Rhetorical Devices

Ethos

Establishes the speaker’s credibility or character, often through credentials or fairness.

Logos

An appeal to logic, utilizing data, statistics, and clear arguments to persuade the audience.

Pathos

An emotional appeal, engaging the audience’s feelings through imagery and personal anecdotes.

Metaphor

A direct comparison between two unlike things without using 'like' or 'as'.

Simile

A comparison using the words 'like' or 'as'.

Hyperbole

Deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or humor.

Understatement

Describing something as less significant than it is, often for ironic effect.

Personification

Attributing human characteristics to non-human objects or ideas.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech that combines contradictory terms, such as 'deafening silence'.

Paradox

A statement that seems self-contradictory but reveals a deeper truth.

Metonymy

Replacing a word with another closely associated term, like 'The White House' for the U.S. President.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech where a part stands for the whole, such as 'all hands on deck'.

Parallelism

The use of similar grammatical structures for clarity or emphasis.

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses.

Epistrophe

The repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses.

Antithesis

The juxtaposition of contrasting ideas in a balanced structure.

Asyndeton

Omitting conjunctions between phrases or clauses to create speed or urgency.

Polysyndeton

The deliberate use of multiple conjunctions to slow the pace and emphasize items.

Chiasmus

A reversal in the order of words in parallel phrases.

Diction

The specific choice of words by an author, affecting tone and style.

Tone

The author’s attitude toward the subject, conveyed through diction and syntax.

Imagery

Sensory details that create mental pictures for the audience.

Alliteration

The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of closely placed words.

Verbal Irony

Saying the opposite of what is meant.

Situational Irony

An outcome that is the opposite of what was expected.

Dramatic Irony

When the audience knows something that the characters do not.