toolbox

Non-fiction texts & rhetoric:

Contents Page
What is non-fiction? 1-4

Non-fiction Analysis – chart 5

How to read a non-fiction text 6-8

A brief summary / information sheet on rhetoric 9

Retorik: læren om at formidle hensigtsmæssigt – at skrive 10

og tale godt: de 5 skrivefaser og de 3 appelformer

Rhetoric as a field of study 11

Writing phases 12

Forms of appeal: Logos, ethos, pathos 13

Rhetorical Tools 14

Figures of speech: Tropes & Schemes (stilfigurer) 15-17

Argumentation: Toulmin’s t-model: claim, grounds, warrant, 18-20

backing, qualifier, rebuttal

Argumentationstyper 21-22

Analysis of Non-Fiction: Work Method – Step by Step 23

JE-Nørre G, 2018
 What is non-fiction? 2

There is, unfortunately, no easy definition of non-fiction. Schol-

ars can spend years discussing how to define it without agree-
ing at all. You could say it's a bit like being in love. It's difficult
to state the criteria for being in love, but somehow, it's quite_
s easy to see whether your best friend is in k>ve or not! So, let us
try to make our own definition, and then you can always discuss
it further in class.
You can tell by its name that non-fiction is all the texts that
aren't fictional. When you read a novel or a short story, you
10 don't expect that things in the story really happened. You know
that James Bond isn't a real person, j4st like you know that all
the murders in crime stories haven't really taken place. But
when you read a news article about a murder in Canada, you ex-
pect the newspaper to tell you the truth. And when you read a
1s history book about the Vietnam War, you believe that t~e war
did actually happen. 2 Both news articles and history books are
non-fiction. However, the representation of 'reality' or 'truth'
may be accurate or inaccurate - there are no guarantees just
because something is non-fiction. Events and facts are always
20 interpreted by.the writer, so what you see in non-fiction "is the
world as the writer sees it.
It may help us define non-fiction by looking at what it is not.
So let us take a closer look at the differences between fiction 1
and non-fiction.
25

What are tlhle differernces

between fktfion aR1ld non-ficti(liru?
There are some distinct differences between fiction and non-
3o fiction, and the differences are caused by the purpose of the two
genres. The purpose of fiction, like any other art - painting, po-
JE-Nørre G, 2018
2. In rhetorical terms, this faith in the writer is called pistis.
 etry, music - is to communicate a certain feeling. Fiction may be
provocative, and it may change the way people think, but (good)
art doesn't express its message directly. On the other hand, in
non-fiction, the purpose of persuading you to do or believe
6 something specific is more explicit. When you read the news-
paper, it's easy to see that. certain articles want you to under-
stand something, for instance how global warming works. In
other sections of the paper, such as the editorial pages, the
writer wants to tell you why we have to do something about
10 global.warming. In the boxes below, you can see how the two
different purposes of fiction and non-fiction give rise to two dif-
ferent sets of features.

r---~~-~--F;~T~·~·~-
!
. ,--···~.~-~~·~---·--- .. -.<·-·---·····----·-·1

® Straightforward: it ® Ambiguous: it may

tries to be as educa-
tional and as easily
understandable as
possible
@ Consistent linguistic
confuse you on pur- give rise to afflilde
pose and almost never consistent ensartet
chooses the easiest way coherent kohrerent,
sammen-
® Often shifts In linguis-
tic style, depending on .
: hrengende

style whose point of view it .

transition : overgang

® Coherent thoughts is being written from

.
ambiguous : tvetydig

® You always know· ® You don't always

who or what the pro- know who or what the
l' '
nouns refer to I\ pronouns refer to, and
® Clear transitions be- ! often, you have to read
tween paragraphs ! the first few pages be-
® There are certain fore you realise who
rules you have to fol- 'he' or 'she' is
low in order to write ® There aren't always
correctly. clear transitions be-
tween paragraphs
® No rules - writers can
do as they please.
.. #• • - ••• h • . . . . . _ _ , . . . . _,..,., _ _ _ •• . - - - - . - - · ... _.1

The list might seem like a1.1 easy check box, but the differ-
ence between fiction and non-fiction is precisely one of the
things that scholars disagree about. Not all non-fiction texts are
straightforward, and not all fiction texts have shifts in linguistic
40 style. You have to see the two genres as a continuum with texts
placed between the two poles.

WHAT IS NON-FICTION? 11

2
JE-Nørre G, 2018
 Continuum
Something that goes through a gradual change from one condition to
another, without ony abrupt, sudden change.

Fiction Non-fiction

Like fiction, non-fiction is a genre with several subgenres.

