An Introduction to Rhetorical Analysis

AP Language and Composition An Introduction to Rhetorical Analysis

Begin with this premise: Every writing is an argument. The argument has a message, a meaning. At times this meaning is (apparently) short, simple, and sweet; at other times it is more complex. Meaning, to put it simply, is “what it (the argument) says.” Yet each argument – each what – must be delivered somehow, transferred from thought to symbol –verbal, written, graphic, picture – so that each “what” must be presented in a “how.” Let the what be content, the how the form (but show me from without content or content without form: again, we create ideas that help us understand, separating two things that are never really apart. Strange, isn’t it?). With this in mind (and its profound implications about the way we perceive and create reality), let’s enter the formal AP world.

Or, let’s put it another way. A writing is made up of various PARTS that contribute to a WHOLE. The parts are the features of language (beyond individual letters – words, sentences, paragraphs), these are the formal techniques (in this case, RHETORICAL DEVICES) which you need to learn.

How do I look at language itself? An Overview

In parts. You will become attuned to many different features of language during the course, and once you know what to look for, these features will be second nature. Soon you will just notice instead of actively looking as you read. But for now, start with the following four categories as listed in the Teacher's Guide:

1. Diction (word choice): What kind of words does the author use? Are the formal and learned, informal,
colloquial, slang or nonstandard? Do they emphasize denotative precision—as in a scientific description—or connotative evocativeness? Are there puns or wordplay that indicate an intent other than that conveyed by the meaning?

2. Syntax: What sentence structures does the writer use frequently, and how do these structures encode meaning? Are the sentences in a passage primarily simple, primarily compound, primarily complex? Is there extensive subordination? How do these structures help control and pace a reader's response?

3. Structure: What is the order of ideas presented in the text? Does there seem to be noticeable explicit or implicit sections? How are these parts connected? How would you characterize the organizational pattern of the text? How do the parts contribute to the whole?

4. Rhetorical Devices: Does the writer use any rhetorical devices—parallelism, repetition, sound devices, allusion, diction, imagery, syntax, detail, figurative language—to underline or supplement meaning? How do these devices affect the reader?

5. Tone: What, overall, is the effect of the passage? What tone is present? How do all the components of the passage—paraphrasable content, syntax, structure, rhetorical devices, diction—combine to help create that tone?

Illustration of Concept through Metaphor (a rhetorical device, by the way)

The lines between purposes, strategies, and devices are blurry. To accomplish a rhetorical purpose, a writer develops a rhetorical strategy, and then uses rhetorical devices to accomplish the goal. Consider shelter as an example. If your purpose in constructing a shelter is to protect you from inclement weather, one strategy for doing this might be to build a house (other strategies might involve a tent or a cave, for instance). Deuces would be the choices that you make as you build the house, such as whether to use wood or bricks, the number and location of doors and windows, and so on.

In the same way, to achieve purpose in writing you need a strategy and devices. To use a more
literary example, when arguing to persuade the world that Americans deserved to be independent from
England (rhetorical purpose), the writers of the Declaration of Independence refused to recognize
Great Britain's legislative authority (rhetorical strategy). To achieve this in their prose, the writers
used syntax (rhetorical device) that presented all Americans as adhering to one idea ("We the
People ... ") and diction (rhetorical device) that affirmed their right to be independent ("self-
evident" and "endowed by their Creator").

Terminology Notes

The rhetorical purpose is the author’s thesis, main point, argument and/or position.
The rhetorical strategy is the overall “game plan” through which the author intends to persuade the reader of his or her rhetorical purpose. Thus, the rhetorical strategy usually employs several different rhetorical devices.
A rhetorical device is any tool the author uses to convey his or her rhetorical purpose.

RHETORICAL DEVICES

MODE

As you read any text (twice), you should identify the mode or modes present. Every piece of writing employs at least one mode; many of the writings we look at employ several modes each, of course, to achieve a certain rhetorical purpose. Please note that the following are not definitions. They are examples.

