Rhetorical devices

Rhetoric

The art of persuasion

Purpose

The reason behind a text; what the author aims to accomplish.

Audience

The intended readers or listeners of a piece.

Speaker

The voice delivering the message (not always the author).

Context

The historical, cultural, or situational background of a text.

Exigence

The specific event or issue prompting the text.

Diction

The author’s word choice and its effect.

Tone

The author’s attitude toward the subject or audience.

Syntax

Sentence structure and its rhetorical effect.

Imagery

Descriptive language appealing to the senses.

Appeal to ethos (Ethos)

Establishing credibility or ethical appeal.

Appeal to pathos (Pathos)

Emotional appeal to an audience’s values or feelings.

Appeal to logos (Logos)]

Logical reasoning, facts, and statistics to support an argument.

Thesis

The central argument or main claim of a text.

Juxtaposition

Placing two elements side by side for contrast.

Antithesis

A type of juxtaposition that presents opposing ideas in a balanced structure.

Repetition

Intentional reuse of words or phrases for emphasis.

Parallelism

Using similar grammatical structures for rhythm and emphasis.

Anecdote

A short personal story used to illustrate a point.

Allusion

A reference to history, literature, mythology, or religion.

Anaphora

Repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses.

Epistrophe

Repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses.

Chiasmus es.

A rhetorical reversal of word order in parallel structures.

Polysyndeton

Using multiple conjunctions in succession for effect.

Asyndeton

Omitting conjunctions for a fast paced effect.

Cumulative sentence

A sentence that starts with the main idea and then expands with additional details.

Periodic sentence

A sentence where the main idea is delayed until the end.

Rhetorical question

A question asked for effect, not meant to be answered.

Metonymy

Using a related term to represent something (e.g., "The White House issued a statement").

Synecdoche

A figure of speech in which a part represents the whole (e.g., "All hands on deck").

Irony

A contrast between expectation and reality.

Satire

The use of humor, irony, or exaggeration to criticize.

Hyperbole

Deliberate exaggeration for emphasis.

Understatement

Downplaying something for effect.

Euphemism

A mild word replacing a harsh or blunt one (e.g., "passed away" instead of "died").

Zeugma

A single word modifying two other words in different ways (e.g., "She broke his car and his heart").

Paradox

A statement that seems contradictory but reveals truth.

Allegory

A story or text with a deeper symbolic meaning.

Deductive reasoning

Moving from general principles to specific conclusions.

Inductive reasoning

Moving from specific examples to general conclusions.

Syllogism

A three part logical structure (e.g., "All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.").

Hasty generalization

A logical fallacy in which a broad conclusion is drawn from limited evidence.

False dilemma (Either/or fallacy)

Presenting only two options when more exist.

Slippery slope

A logical fallacy suggesting that one small step leads to extreme consequences.

Red herring

Distracting from the main issue with an unrelated argument.

Straw man

Misrepresenting an opponent’s argument to make it easier to attack.

Ad hominem

Attacking the person rather than the argument.

Delineate

To describe or portray something precisely.

Didactic

Writing intended to teach or instruct.

Caveat

A warning or condition in an argument.