Each of the subgenres is placed on a different place of the con-
tinuum. A genre called New journalism, which you will get to
know in this book, is non-fiction but close to the fiction end of
5 the scale because it uses some features normally seen in fic-
tion. You will learn about these features in the encyclopaedic
article in chapter13. Below, you can see some of the genres and
subgenres of non-fiction. This is just one way of organizing

User manual
car ma~
iPod user monual

Essay

acade~
New Journalism

Advertisement
journalism
~
new~~torial comment · photographic ad film ad

Biography
a~moir

12 ON PURPOSE

3
JE-Nørre G, 2018
 them. It could be done in many different ways. Try to make your
own tree and your own continuum with the different fiction gen-
res - which texts are particularly difficult to place?

s Why stl..lldyi noirn-ficitforu?

The reason you have to study non-fiction in this book is quite
simple: this is the genre you are going to read most in your life.
Whether you want to become a solicitor, r:iurse, actress, teacher
or veterinarian, you have to read non-fiction. Throughout your
10 life, you will read letters from the city council and newspaper

articles, you will watch the news on TV and if you want to study.
at university, you may spend five years reading nothing but sci-
entific articles and books! So being a rhetorieian myself, I want
you to become a good non-fiction reader.
1s Actually, I also want you to become a good non-fiction
writer. Whenever you hand in a paper, whether it is for your Dan-
ish, English, Biology or Political Science class, you write non-fic-
tion. When you spend time reading other people's texts and
discuss what makes them good, you can use these good fea-
20 tures in your own writing. That is also why this bool< contains

many written exercises.

In order to become a good writer yourself, you have to
analyse the text rhetorically. In other text-analysis traditions,
readers ask themselves, "What is this text about?", whereas you
25 should ask, "Considering the writer's intention, is the text

good?" Your Danish teacher asks the same question when read-
ing your Danish papers, "OK, so this student wants to analyse
H.C. Andersen's Sl<yggen and claims that the text is about the
writer him.self. How well does the student do that - and is it

4
ao even a good focus for this kind of essay?"
So, when you read the non-fiction texts in this book, you can
actually imagine that you are a teacher and your job is to help
your student to write better texts by saying what is good and
what needs improvement. In chapter 4, I have analysed a text
as rhetorically so that you can see how it can be done.

JE-Nørre G, 2018
 5

JE-Nørre G, 2018
 329

How to read a non-fiction text

The term non -fiction text covers a wide range of very different kinds of
writing. It may be articles, leaflets, advertisements, diary entries, letters,
essays, biographies, speeches, biogs or similar types of writing. Non-
fiction texts may be written for various purposes - to inform, to describe,
to persuade, to argue or to entertain.
When working with non-fiction texts, first try to understand what the
text is about and distinguish between what is fact and what is opinion.
Then analyse how the material is presented and how this influences the
reader's understanding of the text.
The rhetorical pentagon can be used both when analyzing speeches
and when you work with both fiction and non-fiction texts:

Topic

Writer Reader

Language Circumstances

The following questions may be useful to get a detailed analysis of the

text. In your analysis identify characteristic features, and in your inter-
pretation explain their effect.

TYPE OF TEXT /TOPIC

1 What type of text is it?
2 What is the medium (quality press, popular press, free papers, internet,
magazine ... ) ?
3 What is the text about? Find keywords in the text or give each para-
graph a heading (if it has not already got one).

WRITER/SPEAKER
What is the writer's background? Consider age, sex, education, back-
ground, occupation, religious or political point of view.

6
6
JE-Nørre G, 2018
330 Wider Contexts

2 How does the writer establish his/her ethos (credibility, trustworthi-

ness and knowledge)?
3 Does the writer include himself as part of the group addressed? If
SO, why?

READER / AUDIENCE
1 Who is the intended/explicit audience?
2 Is there an implicit audience?
3 What is the intended reader's background? Consider age, sex, educa-
tion, background, occupation, religious or political point of view.

LANGUAGE/PRESENTATION
1 Where and how does the writer/speaker appeal to logos (the appeal
to reason with arguments, evidence, facts and logical reasoning)?
Some of the questions below may help you answer this.
2 Where and how does the writer/speaker appeal to pathos (the appeal
to emotion with emotional language, passion and a personal angle)?
Some of the questions below may help you answer this.
3 How is the text structured? (Is there a coherent overall structure? Is
the theme introduced at the beginning and then elaborated on? Is
there a conclusion at the end ... ?)
4 Is the sentence structure simple or complex, paratactic or hypotactic?
Are the sentences long, short or incomplete?
5 Is the vocabulary concrete or abstract, colloquial, formal or neu-
tral? Is a particular word class common in the text? Is there a use of
or a lack of adjectives and adverbs? Are specific words or phrases
repeated?
6 Is there anything characteristic about punctuation or word order?
7 What is characteristic of the tone and style?
8 Are there any connotations? Positive or negative?
9 Sound effects: are there examples of alliteration or assonance?
10 Is imagery implied? Is symbolism? Are there examples of metaphor,
simile or personification (See Toolbox l!m!l!i!J )?
11 Does the language belong to a certain dialect or sociolect?
12 Are there quotations? If yes, by whom, and in what way are they
used?
13 Are there any references to specific topics, places or people?
14 What arguments are used? Are they weak or strong?
15 What is the lay-out of the text?
16 Are there illustrations? If yes, what kind and what is the relationship
between illustration and text?
17 Is the presentation balanced and fair, or is it biased?
18 Does the form complement the content?

