Richard Sherry A Treatise of Schemes and Tropes (1550, 1555)

 

Richard Sherry's short treatise is the first rhetoric in English, appearing just a few years before Thomas Wilson's more comprehensive English rhetoric (1553). Though it appears to be solely a stylistic rhetoric, a dictionary of figures of speech, it in fact provides figures of "sentence" or thought; i.e., rules for the development of subject matter after the manner of Erasmus in the second half of his De copia verborum ac rerum. Sherry concludes the treatise with his translation of an oration by Erasmus, demonstrating how a shorter matter can be rhetorically amplified. A facsimile edition was published in 1961 (ed. Herbert W. Hildebrant; Gainesville, Florida: Scholars' Facsimiles & Reprints, 1961)

Outline: Introduction Elocution Evidence and Plainness Three Kinds of Style or Inditing Schemes and Figures Figures of Dianoias (of Thought) Figures of Lexeos (of Word) Figures of Diction Prothesis / Appositio Apheresis / Ablatio Epenthesis / Interpositio Syncope / Consicio Proparalepsis / Praessumpcio Apocope / Absissio Ectasis / Extensio Systole / Contractio Synolephe / Delecio Antisthecon / Littera pro littera, Transposicio Figures of Construction Prolepsis / Presumpcio Zeugma / Iunctio Presozeugma / Preiunctio Msozeugma / Media iunctio Hypozeugma / Post iunctio Diazeugma / Disiunctio Silepsis / Concepcio Epergesis / Appositio Hyperbaton / Transgressio Anastrophe / Reversio Hysterologia / Prepostera loquutio Tmesis / Dissectio Parenthesis / Interpositio Eclipsis / Defectus Antiptosis / Casus pro casu Faults Obscure Acyrologia / Improprietas Pleonasmus / Superabundancia Perissologia / Sermo superfluus Tautologia / Inutilis repeticio eiusdem Homiologia / Sermo ubique sui similis Amphibologia / Ambiguitas Periergia / Sedulitas superflus Macrologia Inordinate Tapinosis / Humiliatio Aschyrologia / Turpis loquutio Cacozelia / Mala affectatio Aschematiston / Male figuratum Cacosintheton / Male collocatum Soraismus / Cumulatio Barbarous Barbarismus Solecismus / Inconveniens structura Virtues Propriety Analogia / Proportio Tasis / Extensio Garnishing Sinthesis / Compsition Exornation Tropes Principal Tropes Metaphora / Translatio Catachresis / Abusio Metalepsis / Transsumptio Metonomia / Metonomya Synecdoche / Intellectio Antonomasia / Pronominacio Periphrasis / Circuicio Allegoria [Trope as an inversion of a word's meaning] Aenigma / Sermo obscurus Paremia / Adagium Ironia / Dissimulatio Sarcasmus / Amara irrisio Astysmus / urbanitas Mycterismus / Subsannatio Antiphrasis / Dictio contrarium significans Charientismus / Graciosa nugatio Rhetorical Figures Epanaphora / Repeticio Antistrophe / Conversio Symploce / Complexio Anadiplosis / Reduplicatio Epanodus / Traduccio Sinonimia / Nominis Communio Sinathrismus / Frequentacio Epiphonesis / Exclamatio Areia / Execracio Deesis / Obtestacio Euche / Votum Epiplexis / Increpacio Erotesis / Interrogacio Erotema / Raciocinatio Prosapodosis / Subiectio Antiphora / Tacite obiectioni responsio Aporia / Dubitatio Apophasis / Expeditio Epilogus / Conclusio Epitrope / Permissio Anacinosis / Communicacio Dialisis / Divisio Antitheton / Contentio Antithesis / Contrarium Colon / Membrum oracionis Dialyton / Articulus Isocolon / Compar Homioptoton / Similiter cadens Homoteleton / Similiter desinens Climax / Gradacio Orismus / Definicio Metabasis / Transicio Paralepsis / Occupatio Asindeton / Dissolutio Apostrophe / Aversio Anangeon / Necessum Anaclasis / Refractio Bomphiologia / Verborum bombus Miosis / Diminutio Liptote / Extenuatio Diasirmus / Elevacio Figures of Sentence Particio / Division / Distribucion rhethoricall Enumeracio of thynges that go before of the causes of effectes and conseqences Enargia / Evidence / Perspicuitie / Description rhetoricall Effiguracion / Description of a thing Prosopopeia / Description of a person Prosopopeia: Charactirismus / Effiction or pycture of the bodye or mynde Prosopopeia: Prosopographia Descripcion of a fained person Prosopopey Prosopopeia: Aetopeia Prosopopeia: Pathopeia Donysis / Intencion / Imaginacion Cictros / Commiseracion Prosopopeia: Dialogismus Prosopopeia: Mimisis Description of a Place Topotesia / Ficcion of a place / Astrothesiam Chronographia Amplificacio [Auxesis / Meiosis] Hyperbole Increase Comparison Proofs / Pistis artificial unartifical [list of proofs follows]