and capable of understanding
What is Apostrophe?
“The silence was deafening.”
What is Oxymoron?
What is wrong with this conclusion: “In conclusion, the author shows that life is hard.”
Strong Answer: Remove fluff + be specific
Example: The author reveals that personal growth often emerges through sustained hardship (with XYZ characters or whatever topic of the prompt!).
Read the following passage:
Mrs. Alvarez prided herself on routine. Each morning, she arranged her desk with meticulous care, aligning papers as though their order might impose clarity upon the day. Yet today, her hands faltered. The letter... creased, unfamiliar... rested at the center of her otherwise perfect arrangement. She had not opened it. Instead, she adjusted the pens once more, as if their symmetry might delay what she already feared to know.
The letter primarily functions to:
A. Show her routine
B. Introduce conflict
C. Describe her job
D. Reveal setting
What is B. Introduce conflict?
You realize halfway through your essay that your argument is weak or unclear. What is the BEST course of action?
A. Erase everything and restart
B. Keep writing and hope it improves
C. Refine your thesis in the next paragraph and align your evidence to it
D. Ignore the thesis and focus only on evidence
What is C. Refine your thesis in the next paragraph and align your evidence to it?
AP readers reward coherence, not perfection. Adjusting your line of reasoning mid-essay is a strong move. Remember what we've talked about! You've got this. The most important thing is really the line of reasoning!
A dramatic, intended pause in the middle of a line, used to break rhythm or create emphasis.
What is Caesura?
“The crown will decide the matter.”
What is Metonymy?
(Metonymy is a figure of speech where a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with it, rather than its literal name. It is used to add vividness, creativity, or conciseness to language by substituting a related term (e.g., "the Crown" for a monarch, "Hollywood" for the film industry).)
A. Use large vocabulary words
B. Position the argument within a broader context
C. Explore a nuanced argument
D. Explore tensions that are evident throughout the passage.
What is A (A large vocabulary won't get you far if you don't have a strong argument! It's best to aim for the 4 in E & C vs. that "unicorn point!")
Read the following passage:
JAMES: You always said honesty mattered most.
LILA: And you always said timing mattered more.
JAMES: So now you choose silence?
LILA: I choose what keeps things from breaking.
JAMES: Or what keeps you from being blamed?
(Pause.)
LILA: Sometimes those are the same.
Lila’s final line suggests:
A. She is confident
B. She wants to leave
C. She is unaware
D. She is conflicted but justified
What is D. She is conflicted but justified?
Which of the following strategies is MOST effective for earning a higher FRQ score?
A. Clearly connecting each piece of evidence back to a central argument
B. Using advanced vocabulary in every sentence
C. Writing as much as possible, regardless of clarity
D. Summarizing the plot in detail
What is A. Clearly connecting each piece of evidence back to a central argument?