7
JE-Nørre G, 2018
 331

Cl RCUMSTANCES
1 What occasion has caused the writer to produce this text?
2 In what way(s) has this situation influenced the text?

INTENTION
1Why has the writer written this text? (To describe, to inform, to
provoke, to persuade, to explain, to entertain, to manipulate or ... ?)
2 Does the text succeed in fulfilling the writer's intentions?

WIDER CONTEXTS
Relate the text to other texts on the same or a similar theme. What
are the similarities and differences? Which do you prefer and why?
What is conveyed or achieved by the comparison?
2 For further contexts, see Wider context chart, p. 10.
JE-Nørre G, 2018 8
 A Brief Summary / Information Sheet on Rhetoric:

The three forms of appeal (modes of persuasion), as defined by classical rhetoric (Aristotle):
o Ethos (speaker’s reliability and character)
o Pathos (appeals to the receiver’s emotions)
o Logos (appeals to the receiver’s logic or reason)

Persuasive language techniques, e.g. alliteration, allusion, antithesis, repetitions, metaphors, etc.

The rhetorical situation and the pentagon:

Topic

Writer/Speaker INTENTION
Reader/Audience (primary and secondary)

Language Circumstances

The most important element of the pentagon is the speaker’s intention: what does he or she want
to obtain with the text? Also, we have to ask ourselves: does the speaker fulfill his or her
intentions, i.e. does the text function the way it should? The bottom-line question that we have to
consider is: Is this a good text or not – and why?

Texts may have several functions (what does the writer intend to do with this text, and how does
he or she fulfill the intention?). First you have to decide what the purpose is of the text. A text may
have many functions, but only one main purpose. In classical rhetoric (according to Aristotle),
there are three main categories of purposes:

To inform
To delight
To persuade

Each of the above purposes may have many functions, for instance the writer/speaker may try:

To teach the reader / audience

To make the reader / audience feel stupid
To promote oneself
To provoke
To explain something complex
To justify his or her actions
To change the writer’s / speaker’s image
To draw attention to something
☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺

9
JE-Nørre G, 2018
 Retorik
Læren om at formidle hensigtsmæssigt – at skrive
og tale godt
Aristoteles – ca. 350 f.v.t.

De 5 skrivefaser / Heuristik: Læren om metoder De 3 appelformer – at forsøge

forarbejdningsfaser. → til systematisk at finde stof og at overbevise ad 3 forskellige
Skal ikke nødvendigvis idéer til et emne. Kan ses som veje.
følges kronologisk. underpunkt til inventio og
disposito faserne.*

En liste af spsm. man kan

stille til sit emne for at Etos: Talerens ønske om at
afgrænse og finde fokus: fremtræde troværdigt. Iflg.
(Definition; analogi; årsag- Aristoteles skal en troværdig
3. Elucutio: Skrivefasen: Sprogets 4 virkning; vidnesbyrd;
dyder, sproget skal være: taler:
omstændigheder).
1. Hensigtsmæssigt / Passende  Være vidende
(Aptum)  Have god karakter
1. Inventio: 5. Actio:
2. Klart (Perspicuritas)  Vise velvilje over for sine
Findefasen:* Fremførelses-
3. Velformet (Ornatus – det pynt- modtagere
Indkredsning af fasen. Logos: Appel til tilhørernes
emne, fokus og ede sprog), inkl. STILFIGURER Stemme, tale- fornuft via oplysninger og
formål. Arb. m. 4. Korrekt / Fejlfrit (Puritas) hastighed, krops- argumenter:
argumentation. sprog, øjen- Logos i formen: En klar og
Patos: At overbevise publikum ved at
kontakt. overskuelige disponering, der
påvirke deres følelser: gys-græd- grin.
2. Dispotio: Disponeringsfasen:* understøtter logos og hjælper til
Pathos i formen: Ligger i sprogbrugen.
at give overblik.
Ytringens forløb planlægges. 4. Memoria: Huskefasen.  Brug af stilfigurer
(Exordioum; Partitio; Narratio; Ar- Man øver sig, så man er  Evidentia – virkeliggørelse, fx
gumentatio; Peroratio). Etc. hjemme i sit stof. konkrete detaljer & gode
Fuldt manuskript eller stikord. beskrivelser
 Fremførelsen ( ironi, melodi,
gestik, kropssprog, etc.).
JE – Retorik og argumentationsanalyse

JE-Nørre G, 2018 10
 pier
G.2.. a. Rhetoric··- the text: 0n nppenl to the receiver
A speech is made to give a spoken message to many people at the Before writing a speech
When writing a text/speech/paper bear these
same time. You can make a speech to your family at a confirmation elements in mind:
part}', Ol' you can be a politician malting an important statement - Who is your audience? (think of one typi-
cal person in the audience you really want
which is designed to create new political opportunities. In both to reach, and write your text to him/her).
Use the right language, style, examples,
11
cases a speech is a carefully written text 132 designed not just to give metaphors etc . , .
information, but also to stir emotions> to entertain and to make - In what situation is the text presented?
Acoustics in the room? How many listen-
people reflect and maybe act. A good speech can make you cry, ers? How much time have you got? How
detailed should your text be? If you are at a
laugh or inspire you to go out and change the world! university you want to appeal more to the
intellect than if you are making a speech at
a wedding.
But the rhetorical elements can also be used in other texts designed - How do you want to present yourself?
How can you make your audience be·
to appeal to a receiver and to inspire them to act. lieve in you/like you? How do you begin
your texrl What is most important to tell
the audience about yourself? That you are
empathic (pathos) or well-informed and
intelligent (logos)?
- What is your primary message? How can
you remind yourself and the audience that
you are making the same focus all through
the text, i.e. at the beginning, the middle
and the end? What will you say in your
JE-Nørre G, 2018 introduction, and how will you pick up the
'red thread' again at the conclusion?
 Traditionally, rhetoricians prepare a speech in 5 phases, They are
relevant for students 1 too!

Ph~s~ (lia1ti¢s in Latin) Whattodo Challehges Relevant text tools

lnventio Ideas 7 Message Finding enough and not too Text tools A, B and C
finding out what to say, much. Text tools G1 a, b, d, f
collecting material doing Who can help you?
research, deciding on the Where can you find material?
main message What do you know already'?
Dispositio Structure Creating an overview of all Text tools H1 and H2
deciding what order to your material.
present your points in Killing your darlings and
choosing the best elements.
Finding the right structure.
Elocutio Language 7 writing Writing in a language that is Text tools E4, E5 and
writing the text - precise, inspiring, new - and E6.
considering style, metaphors appeals to the audience Text tool G2
Memoria Preparing the presentation Can you learn your text by
Learning your text by heart?
heart, preparing for the If not, consider using a
presentation Powerpoint presentation or
cue cards (with one main
heading or idea per card)
Actio Speaking Remember that body language G.1.f
maldng the speech to the and eye contact mean much
audience more than you think. Believe
in your message!

In traditional rhetoric, speeches are often divided into these

sections:
.1. lntroduction
133
133. QUESTION
Why sta1t a speech this way?
Background
Why does Obama's Bock to Schoof speech
start by describing elements of the commu- ,\. Maldng the main points in the debate
nication situation this way: What does this
opening say of the sender, the receivers and
·!· Conclusion 12
the channel?
Hello everyone - how's everybody doing
today? I'm here with students at Wakefield
High Schoo! In Arlington, Virginia. And we've
got students tuning in from all across Amer-
ica, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I'm
glad you all could join us today.
JE-Nørre G, 2018

G.:>.. a.;>,. The three rhclorinil inodet:: Ethos, Logos, Pathos
In ancient Greece, the three important modes of rhetoric men-
tioned below were already defined. A good speaker needs to use
the right combination of all three to reach the audience.
Ethos: appeal of the sender
How does the speaker/writer strike a positive note with the receiv-
ers of the text, so that they are certain to trust him/her?
') By making an initial joke?
" By suggesting that he/she is competent and experienced? Has
empathy? Is famous? An expert? An aclmowledged authority
in the field?
" By referring to parallel situations?
Pathos: the sender's ability to evoke feelings
What feeling does the speaker/writer create in the audience?
, , Compassion, concern, indignation, anger, patriotism?
How are these feelings evoked?
" By using specific examples, e.g. of heroic action or conquering
a crisis?
. o By conjuring up images of the enemy? Or of a hero?
Logos: referring to examples of reality
How does the speaker/writer convince the receivers that the infor-
mation given can be relied on?
1. By referring to statistics and similar documentation?
,. By referring to similar incidents in history?
(· By using professional vocabulary?
Whether to use more or less of each mode depends on the
communication situation and the audience. A good speaker
(= sender of a message) makes very conscious decisions about
this. When Obama speaks 134 to school children, for example, he will
use more Ethos and Pathos and less Logos than in a speech to the
Congress.
JE-Nørre G, 2018
134. QUESTION
Obama's rhetoric at the school
l. What does Obama say to make the children
listen to him and trust him (Ethos)?
2. Find passages of Pathos and Logos, Explain
why there is more of one than the other in
this particular speech, Did the sender make
a good choice?
3. Find the rhetorical tools that Obama uses?
Contrasts, examples, parallels etc:?
4. How does Obama reach an audience from
kindergarten lo senior year in high school?
Find extracts in the text where he succeeds
/doesn't succeed in reaching all the intend-
ed receivers of the text.
I know that for many of you, today is the first
day of school. And for those of you in kinder-
garten or starting middle or high school it's
your first day in a new school, so it's under-
standable If you're a little nervous. I imagine
there are some seniors out there who are feel-
ing pretty good right now, with just one more
year to go. And no matter what grade you're
in, some of you are probably wishing it were
still summer, and you could've stayed in bed
just a little longer this morning.
I know that feeling. When I was young, my
family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and
my mother didn't have the money to send the
where all the American kids went to school
So she decided to teach me extra lessons her-
self, Monday through Friday - of 4:30 in the
morning, Now I wasn't too happy about get-
ting up that ear/1~ A lot of times, I'd fall asleep
right there at the kitchen table. But whenever
I'd complain my mother would just give me
one of those looks and say, ''This is no picnic
for me either, buster."
So I know some of you are still adjusting to
being back at school. But I'm here today be-
cause I hqve something important to discuss
with you. I'm here because I want to talk with
you about your education and what's expect-
ed of all qf you in this new school year.
Now I've given a lot of speeches about educa-
tion. And I've talked a lot about responsibility. I've
talked about your teachers' responsibility for in-
spiring you, and pushing you lo learn. I've talked
about your parents' responsibility for making sure
you stay on track, and gel your homework done,
and don't spend every waking hour in front of
/he TV or with that Xbox. I've talked a fol about
your government's responsibilitv for selling high
standards, supporting teachers and principals,
and turning around schools that aren't working
where students aren't gelling the opportunities
they deserve.
But al the end of the day, we con have the most 13
dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents,
ond the best schools in the world - ond none of
it will mailer unless all of you fulfill your responsi-
bilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay
attention to those teachers; listen lo your parents,
grandparents and other adults; and put in /he
hard work it tokes to succeed.
 G.2.a.~1. l?Jietoricnl lnoln

What rhetorical tools are used?

,, Repetitions (of the same word, or several sentences starting the
same way, often three times)
'' Contrasts
Examples
Parallels
Symbols
,, Rhetorical questions (the speaker asking without expecting an
answer)

JOHN F. KENNEDY'S SPEECHWRITER

Ted Sorenson who wrote speeches for John F. Kennedy (President
135. QUESTION of the USA i961-3) defined a list of principles 135 for his speechwrit-
Obama and Sorenson? ing.
Find examples of Sorenson's criteria used in
Obama's speeches.
hllp://obamaspeechcs.corn/ 1. short clauses and short words

.!. a series of points or propositions in numbered or logical sequence

.J. simplify
,, . clarify

c;. emphasize

11. how it sounded to the ear when read aloud, often had a cadence not
unlike blank verse

/. at times key words would rhyme

H. alliterative sentences

t). sentences began, however incorrect some may have regarded it, with
"And" or "But"

1 o. he liked to be exact

i 1. but if the situation required a certain vagueness, he would deliberately

choose a word of varying interpretations

1 2. parallel construction
136. QUESTION
l<ennedy and Sorenson. 13. and use of contrasts with which he later became identified 136 14
Which of Sorenson's principles can be found
in this quotation from Kennedy's inaugural
speech in 1961:
Ask not what your country can do for you, but
what you can do for your country.
JE-Nørre G, 2018
 Rhetorical features: FIGURES OF SPEECH
- Tropes: Trope, tankemæssig stilfigur
- Schemes: Figur, oftest lydlig stilfigur

~<elJ:D wowdls: IP>iromoiirl)dJ/se<eq;Jll1Jd!OJirl)dl (!]OJltdloefJ1lce,

o.in1l@ p~11on"oi, q:n[anter<C1Jtooll1l, @ ss0lll1l01nce, t!.llfl1ltotll1les as 1
l]JloiQ~ pil:ota:wu.

s Primary/secondary audience: A speal<er can speol< to several

groups. lf you give a speech at your grandmother's Both birth-
day, she is your primary audience while the rest of the guests
are the secondary audience. Your focus is on your grand-
mother, but you address the others as well. You want them to
10 be touched by your speech although perhaps not to the same
degree as your grandmother.

A'naphora (scheme): Repetition of the first part of o phrase or

sentence. Sometimes shown graphically as: x ... , x ... , x ....
1a To raise a happy, healthy, and hopeful child, ft takes afam-
fly; it tal<es teachers; it takes clergy; it takes business people; it
takes communfty leaders; it takes those who protect our health
and safety. It tal<es all of us. (Hillary Clinton, 1996)

20 Allite'rntion (scheme): Repetition of consonants. Mostly at the

beginning of words, but it may also be in the middle of them.
Peter's party was apparently private.

'Assonance (scheme): Repetition of vowels. Mostly seen in the

2a middle of words, but it may a~so be at the beginning. 15
I lie by the sf de of your night light.

An 'tithes is (trope): When two opposites are juxtaposed in a sen-

tence, paragraph or a whole text.
30 It is not death that I feat~ It is life.

Po'lyptoton (scheme): The use of several words with the same root.
If you can find strength in these trials, you will become
JE-Nørre G, 2018
stronger.
 pe1·su 1asive adj overta-
Pars pro toto: When you describe or name something by only using a part ofthe lende, overbevisende
whole thing/person. con'sistent adj konse-
I saw her smile coming towards me. kvent
re'ly vb her: bruge
range sb rrekke
inaugu'rntion sb ind-
scettelse i embedet
Analysis of (political) rhetoric union sb fagforening
dis'astrous adj kata-
Persuasive language techniques, especially in speech, take their name strofal
from the Greek noun for a professional speaker, rhetor. Political speech de'votion sb hengiven-
writers consistently rely on a range of powerful teclmiques. Some of hed, hengivelse
en'deavom· sb bestrre-
these teclmiques are:
belse, strreben
re'dundant adj over-
£10dig
Alliteration Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill,
that we shall pay any price, bear any burden ...
(J. F. Kennedy, American President 1961)
Allusion An (in)direct reference to another text e.g. the Bible
Antithesis This election is not about the minersi not about the mili-
tants; not about the power of the unions: it's about the
disastrous failure of three and a half years of Conserva-
tive government (Harold Wilson, British Labour
leader, 1974)
Oxymoron A paradoxical antithesis with only two words:
freshly frozen; deathly life
Lists Esp. of three items = tricolon, building to a di-
max: Friends, Romans, Countrymen. ,.. (Shakespeare,
1600)i ... the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the
truth
Metaphor The energy, the faith, the devotion. which we bring to this
endeavour will light our country ... (J.F. Kennedy, 1962)
Parallelism Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I may remember.
In.valve me an.d I will learn (Benjamin Franklin,
American President)

Repetition I have a dream ... I have a dream ... I have a dream today
(M. L. King, 1963)

Rhetorical Asking questions and suggesting answers or

questions redundant questions

16

JE-Nørre G, 2018
 Sproglige figurer
Sammenlignende figurer:
"' Sammenligning: "dum som en d0r"
., Analogi (en udvidet sammenligning eller metafor hvor der drages
en eksplicit parallel mellem to ting med henblik pa at fremme en
argumentation): "livet er kart og beskidt som en bameskjorte"
"' Metafor (pa en gang en billedskabende figur og et erkendelsesred-
skab): "livets landevej"
• Personifikation og besja:ling (regnes til metaforerne): "manden
med leen", "manens blege ansigt"
111 Metonymi: '1giv en hand med"
" Symbol: "visdommens ugle"
• Litot (underdrivelse): "ikke sa tosset"
11 Hyperbel (overdrivelse): "spandevis af tarer"
v Eufemisme (formildende omskrivning): "han er gaet bort''
Gentagelsesfigurer:
• Pleonasme (dobbeltkonfekt): "angst og bceven", "bakke tilbage"
• Anafor (gentagelse i begyndelsen af sa:tninger): "I have a dream"
(kommer otte gange i ]¢bet af Martin Luther Kings ber¢mte tale
fra 1963)
• Epifor (gentagelse i slutningen af scetninger): "Kromandens Vogn
kom frem, Englcenderne kom op, Bondemanden kom op, de raad-
ne /£bier kom op .. " (H.C Andersen)
• Allitteration (gentagelse afkonsonantlyd): "Finns friske fisk"
• Assonans (gentagelse af vokallyd): "s¢de, bl¢de, r¢de beer"
Modscetningsfigurer:
• Antitese (sammenstilling af led med betydningsma:ssig modscet-
ning): "Din Skaal synes Honning, men Drikken er leed ..."(Thomas
Kingo)
• Oxymoron (sammenstilling af to logiske modsa:tninger): "bitter-
sod", "had-ka:rligheds-forhold"
17
• Paradoks (minder om antitese, men er absurd, fornuftsstridig):
"Du har ikke en chance. Grib den!"
JE-Nørre G, 2018
Andre retoriske virkemidler:
• Retoriske sp¢rgsmal (anraber kun tilsyneladende om svar): ""Ja,
hvad er Livet!" - "Ja, hvad er D¢denl" - "Er Livet maaskee ikke en
stedsevarende D@d?" - "Ja, hvad er vel Sandhed?!'"' (Hans Egede
Schack: Phantasteme)
• Ironi (der siges noget andet end det der menes, eller antydes no-
get der ikke siges): Ovenstaende retoriske sp0rgsmal bruges iro-
nisk af Schack til at karakterisere drengen Christian, der har for-
slugt sig pa romantisk litteratur og giver den som livstrc:et helt
• Anrabelse: "O at va:re en h12me" (Frank Jceger)
Talens opbygning
Efter en unders¢gelse af tekstens ordvalg og brug af retoriske figurer
ga:lder det afsenderens udnyttelse af talens dele:
• Hvordan fanges modtageren i indledningen?
• Hvordan pra:senterer afsenderen sig selv og sit a:rinde?
• Hvordan henvender afsenderen sig til modtageren, og hvordan
om tales modtageren i teksten?
• Hvordan defineres den problemstilling argumentationen gcelder'
• Er sagsfremstillingen afbalanceret og fair'
• Tra:kkes tekstens hovedpointe klart frem?
• Belyser bevisforelsen sagen fra flere sider'
• Har argumenterne relevans for problemstillingen?
• Griber konklusionen tilbage til hovedpointen?
• Sammenfatter konklusionen de fremf!llrte argumenter'
• Giver konklusionen svar pa problemstillingen?
Fra Nyborg & Hammer: "Faglige forbindelser i dansk. Teori og metode." pp. 45-45 .
 Toulmin's T-Model: Argumentation

