English Language and Composition Exam AP English Language and Composition Close Reading 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When a close reader identifies 'polysyndeton,' they note the author uses:
- Deliberate omission of conjunctions between list items
- Repeated use of conjunctions between every item in a list or series (Correct answer)
- A single conjunction placed only at the end of a long list
- Punctuation instead of conjunctions to separate ideas
Correct answer: Repeated use of conjunctions between every item in a list or series
Polysyndeton adds conjunctions ('and,' 'or,' 'but') between every element in a series, creating a sense of accumulation or deliberateness.
Question 2: An author writes: 'She was no Einstein, but she solved the problem.' The reference to 'Einstein' is an example of:
- Personification
- Allusion (Correct answer)
- Synecdoche
- Litotes
Correct answer: Allusion
Allusion is an indirect reference to a well-known person, event, or work; invoking Einstein alludes to his reputation for genius.
Question 3: A student notices that a passage uses the active voice ('The city demolished the building') rather than passive voice ('The building was demolished'). What is the most significant rhetorical difference?
- Active voice hides the agent responsible for the action; passive voice reveals it
- Active voice assigns clear responsibility to an agent; passive voice can obscure who acted (Correct answer)
- Passive voice is always more authoritative and formal than active voice
- Active voice is used only in personal narratives, not in arguments
Correct answer: Active voice assigns clear responsibility to an agent; passive voice can obscure who acted
Active voice foregrounds the actor and their responsibility, while passive voice can strategically avoid naming who is accountable.
Question 4: In AP Language analysis, 'kairos' refers to:
- The logical structure underlying a written argument
- The opportune moment or context that makes a rhetorical act especially effective or timely (Correct answer)
- The emotional appeals used to move an audience
- The speaker's demonstrated expertise on a topic
Correct answer: The opportune moment or context that makes a rhetorical act especially effective or timely
Kairos is the Greek concept of rhetorical timing—delivering the right message to the right audience at the right moment.
Question 5: A writer structures an argument as follows: all metals conduct electricity; copper is a metal; therefore, copper conducts electricity. This is an example of:
- Inductive reasoning moving from specific cases to a general rule
- Deductive reasoning applying a general principle to a specific case (Correct answer)
- Circular reasoning that restates the premise as the conclusion
- Abductive reasoning inferring the most likely explanation
Correct answer: Deductive reasoning applying a general principle to a specific case
This is a classic syllogism: a general major premise, a specific minor premise, and a logical conclusion—the structure of deductive reasoning.
Question 6: When a passage uses 'epistrophe,' the author is:
- Repeating the same word at the beginning of successive clauses
- Repeating the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses (Correct answer)
- Inverting the normal word order of a sentence for emphasis
- Interrupting a sentence with a parenthetical aside
Correct answer: Repeating the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses
Epistrophe (also called 'epiphora') places the repeated word or phrase at the end of successive clauses, creating emphasis through closure.
Question 7: A close reader encounters a passage in which the author describes their opponent's view charitably and accurately before critiquing it. This approach is known as:
- Straw man argumentation
- The Rogerian or steelmanning approach to argument (Correct answer)
- Ad hominem reasoning
- Circular reasoning
Correct answer: The Rogerian or steelmanning approach to argument
Presenting the opposing view at its strongest before critique (steelmanning) or seeking common ground (Rogerian method) builds credibility and avoids the straw man fallacy.
English Language and Composition Exam AP English Language and Composition Close Reading 5
When a close reader identifies 'polysyndeton,' they note the author uses: