Top 5 Things an AP Lang Student Should Know: #5

#5 Vocabulary

Vocabulary is essential to proving your argument or thesis! You will use vocabulary for multiple choice assessments, annotations, rhetorical analyses, basic writing, etc... Become an expert at it!

However, some words may be confused with others due to...

1. Similar spelling
2. Similar definition

            or

3. You flat out don't get it...

...in which case...

http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=&section=&global=1&q=Derp#/d2ii68b
Seriously though, vocab really does make a big difference.
Here's an interim report of my grades (which I raised eventually)

I know, I know, I got a C+. But that's not the point. Look at the red highlights. Then look at the subject and grade. Makes sense why have a low grade, right? Motivate you enough to study it?
I would have uploaded those quizzes to show you the types of questions asked but I never got them back...


Another tip of advice with vocab, try not to use the obvious. It's really not that impressive. Unless you absolutely cannot think of anything else besides imagery, simile, alliteration...go ahead.
Sometimes, using different types of rhetorical devices can expose a new idea. You never know!
For instance, try using something better, like satire, irony, anything! At least SOMETHING better than imagery. That's just sad. Here's a funny comic kinda relevant to what I'm talking about.

http://hipsterhitler.com/comics/matter-of-time/
...well I thought it was amusing. This was, in my opinion, a hilarious, yet intellectual comic. It depicts Hitler as a hipster in a satirical way of both the past and present, also referencing to several events at the time pertaining to the time period. If you liked this, you should check out the website, it's filled with comics! (Link below comic) (Btw, I do not in any shape or form support Hitler or the Nazis.)


Top 10 Vocab Words that are often confused with each other.



1. Concession vs. Refutation- A concession is when you acknowledge other peoples' ideas and a refutation is flat-out rejecting those ideas. Often, a concession is made to later bring in a rebuttal, so they can destroy the other person's argument! >: )
      When you have a fight with someone, you could make a concession to his/her argument (to show that you are listening to their ideas, but not necessarily agreeing with them) and then refute it to make your own argument seem right and to weaken your opponents.

2. Euphemism vs. Innuendo - Basically what this is replacing an offensive word with a more subtle one. For example, instead of calling someone fat, you might call them "big-boned, fluffy, or chubby." These terms are a lot better ways of labeling someone who is a little overweight. See what I did there? A little euphemism!

And an innuendo is an indirect implication of something, often not good. You might have heard someone say to another (or to you), " You only get sick on Fridays. " This comment gives the hint that this person only seems to get sick on Fridays is skipping school, work, or whatever place he/she goes to.



3. Malapropism vs. Pun - Malapropism is when similar sounding words are use incorrectly, kind of like a pun, except malapropisms are unintentional, while puns are deliberate. You might say, "I need help with righting this speech" (Malapropism) and the comic below is an example of a pun...

And another bad pun

http://drawingboard.smackjeeves.com/archive/

4. Slippery Slope vs. Hasty Generalization
A hasty generalization is making a conclusion lacking any real evidence, really just a bunch of opinions. Slippery slope is another logical fallacy in which the start of one event leads to a chain reaction of others, i.e. A will lead to B, B to C, C to D, D to E, and so on so forth.



5. Pathos vs. Bathos
Pathos evokes pity, but bathos evokes insincere pity. Bathos is an excessive degree of pathos that it does the opposite effect of  repelling the audience instead of capturing sympathy. Bathos can be heard from everyday language, someone can complain, "I only had 3 hours of sleep, I woke up an hour late, I failed my math test, and then I fell down the stairs." No one wants to join you in your pity party.

Unlike bathos, pathos is genuine, like hearing the experience of a holocaust survivor. Pathos doesn't get any realer than that.


There is a ton of more vocab, but I decided to elaborate a little more so hopefully, you found this a little helpful. Heck, maybe you even knew them all! But seriously, study your vocab. You do that and you're a third way set for AP Lang :)