Narration "I was seven years old when I first became aware of the terrible power of guilt. For piling our toys into a box, Mother rewarded my brother and me with five shiny pennies. If I had ten pennies instead of five, I could have bought a gingerbread man with raisin eyes and sugar-frosted hair."
Description Never before had Pedro experienced such a depth of despair and such a sense of isolation. He began to avoid those nearest to him, returning their friendly greetings with rough and indifferent replies. Often he sat in his room staring vacantly into space with hollow eyes. His hands were cold and clammy most of the time; yet his forehead burned hot with a mysterious fever.
Example Seneca once said, "Every guilty person is his own hangman." The truth of this observation can be illustrated by the lives of countless villains. Once such is Macbeth, from Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name. At the instigation of his wife, Macbeth kills the king of Scotland and usurps his throne - an act of treachery for which Macbeth and his wife suffer torments of guilt.
Definition Guilt is the remorse that comes from an awareness of having done something wrong. The origin of guilt is psychological. From childhood, we have all been conditioned by family and society to act within defined standards of reasonableness and decency.
Comparison and Contrast Although the first two words may seem to share some connotations, guilt is not a synonym for blame. Guilt must be felt; blame must be assessed. Guilt implies self-reproach that comes from an internal consciousness of wrong. Blame hints at fault that has been externally assessed.
Division and Classification The Bible identifies three kinds of guilt: guilt of the unpardonable sin, redeemable guilt, and guilt of innocence. First, the guilt of the unpardonable sin...Second, redeemable guilt is guilt that can be erased...Finally, the guilt of innocence is the guilt that Jesus bore...
Causal Analysis Guilt is caused by the failure of the will. The human mind, according to Freudian theory, is delicately balanced between the drive for instant gratification that comes for the id, and the desire for regulation and postponement that originates in the superego, which is sometimes identified with what we call he conscience.

DICTION (Choice of Words)—Describe diction by considering the following:

Words may be monosyllabic (one syllable in length) or polysyllabic (more than one syllable in length). The higher the ratio of polysyllabic words, the more difficult the content.
Words may be mainly colloquial (slang), informal (conversational), formal (literary), or old-fashioned.
Words may be mainly denotative (containing an exact meaning) or connotative (containing a suggested meaning).
Words may be concrete (specific) or abstract (general).
Words may be euphonious (pleasant sounding), e.g. butterfly, or cacophonous (harsh sounding), e.g., pus.

Words That Describe DICTION

Students often need to develop a vocabulary that describes language. Different from tone, these words describe the force or quality of the diction, images, and details. These words qualify how the work is written, not the attitude or tone.

jargon	pedantic	poetic
vulgar	euphemistic	moralistic
scholarly	pretentious	slang
insipid	sensuous	idiomatic
precise	exact	concrete
esoteric	learned	cultured
connotative	symbolic	picturesque
plain	simple	homespun
literal	figurative	provincial
colloquial	bombastic	trite
artificial	abstruse	obscure
detached	grotesque	precise
emotional	concrete	exact

Note: Never, never, never (and we mean, never) write “The author uses diction.” It is impossible to write without using diction. Instead, write something like: “The author’s colloquial diction creates a conversational, informal tone that encourages the reader to relax and trust.”

SYNTAX

Describe the sentence structure by considering the following:

Examine the sentence length- Are the sentences telegraphic (shorter than five words in length), short (approximately five words in length), medium (approximately eighteen words in length), or long and involved (thrity words or more in length)? Does the sentence length fit the subject matter; what variety of lengths are present? Why is the sentence length effective?
Examine sentence patterns. Some elements to be considered are: A declarative (assertive) sentence makes a statement, e.g., The king is sick. An imperative sentence gives a command, e.g., Off with their heads. An interrogative sentence asks a question, e.g., Why is the kings sick? An exclamatory sentence makes and exclamation, e.g., The king is dead!

A simple sentence contains one subject and one verb, e.g., The singer bowed to her adoring audience. A compound sentence contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinate conjunction (and, but, or), or by a semicolon, e.g., The singer bowed to the audience, but she sang no encores. A complex sentence contains an independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses, e.g., You said that you would tell the truth. A compound-complex sentence contains two or more principal clauses and one or more subordinate clauses, e.g., The singer owed while the audience applauded, but she sang no encores.

