Rhetorical Terms
Terms
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- syllogism
- the basic form of deductive reasoning, in which a conclusion derives necessarily from proven or accepted premises For example: The roof always leaks when it rains (the major premise). It is raining (the minor premise). Therefore, the roof will leak (the conclusion).
- point of view
- the position of the writer in relation to the subject, depends on the writer's physical and psychological relation to the subject. More broadly can also mean the writer's particular mental stance or attitude.
- intensification
- indeed, in fact, of course, truly
- premise
- the generalization or assumption of which and argument is based See syllogism.
- thesis
- the main idea of a piece of writing, to which all other ideas and details relate The main idea is often stated in this sentence (or sentences), which asserts something about the subject and conveys the writer's purpose
- rational appeal
- In argumentative and persuasive writing, the appeal to readers' rational faculties - to their ability to reason logically - in order to win agreement or compel action.
- style
- the way something is said, as opposed to what is said and results primarily from a writer's characteristic word choices and sentence structures.
- spatial organization
- a pattern of organization that views an object, scene, or person by paralleling the way we normally scan things - for instance, top to bottom or near to far.
- tone
- the attitude toward the subject, and sometimes toward the audience and the writer's own self, expressed in choice of words and sentence structures as well as in what is said; serious, amuzed, angry, etc.
- unity
- the quality of effective writing that occurs when all the parts relate to the main idea and contribute to the writer's purpose
- slang
- words that are usually short-lived and that may not be understood by all readers, such as tanked for drunk, bread for money, and honcho for one in charge.
- simile
- a figure of speech that equates two unlike things with like or as: The crowd was restless, like bees in a hive.
- Time
- afterward, at last, earlier, later, meanwhile
- transitions
- links between sentences and paragraphs that relate ideas and thus contribute to clarity and smoothness
- rhetoric
- the art of using words effectively to communicate with an audience, or the study of the art word shifted to mean elegant language, and a version of that meaning persists in today's occasional use
- rhetorical question
- a question that is asked merely for effect and does not expect a reply
- persuasion
- the appeal to emotion to compel action
- Space
- above, below, beyond, farther away, here, nearby, opposite, there, to the right
- satire
- the combination of wit and criticism to mock or condemn human foolishness or evil to arouse readers to contempt or action, and thus it differs from comedy, which seeks simply to amuse; relies on irony
- summary or conclusion
- all in all, in brief, in conclusion, in short, in summary, therefore, thus
- addition or repetition
- again, also, finally, furthermore, in addition, moreover, next, that is
- contrast
- even so, however, in contrast, on the contrary, still, yet
- cause or effect
- a result, consequently, equally important, hence, then therefore, thus
- illustrations
- for example, for instance, specifically, that is
- symbol
- person, place or thing that represents an abstract quality or concept A red heart symbolizes love;
- repetition and restatement
- the careful use of the same words or close parallels to clarify meaning and tie sentences together
- comparison
- also, in the same way, likewise, similarly