<p>I got huge list of philosophical terms I have to memorize for AP Lang. It's my summer homework (just found out). </p>
<p>Stand</a> to Reason: 100 Basic Philosophical Terms</p>
<p>Will memorizing the list actually help me on the AP Lang test?</p>
<p>What is this, I don’t even…</p>
<p>To be bluntly honest, there are only about 15 words on that list that might be of use to you in the exam. </p>
<p>If you really want to prepare yourself for AP Lang, practice you writing, expand your vocabulary, and familiarize yourself with the test format. The writing practice is imperative for the AP Lang essays, so you might want to spend a good deal of time polishing your essay-writing abilities. Familiarizing yourself with the test format will help you in the MC section and take some stress off your shoulders, having an extensive vocabulary will also aid you in both the MC and Essay.</p>
<p>These terms are really not very literary at all, and your teacher probably wants you to memorize this list in order to drop some of these buzzwords in your essay to give it a prima facie appearance of credibility. This type of superficial writing is probably frowned upon by AP Lang readers.</p>
<p>As stated before, there is only about fifteen words that would even work properly and to your benefit for the AP exam. Literally, half of those were common sense while the other half wouldn’t even make effective additions to an essay. I doubt AP readers would advocate dropping in words like those just to spice up an essay.</p>
<p>My thoughts exactly … lol :p.</p>
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<p>And guess what - there’s more - here’s another list of terms our teacher wants us to be “familiar” with (but not memorize, thank God). It’s more of the same philosophy stuff … </p>
<p><a href=“http://www2.semo.edu/philosophy/courses/ui352/glossary.htm[/url]”>http://www2.semo.edu/philosophy/courses/ui352/glossary.htm</a></p>
<p>God knows what this AP Lang teacher is thinking. Thank goodness I have a AP Lang prep book to look at right now.</p>
<p>Yeah, still essentially useless. The only real effective thing you could write about, and these aren’t even on those lists, is philosophical constructs such as modernism and romanticism, feminism and masculinity, light and dark, internal and external, etc. Things like that. And that’s only on the RA FRQ.</p>
<p>I think a lot of people, teachers included, overestimate how many rhetorical/literary terms and such are used on the test. None of these definitions will help you nearly as much as just thesis-writing practice, reading, and expanding your vocabulary. For the test at least, you won’t need the list. I’m sorry you have to memorize it though.</p>