A loose sentence makes complete sense if brought to a close before the actual ending, e.g., We reached Edmonton/that morning/after a turbulent flight/and some exciting experiences. A periodic sentence makes sense only when the end of the sentence is reached, e.g., That morning, after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, we reached Edmonton.

In a balanced sentence, the phrases or clauses balance each other by virtue of their likeness or structure, meaning, and/or length, e.g., He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.

Natural order of a sentence involves constructing a sentence so the subject comes before the predicate, e.g., Oranges grow in California. Inverted order of a sentence (sentence inversion) involves constructing a sentence so the predicate comes before the subject, e.g., In California grow oranges. This device reverses normal sentence patterns to create an emphatic or rhythmic effect. Split order of a sentence divides the predicate into two parts with the subject coming in the middle, e.g., In California oranges grow.

Juxtaposition is a poetic and rhetorical device which normally unassociated ideas, words, or phrases are placed next to one another, creating an effect of surprise and with, e.g., The apparition of those faces in the crowd;/Petals on a wet, black bough (In a Station of the Metro by Ezra Pound).

Parallel structure (parallelism) refers to a grammatical or structural similarity between sentences or parts of a sentence. It involves an arrangement of words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs so that elements or equal importance are equally developed and similarly phrased, e.g., He was walking, running, and jumping for joy.

Repetition is a device in which words, sounds, and ideas are used more than once for the purpose of enhancing rhythm and creating emphasis, e.g., government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth (Address at Gettysburg by A. Lincoln).

A rhetorical question is a question which expects no answer. It is used to draw attention to a point and is generally stronger than a direct statement, e.g., If Mr. Ferchoff is always fair, as you have said, why did he refuse to listen to Mrs. Baldwin's arguments?

Examine the sentence beginnings. Is there a good variety or does a pattern emerge?
Examine the arrangement of ideas in a sentence. Are they set out in a special way for a purpose?
Examine the arrangement of ideas in a paragraph to see if there is evidence of any pattern or structure.

TREATMENT of SUBJECT MATTER

Describe the author’s treatment of the subject matter by considering the following. Has the author been:

Subjective? Are his conclusions based upon opinions; are they rather personal in nature?
Objective? Are his conclusions based upon facts: are they impersonal or scientific?
Supportive of his main idea? If so, how did he support his claims? Did he: state his opinions; report his experience; report observations; refer to statements made by experts; use statistical data?

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

Alliteration is the practice of beginning several consecutive or neighboring words with the same sound, e.g., The twisting trout twinkled below.
Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in a series of words, e.g., the words "cry" and "side" have the same vowel sound and so are said to be in assonance.
Consonance is the repetition of a consonant sound within a series of words to produce a harmonious effect, e.g., And each slow dusk a drawing-down on blinds. The "d" sound is in consonance. as well, the "s" sound is also in consonance.
Simile is a comparison of two different things or ideas through the use of the words like or as. It is definitely stated comparison, where the poet says one thing is like another, e.g., The warrior fought like a lion.
Metaphor is a comparison without the use of like or as. The poet states that one thing is another. It is usually a comparison between something that is real or concrete and something that is abstract, e.g., Life is but a dream.
Personification is a kind of metaphor which gives inanimate objects or abstract ideas human characteristics, e.g., The wind cried in the dark.
Onomatopoeia (Imitative Harmony) is the use of words in which the sounds seem to resemble the sounds they describe, e.g., hiss, buzz, bang. when onomatopoeia is used on an extended scale in a poem, it is called imitative harmony.
Hyperbole is a deliberate, extravagant, and often outrageous exaggeration. It may be used either for serious or comic effect; e.g., The shot that was heard 'round the world.
Understatement (Meiosis) is the opposite of hyperbole. It is a kind of irony which deliberately represents something as much less than it really is, e.g., I could probably manage to survive on a salary of two million dollars per year.
Paradox is a statement which contradicts itself. It may seem almost absurd. Although it may seem to be at odds with ordinary experience, it usually turns out to have a coherent meaning, and reveals a truth which is normally hidden, e.g., The more you know, the more you know you don't know (Socrates).
Oxymoron is a form of paradox which combines a pair of contrary terms into a single expression. This combination usually serves the purpose of shocking the reader into awareness, e.g., sweet sorrow, wooden nickel.
Pun is a play on words which are identical or similar in sound but which have sharply diverse meanings. Puns may have serious as well as humorous uses, e.g., When Mercutio is bleeding to death in Romeo and Juliet, he says to his friends, "Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man."
Irony is the result of a statement saying one thing while meaning the opposite. Its purpose is usually to criticize, e.g., It is simple to stop smoking. I've done it many times.
Sarcasm is a type of irony in which a person appears to be praising something while he is actually insulting the thing. Its purpose is to injure or hurt, e.g., As I fell down the stairs headfirst, I heard her say "Look at that coordination."
Antithesis - involves a direct contrast of structurally parallel word groupings generally for the purpose of contrast, e.g., Sink or swim.
Apostrophe is a form of personification in which the absent or dead are spoken to as if present, and the inanimate as if animate. These are all addressed directly, e.g., The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.
Allusion is a reference to a mythological, literary, historical, or Biblical person, place, or thing e.g., He met his Waterloo.
Synecdoche (Metonymy) is a form of metaphor. In synecdoche, a part of something is used to signify the whole, e.g., All hands on deck. Also, the reverse, whereby the whole can represent a part, is synecdoche, e.g., Canada played the United States in the Olympic hockey finals. Another form of synecdoche involves the container representing the thing being contained, e.g., The pot is boiling. One last form of synecdoche involves the material from which an object is made standing for the object itself, e.g., The quarterback tossed the pigskin. In metonymy, the name of one thing is applied to another thing with which it is closely associated, e.g. I love Shakespeare.

