Rhetorical Devices Used by Speakers and Writers

• What is rhetoric? • Rhetoric is persuasive speech and writing• Rhetorical devices are elements used by speakers and

writers to effectively persuade their audience• They have a powerful effect on listeners/ readers

Parallelism• Writing structures that

are grammatically parallel helps the reader understand the points better because they flow more smoothly.

If there is anyone out there who still doubts…who still wonders…who still questions

"The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessing; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." — Winston Churchill

Hypophora• A common technique is

to start a speech with a hypophora, in which the speaker first asks a question and then answers it.

• "You ask, what is our policy? I will say: It is to wage war, by sea, land, and air, with all our might and with all the strength.." — Winston Churchill, 4 June 1940.

Repetition• Repetition can be

effective in creating a sense of structure and power. In both speech and literature, repeating small phrases can ingrain an idea in the minds of the audience.

• Yes, we can, to opportunity and prosperity. Yes, we can heal this nation. Yes, we can repair this world. Yes, we can.

Figurative Language

• Metaphor- Albert is a couch potato

• Simile- That hairstyle stands out like a sore thumb.

• Hyperbole- He snores like a grizzly bear with a head cold.

Tricolon

• A tricolon is a list of three, or a sentence in which there are three parts or clauses. The cumulative effect of three has a powerful effect on an audience.– Here, the backyards,

living rooms and front porches build a strong picture of “plain folks”

Juxtaposition• the act of positioning close together in order

to compare two ideas or concepts

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-I took the one less traveled byAnd that has made all the difference.” Robert Frost

Frost uses the two roads, representing two different decisions.

Rhetorical & Persuasive Appeals

• Ethos—appeal to ethics; asks the reader/listener to look favorably on the writer/speaker; stresses the writer/speaker’s intelligence, competence, fairness, morality, and other qualities desirable in a trustworthy leader.

• Ethos= ethics, character, credibility

--“I promise you, we as a people will get there.”

--“But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And, above all, I will ask you to join in the work of remaking this nation . . .”

Rhetorical & Persuasive Appeals• Logos—rational appeal; asks the readers to use their

intellects and powers of reasoning. It relies on established conventions of logic and evidence.

• Logos= facts, logic, reasoning

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury: we have not only the fingerprints, the lack of an alibi, a clear motive, and an expressed desire to commit the robbery… We also have video of the suspect breaking in. The case could not be more open and shut."

Rhetorical & Persuasive Appeals

• Pathos—an emotional appeal; asks readers to respond out of their beliefs, values, or feelings. It inspires, affirms, frightens, angers.

• Pathos= emotions, shared values

-“Tonight we proved one more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.”

-“So tonight, let us ask ourselves—if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what changes will they see? What progress will we have made?”

Practice

• “I’m a doctor and I’ve studied obesity in children for ten years.”

Practice

• Premise: Education is important.

• One of the key factors in quality education is the teacher.

• We should try to recruit and keep the best teachers in our state.

• Many teachers in our state leave for higher paying jobs in Wyoming and Nevada.

• If teacher salaries in Utah were higher, equal to the wages in Wyoming and Nevada, perhaps some of those teachers would not leave.

• We should raise teacher salaries in order to retain good

teachers and increase the quality of education.

Practice

• “If we don’t spend more money on education, we’ll be left behind as China becomes the most powerful economy.

Practice

• The anti-smoking movement has never been louder or more prominent. Yet all signs suggest that among the young the anti-smoking message is backfiring. Between 1993 and 1997, the number of college students who smoke jumped 32 percent. Since 1988, in fact, the total number of teen smokers in the United States has risen an extraordinary 73 percent.

Practice

• In our culture, we value education and the role of education in the American dream.

Practice

• If we don’t spend more money on the war on terror, terrorists will come to our town.