Propaganda Section B

Emotional terms

An emotional term is a word or phrase which, however much factual information it conveys about an object, also expresses and/or arouses a feeling for or against that object.

Metaphor and simile

A metaphor is a comparison implied but not definitely stated. In the case of simile the comparison is explicitly stated by means of such words as ‘like’ or ‘as.’

Emphasis

example - Johnny is brought before the teacher for passing around notes that make unkind comments about a classmate. The teacher scolds Johnny, saying, “We should NEVER say HURTFUL things about anyone.” Johnny saw a loophole in the teacher’s scolding and replied: “But I didn’t SAY anything hurtful. I wrote it.”

Quotation out of context

example - Military critic: “Considering that only one test-fire out of 32 was successful, to conclude that the new missile system is a success is quite a stretch of the imagination.” Several days later, in the Times, the military critic was reported to have said, “The new missile system is a success.”

Abstract terms

example - I tell you, loyalty is what we need. By loyalty, I mean good old fashioned loyalty – nothing more and nothing less.

Vagueness

To call a word ‘vague’ is to say that marginal situations can and do arise where there is doubt as to whether the word should or should not be used in describing those particular situations. The technique of vagueness exists where there is uncertainty as to the scope of a word. example - late

Ambiguity

A word or phrase is ambiguous if in the mind of a hearer or reader it has two or more quite different meanings and the interpreter is uncertain as to which was really meant.

Shift of meaning

In shift of meaning a word appears explicitly or implicitly two or more times in an argument but with different meanings