TONE

The author’s attitude towards his or her subject.

Words that Describe Tone

A list of tone words is one practical solution for providing a basic tone vocabulary. An enriched vocabulary enables students to use more specific and subtle descriptions of an attitude they discover in a text. Include such words as:

You should use dictionaries for definitions of the listed tone words because the explicit dictionary meanings establish subtle differences between tone words. Refer to this list often: learn how to spot the clues that hint at tone.

Remember that more than one feeling is often manifest in a work; an angry letter may communicate not only anger, but also bitterness, regret, and perhaps even fear. A love letter may share feelings of affection, self-doubt, and curiosity.

Note that some words are broader than others; To say that the tone of a piece is happy tells us only a little about the attitude of the writer. Be careful not to confuse words that describe the effect of the essay with the attitude it conveys. A piece may be humorous in its effect, but the attitude of the writer may be very serious. Rodney Dangerfield complained about getting “no respect’; the effect is humorous, but the tone is peevish and complaining.

	Negative		Positive		Neutral	Mode, Manner, Effect
	sad		loving		detached	humorous
	depressed		affectionate		objective	satirical
	disturbed		amorous		indifferent	formal
	perturbed		tolerant		tentative	informal
	cynical		doting		hesitant	subjective
	angry		understanding		uncertain	objective
	resentful		sympathetic		bemused	light
	bitter		buoyant		apologetic	casual
	sarcastic		effervescent		surprised	conversational
	ironic		happy		astonished	colloquial
	outraged		expectant		appalled	witty
	vengeful		passionate		shocked	conventional
	disgusted		excited		flattered	confidential
impatient		enthusiastic		resigned
derogatory		amused		demanding
Negative		Positive		Neutral
critical		laudatory		curious
hateful		paternal		urgent
envious		maternal		wondering
cold		avuncular		bland
distant		optimistic		timid
aloof		fascinated		nostalgic
jealous		honored		incredulous
intolerant		humble		skeptical
defensive		sanguine		doubtful
mocking		jubilant		proud
heartless		celebratory		elegiac
merciless		admiring		candid
snobbish		deferential		seductive
domineering		worshipful
pessimistic		respectful
stubborn		eager
audacious		pitying
adamant		ardent
snide		pensive
flippant		thoughtful
rebellious		hortatory
querulous		congratulatory
belligerent		awed
fearful		wondering
anxious		flirtatious
self-satisfied		comforting
smug		solicitous
martyred		benevolent
suspicious		didactic
vindictive		dreamy
doleful
lugubrious
accusatory
admonitory
maudlin
mordant
tendentious
sententious
despairing