Rhetorical Devices Used by Speakers and Writers Rhetorical devices are the nuts and bolts of speech and writing; the parts that make a communication work. Separately, each part of is meaningless, but once put together they create a powerful effect on the listener/reader.

Figurative speech People like to think in metaphors. The image of bending the arc of history up towards hope is powerful. Figurative speech tends to work best when set off by concrete images. “Dolphins in the wild can swim up to 40–100 miles per day but in pools they go around swimming in repetitive patterns like a never ending merry-go- round.”

Your Turn Dolphins in the wild can swim up to 40–100 miles per day but in pools they go around swimming in repetitive patterns like a never ending merry-go-round. Write a sentence persuading your audience that a chocolate chip cookie is the best dessert using figurative language.

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.

Your Turn “Yes, we can, to opportunity and prosperity. Yes, we can heal this nation. Yes, we can repair this world. Yes, we can.” Write persuading your audience that school is important.

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

Your Turn “If there is anyone out there who still doubts…who still wonders…who still questions” Write a sentence persuading your audience that technology enhances education.

Ethos - Persuasive Appeal 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. --“According to Dr. Lewis…. --“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...”

Your Turn --“According to Dr. Lewis…. --“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...” Write persuading your audience that school uniforms are beneficial for success.

Logos - 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. --use of facts, data, surveys --any explanation that is logical

Your Turn “Wild dolphins can live 40 years in the wild and orcas can live 90 years, but when held in captivity they rarely survive their teens. Twenty- three out of 25 orcas have died in captivity.” “studies have shown that disruptive behavior has gone down since students started wearing school uniforms” Write persuading your audience that a zombie attack will happen in 2018.

Pathos - Persuasive Appeals Pathos—an emotional appeal; asks readers to respond out of their beliefs, values, or feelings. It inspires, affirms, frightens, angers. --“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.” --“Yes we can.” --“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?”

Your Turn “Most of these helpless creatures suffer from boredom.” “Unfortunately, some of these poor innocent creatures can also face abusive treatment by their caretakers.” Write persuading your audience that they should adopt a pet from an animal shelter.

Allusion By using allusion, you not only associate yourself with the ideas of the original text but also create a bond with the audience by evoking share knowledge –The words government of the people, by the people, and for the people are lifted from the “Gettysburg Address”

Antithesis A figure of speech in which sharply contrasting ideas are juxtaposed in a balanced or parallel phrase or grammatical structure Obama is famous for having said “There are no red states or blue states. There are only the United States of America.” "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way." (Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities)

Juxtaposition the act of positioning close together –Obama talks about the “not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on doors of perfect strangers” The juxtaposition of “bitter cold” and “scorching heat” stresses the extreme conditions in which people campaigned for Obama, convincing the audience of their dedication

Varied Sentence Length Varying the sentence length is always a good way to strengthen any writing style, be it speech writing or essays. --“ To the best campaign team ever assembles in the history of politics: you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you’ve sacrificed to get it done. But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you. It belongs to you.”

Hypophora A common technique is to start a speech with a hypophora, in which the speaker first asks a question and then answers it. In Obama’s speech, the word answer is used regularly as an obvious signpost of the speaker’s intention to give his audience answers. The questions, however, are implied here.