Styrkemark0r
Qualifier

"Fordi" / "Because"
Belceg/Begrundelse ~~~~~~~~-.-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~t---~~~~~~~~~~-Pastand

Grounds/Evidence Claim

Gendrivelse
Rebuttal

"Eftersom" / "As" / "Since"

B
Hjemmel (ofte underforstaet) Hanharikke
!rest lektier
Warrant

Rygdcekning
Backing
H
En elev der ikke lreser lektier,
dumper til eksamen

R
Det skete i fortilfa:ldene
Hans og Gretb.e
JE-Nørre G, 2018 'I-
18
 N e\l\Tspaper article 8

lcliom: A manner of speaking, a phrase particular to a language.

An idiom is often difficult to translate or even understand for a
s non-native speaker because, contrary to the metaphor, it is
rarely easy to_guess what is meant by the idiom. For example, it's
raining cats and dogs= ifrains a lbt or to kick the bucket= to die.

Argument: When we talk about argumentation and single ar-

.
claim : pastand

10 guments, we often use Toulmin's T-model: ground : belreg

Grounds: Claim:
.
warrant: hjemmel

Because I have 2a years You should vote for me

of political experience. as president!

Warrant:
You should always
vote for the
most politically
experienced one.

19
As you can see, the claim is what the writer wants you to
do, believe or think about something. In this case, we have a
politician who wants the reader to vote for him. The grounds are
used as the reason(s) for the claim: he has 20 years of political
1s experience. That is why you often see words such as because or
since linked to the grounds, and words like so or therefore linked
to the claim. The warrant is the link between the two elements;
it is the belief, value or tradition that makes the writer able to
JE-Nørre G, 2018
use the argument: you should always vote for the most experi-
 enced politician. The words often linked with the warrant are as
or since. Not all three elements are always said or written ex- .
launch : starte
explicitly : direkte
plicitly. In fact, we often only get the claim and warrant or the
claim and grounds. Or even just the warrant. That means that
s you can't expect to find them all in a text, but they will be 'hid-
den', in the sense that you have to interpret the text in order to
find out what kind of arguments the writer uses. When people
disagree with an argument, it is almost always because they
don't agree with the warrant. In this case, a reader could think
10 that "No, political experience doesn't matter that much; you
Carol Sarler
should vote for the one who cares most about the environment."
Therefore, it is often very interesting to look at the (often un- is a freelance
derlying) warrant. writer who often
writes for The Ob-
server, the second-
IP>re-rem:ll fi u11g
largest British
1. What do you expect to be different in a newspaper like The
newspaper. Its
Observer as opposed to a tabloid like The Sun, which is the
readers are mainly
English equivalent to Ekstra Bladet, regarding the language
well-educated,
and the topics?
upper-middle-
2. Look at the title 'My child's IQ is bigger than yours'. What
class people living
does that make you think of?
in the larger cities.
You can compare
the newspaper to
the Danish news-
paper Politiken.
Carol Sarler often
writes quite
provocative arti-
cles launching
heavy debates on
the newspaper's
website.

