Rhetorical Analysis Terms

Essential Rhetorical Analysis Terms

Analogy

  • Definition: Explaining something complex by comparing it to something simpler.

  • Example/Explanation: "An amateur playing in a professional game is like an ibex stepping into a lion's den."

Argument

  • Definition: The combination of reasons, evidence, etc., that an author uses to convince an audience of their position.

  • Explanation: In effective rhetoric, every phrase serves to further build the argument. It is too comprehensive a concept for a single example.

Aristotelian Appeals

  • Definition: Three different methods of appealing to an audience to convince them—ethos, logos, and pathos.

  • Note: See the definitions of ethos, logos, and pathos for more details.

Attitude

  • Definition: The writer's personal views or feelings about the subject at hand.

  • Example/Explanation: "The deplorable state of this school" conveys that the author has a negative attitude towards the school.

Audience

  • Definition: Who the author is directing his or her message towards.

  • Example/Explanation: When you create a resume, your audience is potential employers.

Compare and Contrast

  • Definition: Discussing the similarities and differences between two things for some persuasive or illustrative purpose.

  • Example/Explanation: "Hybrid cars have a much smaller carbon footprint than traditional midsize vehicles."

Connotation

  • Definition: The implied meaning of a word; words can broadly have positive, negative, or neutral connotations.

  • Examples:

    • conscientious = positive connotation

    • fussy = negative connotation

Context

  • Definition: The extra-textual environment in which the text is being delivered.

  • Example/Explanation: If I am delivering a congratulatory speech to awards recipients, the immediate context might be the awards presentation ceremony; the broader context might be the purpose or significance of the awards themselves.

Counterargument

  • Definition: The argument(s) against the author's position.

  • Example/Explanation: If I want to eliminate the dress code, a counterargument might be that this will place a burden on students of a lower socioeconomic status, who must now afford an entire school wardrobe or risk unwanted attention.

Deductive Reasoning

  • Definition: A form of logical reasoning wherein a general principle is applied to a specific case.

  • Example/Explanation: If all planets orbit a star, and Theta II is a planet, then it must orbit a star.

Denotation

  • Definition: The literal, dictionary-definition meaning of a word.

  • Example/Explanation: The denotation of "chair" is "a place to sit."

Diction

  • Definition: The style of language used; generally tailored to be appropriate to the audience and situation.

  • Example/Explanation: You might say "What's up, loser?" to your little brother, but you would probably say "How are you doing today?" to your principal.

Ethos

  • Definition: Setting up a source as credible and trustworthy.

  • Example/Explanation: "Given my PhD in the subject and years of experience in the field" is an appeal to ethos.

Evidence

  • Definition: The information presented meant to persuade the audience of the author's position.

  • Example/Explanation: If I were arguing that Anne is a good student, I might reference her straight-A report card and her 1500 SAT score as pieces of evidence.

Figurative Language

  • Definition: The use of language in a non-literal way; i.e. metaphor, simile, etc.

  • Example/Explanation: "The sky's like a jewel box tonight!"

Genre

  • Definition: The specific type of work being presented.

  • Explanation: Broader categories include "novel" and "play," while more specific genres would be things like "personal essay" or "haiku."

Imagery

  • Definition: Any descriptive language used to evoke a vivid sense or image of something; includes figurative language.

  • Example/Explanation: "The water was a pearl-studded sea of azure tipped with turquoise."

Implication

  • Definition: When something is suggested without being concretely stated.

  • Example/Explanation: "Watch your wallet around Paul," implies that Paul is a thief without coming out and saying "Paul is a thief."

Inductive Reasoning

  • Definition: Making a generalization based on specific evidence at hand.

  • Example/Explanation: All of the planets in this solar system orbit a star, so all planets probably orbit stars.

Irony

  • Definition: At the most basic sense, saying the opposite of what you mean; also used to describe situations in which the results of an action are dramatically different than intended.

  • Example/Explanation: "I do so hope there are more papers to sign," is something that might be said ironically.

Juxtaposition

  • Definition: Placing two very different things together for effect.

  • Example/Explanation: "There they stood together, the beggars and the lords, the princesses and the washerwoman, all crowding into the square."

Logos

  • Definition: Appealing to someone's sense of concrete facts and logic.

  • Example/Explanation: Citing peer-reviewed scientific studies is an appeal to logos.

Occasion

  • Definition: The reason or moment for writing or speaking.

  • Example/Explanation: When giving a graduation speech, the occasion is graduation.

Organization

  • Definition: How the different parts of an argument are arranged in a piece of writing or speech.

  • Explanation: Think about the outlines you write in preparation for drafting an argumentative essay and you'll have an idea of what organization is.

Pathos

  • Definition: An Aristotelian appeal involving appealing to someone's emotions.

  • Example/Explanation: Animal shelters ads with pictures of cute sad animals and dramatic music are using pathos.

Purpose

  • Definition: The author's persuasive intention.

  • Example/Explanation: If you are trying to convince your mother you should get a dog, your purpose in addressing an essay on the subject to her would be to convince her that you should get a dog.

Repetition

  • Definition: Re-using a word or phrase repeatedly for effect or emphasis.

  • Example/Explanation: "We run, and we run, and we run, like rats on a wheel."

Rhetoric

  • Definition: The use of spoken or written word (or a visual medium) to convey your ideas and convince an audience.

  • Explanation: Almost everything is an example of rhetoric!

Rhetorical Triangle

  • Definition: The relationship between the author, the audience, the text/message, and the context.

  • Explanation: The author communicates to the reader via the text; and the reader and text are surrounded by context.

Speaker

  • Definition: The persona adopted by the author to deliver his or her message; may or may not actually be the same person as the author.

  • Explanation: Similar to the difference between author and narrator in a work of fiction.

Style

  • Definition: The author's own personal approach to rhetoric in the piece; similar to voice.

  • Example/Explanation: We might say Taylor Swift's songwriting style is straightforward and emotive.

Symbolism

  • Definition: Using a symbol to refer to an idea or concept.

  • Example/Explanation: "Fire" is commonly used a symbol for passion and/or anger.

Syntax

  • Definition: The way sentences are grammatically constructed.

  • Examples:

    • "She likes pie," is syntactically simple.

    • "As it so happened, when Barbara got out of class early she liked to have a piece of pie—key lime or pecan, always—at the corner diner; while she was there she watched the people passing by the window and imagined herself inside each of their lives, riding in their heads for moments and moments until the afternoon was whiled away and she'd become fifty people," is syntactically complicated.

Synthesis

  • Definition: Combining sources or ideas in a coherent way for the purpose of a larger point.

  • Explanation: A typical research paper involves synthesizing sources to make a broader point about the topic.

Themes

  • Definition: Overarching ideas or driving premises of a work.

  • Example/Explanation: Some themes you will probably hear in your high school graduation speech include leaving behind a legacy, moving into the great unknown, becoming an adult, and changing the world.

Tone

  • Definition: The use of stylistic devices to reveal an author's attitude toward a subject. (Narrow distinction from attitude.)

  • Example/Explanation: The phrase "the deplorable state of this school" reveals a negative attitude, but the word choice of "deplorable" is part of the author's tone.

Voice

  • Definition: An author's unique sound (similar to style).

  • Example/Explanation: Think of the way that you can recognize a pop singer on the radio without hearing who it is first.