1. If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound?

2. What is a rhetorical question? A question asked merely for effect with no answer expected. The answer may be obvious or immediately provided by the questioner.question Rhetorical questions are often intended to make the listener agree with the speaker as the answer is obviously yes. Even if the listener does not say the word, they will think it. And once they start agreeing they are more likely to keep doing so. Hedging We use rhetorical questions sometimes when we want to make a statement but are not confident enough to assert a point. The question format thus allows others to disagree, but is not necessarily seeking agreement of Isn't that wonderful? Is it a shade of blue? Gaining Agreement Rhetorical questions are often intended to make the listener agree with the speaker as the answer is obviously yes. Even if the listener does not say the word, they will think it. And once they start agreeing they are more likely to keep doing so. Is the Pope a Catholic? Is the sky blue? Is this a great product? Self talk Sometimes when you ask questions, you are really asking them of yourself rather than the other person. this is particularly noticeable when you give the answer soon after asking the question. What is that? A bird, I'd say. What type? Maybe an eagle? I think so. What a lovely flight path. Multiple Questions When you ask multiple questions at once, you seldom expect them all to be answered, and perhaps none of them. They become particularly rhetorical when you do not give time for the other person to answer. Where have you been? What time do you think this is? Do you think you can come home late like this and nobody notice? Terminating statement Another way that stopping the other person from answering is to put a statement of some sort immediately after the question. There is thus no space for the person to answer the question and are directed more by the final statement than the question. Can you see? Look there!

3. Examples of Rhetorical Questions If a cow laughed real hard, would milk come out her nose? If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular? What's another word for Thesaurus? Who decided what order to put the alphabet in? Why are cigarettes sold in gas stations when smoking is prohibited there? Why are there locks on the doors to the convenience store that is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year? Why do they call them apartments when they are all stuck together? Why do you need a drivers license to buy liquor when you cannot drink and drive? And why do bars have parking lots? Why does TEFLON stick to the frying pan, since nothing ever sticks to TEFLON? Why is it so hard to remember how to spell MNEMONIC? Why are there Interstate Highways in Hawaii? Why are there flotation devices under plane seats, instead of parachutes? Why do hot dogs come ten to a package and hot dog buns only eight? Why do they put Braille dots on the keypad of the drive-up ATM? Why do flammable and inflammable mean the same thing? If 75% of all accidents happen within 5 miles of home, why not move 10 miles away? Why doesn't onomatopoeia sound like what it is? Does a fish get cramps after eating?

4. Spot the Rhetorical Question Listen to the commercial carefully. Write down all the rhetorical questions in the commercial and decide how the questions is being used in the advertisement. Geico Commericial