Rhetorical Devices and Strategies #2

Anecdote

a brief recounting of a relevant episode, often inserted into fictional or nonfictional texts as a way of developing a point or injecting humor

Rhetorical Question

question not asked for information but for effect (eg. "are you finished interrupting me?")

Tone

a writer's attitude toward his subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language and organization (eg. playful, serious, sarcastic, humorous, somber, etc)

Argument

piece of reasoning with one or more premises and a conclusion (sometimes called a claim, position, or stance)

Conclusion

end result of the argument, the main point being made

Concession

making one's own argument stronger by accepting a true, reasonable viewpoint, even if presented by the opposition (sometimes called multiple perspectives)

Conditional Statement

an if-then statement that consists of an antecedent and a consequent (eg. "if you study hard, then you will pass the test")

Contradiction

when one asserts two mutually exclusive propositions (eg. "abortion is wrong and abortion is not wrong") since they cannot both be true, one of them must be false

Counterexample

an example that runs counter to (opposes) a generalization, thus falsifying it

Deductive argument

argument in which the premises guarantee the truth of the conclusion. intended to provide super strong support so that if the premises are true, it would be impossible for the conclusion to be false

Inductive argument

argument in which the premises provide reasons supporting probable truth of the conclusion. intended to be so strong that, if they are true, then it is unlikely that the conclusion is false

Sound argument

a deductive argument is said to be this if it meets two conditions: first, that the line of reasoning from the premises to the conclusion is valid. second, that the premises are true.

Unstated premises

not every argument is fully expressed. Sometimes premises or even conclusions are left unexpressed. But sometimes unstated premises are problematic, particularly if two parties in a discussion are making differing assumptions.

Valid argument

an argument is said to be this if the conclusion logically follows from the premises because it is impossible for the premises to be true and the conclusion to nevertheless be false. We do not know if the argument is sound, because we do not know if the premises are true or not.