SK SSA ELA 10 flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Main idea

The central claim a whole passage supports. It cannot be deleted without changing the passage's meaning, unlike individual supporting details.

Objective summary

A brief restatement of a text's central ideas in neutral language, with no personal opinion, no new information, and coverage proportional to the original.

Theme versus topic

A topic is a single subject word such as loyalty; a theme is a full statement about that subject which the entire text supports.

Text structure signals

Words that reveal how ideas are organized, such as because and as a result for cause-effect, whereas for contrast, and finally for chronology.

Supported inference

A conclusion drawn from at least one stated detail plus logical reasoning. If only outside knowledge supports it, it is not a valid inference.

Internal versus external conflict

Internal conflict occurs within a character's mind, such as guilt or doubt; external conflict pits a character against another person, nature, or society.

Author's purpose

The reason a text was written - to inform, explain, persuade, or entertain - inferred from structure, evidence type, and word choice.

Claim–evidence–warrant

An argument structure in which a claim is stated, textual evidence is cited, and the warrant explains how that evidence proves the claim.

Tone versus mood

Tone is the writer's attitude toward the subject, revealed through diction; mood is the emotional atmosphere the text creates in the reader.

Dramatic irony

A gap between knowledge: the audience or reader knows something important that a character does not, creating tension or humor.

Situational irony

An outcome that sharply reverses what was expected, as when a fire station burns down or a safety expert is injured.

Unreliable narrator

A narrator whose account is compromised by self-justification, contradiction, limited knowledge, or bias, requiring the reader to read against the text.

Counterargument

A fair statement of an opposing interpretation, followed by evidence showing what that reading fails to account for.

Historical lens

An interpretive approach asking how the text's setting, power structures, class, or cultural moment shapes its characters and claims.

Formalist lens

An interpretive approach that focuses on the text itself - structure, imagery, syntax, and pattern - rather than on the author's life or history.

Arguable thesis

A specific, defensible claim that previews a line of reasoning. A statement of established fact cannot serve as a thesis.

Body paragraph structure

A topic sentence, then evidence, then explanation of that evidence, then a link connecting the paragraph to the overall thesis.

Showing versus telling

Narrative technique that conveys emotion through action, dialogue, and sensory detail instead of naming the feeling directly.

Concession transition

A word such as admittedly or although that grants a valid opposing point before the writer returns to the main claim.

Sentence variety

Deliberately mixing sentence lengths and opening structures so emphasis falls where intended and prose avoids monotony.

Revision order

A sequence for improving drafts: content and organization first, then paragraph flow, then sentence style, then proofreading.

Comma splice

Two independent clauses joined by only a comma. Fix with a period, a semicolon, or a comma plus coordinating conjunction.

Restrictive clause

A clause essential to identifying the noun it modifies; it takes no commas, and removing it changes the sentence's meaning.

Dangling modifier

An introductory phrase whose implied subject is not the subject that follows the comma, producing an illogical statement.

Parallel structure

Matching grammatical form across items in a list or comparison, such as all gerunds or all infinitive phrases.

Its versus it's

Its is the possessive form showing ownership; it's is a contraction of it is or it has, never a possessive.

Subject–verb agreement

The verb must match the true subject in number, ignoring prepositional phrases that sit between the subject and the verb.

Connotation

The associations a word carries beyond its literal meaning, such as the difference between inexpensive and cheap.

Active listening

Demonstrating comprehension by paraphrasing a speaker's claim and asking a follow-up question that builds on what was said.

Presentation structure

A hook, a stated purpose, two or three supported points, and a closing that returns to the purpose and answers the opening.

Source credibility

Judging a source by author expertise, publication venue, date, and whether its evidence can be independently verified.

Media framing

How camera angle, music, editing, and selective omission shape an audience's interpretation of represented events.