JE-Nørre G, 2018

Argumentationstyper
Trusselsargument: ”Hvis regeringen får lov at fortsætte, vil
velfærdstaten være i opløsning om ganske få år”
Mængdeargument: ”Et flertal af befolkningen mener ifølge en
undersøgelse…”
Lykkeargument: ”Vi vil sørge for bedre forhold til de arbejdsløse”
Autoritetsargument: ”De økonomiske vismænd understreger, at
vi ikke har råd til at finansiere efterlønnen”
Argumentationsfejl
Ad-hominem argument
JE-Nørre G, 2018
Argumentationstyper
Definitions in English
Argumentum ad baculum: An argument based on an appeal to fear or a threat. (e.g., If you
don't believe in God, you'll burn in hell)
Argumentum in terrorem
Scare tactics: Arguments that appel to fear and threats
Threat appeal argumentation
Ad populum
Argumentation ad populum
Definition: The Latin name of this fallacy means “to the people.” There are several versions of
the ad populum fallacy, but what they all have in common is that in them, the arguer takes
advantage of the desire most people have to be liked and to fit in with others and uses that
desire to try to get the audience to accept his or her argument. One of the most common
versions is the bandwagon fallacy, in which the arguer tries to convince the audience to do or
believe something because everyone else (supposedly) does.
Argument from authority (argumentum ad verecundiam): using the words of an "expert" or
authority as the bases of the argument instead of using the logic or evidence that supports an
argument. (e.g., Professor so-and-so believes in creation-science.) Simply because an authority
makes a claim does not necessarily mean he got it right. If an arguer presents the testimony
from an expert, look to see if it accompanies reason and sources of evidence behind it.
Fallacies are common errors in reasoning that will undermine the logic of your argument.
Fallacies can be either illegitimate arguments or irrelevant points, and are often identified
because they lack evidence that supports their claim. Avoid these common fallacies in your own
arguments and watch for them in the arguments of others.
Ad hominem: Latin for "to the man." An arguer who uses ad hominems attacks the person
instead of the argument. Whenever an arguer cannot defend his position with evidence, facts or
reason, he or she may resort to attacking an opponent either through: labeling, straw man
arguments, name calling, offensive remarks and anger.
21
 Ad hominem: This is an attack on the character of person rather than his or her opinions or
arguments. Example:
Green Peace’s strategies aren’t effective because they are all dirty, lazy hippies.
Ringslutning Circular Argument: This restates the argument rather than actually proving it. Example:
George Bush is a good communicator because he speaks effectively.

Generalisation Hasty Generalization: This is a conclusion based on insufficient or biased evidence. In other
words, you are rushing to a conclusion before you have all the relevant facts. Example:
Afledningsmanøvre Red Herring: This is a diversionary tactic that avoids the key issues, often by avoiding opposing
arguments rather than addressing them. Example:
The level of mercury in seafood may be unsafe, but what will fishers do to support their
families?

Stråmand Straw man: creating a false or made up scenario and then attacking it. (e.g., Evolutionists think
that everything came about by random chance.) Most evolutionists think in terms of natural
selection which may involve incidental elements, but does not depend entirely on random
chance. Painting your opponent with false colors only deflects the purpose of the argument.
(From the email that I get on NoBeliefs.com this appears as the most common fallacy of all.)

Straw Man: This move oversimplifies an opponent’s viewpoint and then attacks that hollow
argument.
Example:
People who don’t support the proposed state minimum wage increase hate the poor.

Kan også deles op efter appelformerne:

 Fornuftsargumenter (argumenter der bygger på fx tal og statistik) – logos.

 Moralargumenter (argumenter der taler til ens moral, fx den dårlige samvittighed) – etos.
 Følelsesargumenter (argumenter der appellerer til følelserne) – patos

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 Methods of Non-FictionAnalysis:
Rhetorical Analysis &
Analysis of Argumentation

When analyzing non-fiction texts (speeches, newspaper articles, etc.), try to be systematic and analyze the
following items:

1) The rhetorical situation (“kommunikationssituationen”) (use Cicero’s Pentagon). Remember to

conclude: what is the writer’s / speaker’s intention with the text?

2) Structure of the text: (Sometimes it may be difficult to understand the structure of the text until you
have worked with some of the other points on this page). Remember: A well-structured speech
supportsthe logos of the text. Start out by establishing a basic outline of the text: are you able to
sum up: what is the text basically about? You may not be able to now (after having worked with
Cicero’s Pentagon), but you MUST be able to before you make your conclusion in assignment 6.

3) Linguistic features: rhetorical tools /figures of speech (tropes and schemes) – for example:
alliterations, allusions, antitheses, anaphoras, metaphors, lists (incl. tricolons), rhetorical questions,
etc. Please note: The writer may use tropes and schemes to enhance the pathos of the text: Tropes
(trope, tankemæssig stilfigur; for instance: metaphors, antitheses, polyptoton) appeal to the mind
and create images that may set off emotions of anger, joy, etc. Schemes (lydlig stilfigur; for
instance: anaphoras, alliterations; rhyme schemes in general) go on in your ears – just like music –
and may influence your emotions in ways like music. Remember to point out: What is the effect of
using the specific figures of speech?

4) Argumentative features: How does the speaker argue, and is his argumentation coherent? Use
Toulmin’s T-model when you analyze argumentation (does the speaker have evidence that
supports his claim? What is the speaker’s main claim? What are his secondary claims (that may
support the main claim)?
Explain – in your own words – how the speaker argues. You may want to – but you don’t have to-
use the terms and definitions that you find on the pages above (“Argumentationstyper”).
The text – especially speeches – may not be particularly argumentative, and it may be enough to
briefly outline what the main claim is.

5) Analyze the modes of persuasion (“appelformerne”): Logos, ethos, pathos (which mode of
persuasion dominates the speech?)

6) Your conclusion: Based on your findings in 1-5 above, always answer the question: Does the text
work rhetorically – and why/why not?

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