Vocab for Rhetorical Analysis

**Rhetoric**

effective or persuasive communication

**Anaphora**

repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases or lines

ex: **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

**Antithesis**

opposition, or a contrast of ideas or words in a balanced & parallel construction

\n “*I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.*”

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**Asyndeton**

lack of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words

\n He tried to betray you, to cheat you, to deceive you.

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"I came to win, to fight, to conquer, to thrive. I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise." 

**Metaphor**

implied comparison of two objects that have nothing in common

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MLK: “*[The Emancipation Proclamation] came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.*” 

**Climax**

an arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an order of ascending power.  

\n “Beauty is but a vain and doubtful good;

A shining gloss that vadeth suddenly;

A flower that dies when first it gins to bud; 

A brittle glass that’s broken presently: 

A doubtful good, a gloss, a glass, a flower,

Lost, vaded, broken, __**dead within an hour**__.”

**Alliteration**

repetition of the beginning consonant of several words in a sentence

\n “*Rise from the dark and desolate”*

*“the marvelous new militancy”*

*“trials and tribulations*”

**Allusion**

phrase or segment that refers to another work of art, noted person, or historical document

\n “*Five score years ago, a great American…signed the Emancipation Proclamation.*”

**Call to Arms**

invitation, or appeal to undertake a particular course of action  

\n “The war is inevitable—and let it come!” 

***A speech by Patrick Henry March 1775***

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**Ethos**

ethics or credibility; a trusted source of information

\n "As a doctor, I am qualified to tell you that this course of treatment will likely generate the best results."

\n

**Logos**

Logic; based on factual evidence, to make sense, follows a believable order

\n "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury: we have not only the fingerprints, the lack of an alibi, a clear motive, and an expressed desire to commit the robbery… We also have video of the suspect breaking in. The case could not be more open and shut."

**Pathos**

emotion; to appeal to human emotions

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"If we don’t move soon, we’re all going to die! Can’t you see how dangerous it would be to stay?"

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**Amplification**

writer makes a point twice in a row, with greater emphasis, details, or explanation the second time—thus, amplifying it.

\n “*America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked ‘insufficient funds.’*”

**Litotes**

Using understatement, along with a double negative

→ *draws our attention in*

\n “*I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations.*”

**Parallelism**

(A.K.A. parallel phrasing) the arrangement of words, phrases, clauses, or larger structures placed side by side, making them similar in form

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“*We will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together…*”

**Antimetabole**

A figure of speech in which words or clauses from the first half of a sentence are repeated in the second half of the sentence in reverse order. 

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*“You stood up for America, now America must stand up for you.”*