Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Rhetorical
Device
Ones you probably know…
O Simile
O Metaphor
O Personification
A Quick Review:
O Simile—a comparison using like or as
Example: “He is as brave as a lion.”
O Metaphor—a comparison without using like or as
Example: “Time is a thief” or “All the world’s a stage.”
O Personification—assigning human qualities to something
that is not human
Example: “The stars danced through the moonlit sky.”
Other Common
Rhetorical Devices
O Allusion O Parallelism
O Hyperbole O Juxtaposition
O Euphemism O Understatement
O Repetition O Oxymoron
O Anaphora
O Epistrophe
Allusion
O A brief reference to a famous person or event—
often from literature, history, Greek myth, or the
Bible. Can help to simplify complex ideas.
• “Plan ahead: it wasn't raining
when Noah built the ark.”
• “He was a real Romeo with the
ladies.”
• “She was a good Samaritan
yesterday when helping the
elderly woman carry her
groceries.”
Hyperbole
O An obvious and
deliberate
exaggeration
(to emphasize
something or for
humorous
purposes).
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Examples of Hyperbole
O I love you more than
life itself.
O He’s so hungry, he
could eat a horse.
O I told you a million
times.
Euphemism
O A mild or pleasant word or
phrase that is used
instead of one that is
unpleasant or offensive
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Examples of Euphemisms
O “Pass away” instead of “die”
O “Let go” instead of “fired”
O “Correctional facility”
instead of “jail”
O “Restroom” instead of
“toilet”
O “Chronologically
challenged”
instead of “late”
Repetition:
Anaphora & Epistrophe
O Repetition: the repetition of
words or phrases to build to a
climax or add emphasis
O Anaphora: the repetition of
words at the beginning of a
line
O Epistrophe: the repetition
of words at the end of a line
Examples of Anaphora
From Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” Speech:
“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the
true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident:
that all men are created equal.’
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of
former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit
down together at a table of brotherhood...
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.”
Examples of Anaphora
From Winston Churchill’s “We Shall Fight on the Beaches” Speech, 1940:
Examples of Epistrophe
“I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth.”
“See no evil; hear no evil; speak no evil.”
"For no government is better than the
men who compose it, and I want the
best, and we need the best, and we
deserve the best.”
From Senator John F. Kennedy’s speech at Wittenberg College, 1960
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Parallelism
O Successive words, phrases, clauses
expressed with the same or very similar
grammatical structure. Can add balance
and rhythm and, most importantly,
emphasis to argument.
O Often occurs with anaphora and
epistrophe.
Examples of Parallelism
O "Let every nation know, whether it wishes
us well or ill, that we shall pay any price,
bear any burden, meet any hardship,
support any friend, oppose any foe to
assure the survival and the success of
liberty.” –John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address
“Tragic comedy”
“Open secret”
Oxymoron
2. Name the rhetorical device.
O Chocolate is his Kryptonite.
Allusion
3. Name the rhetorical device.
O “We’ve got the iPod, best music player in
the world. We’ve got the iPod Nanos, brand
new models, colors are back. We’ve got
the amazing new iPod Shuffle.”
-- Steve Jobs, Macworld 2007 Keynote Address
Anaphora
(also Parallelism and Hyperbole)
4. Name the rhetorical device.
"We have seen the state of our Union in the
endurance of rescuers, working past
exhaustion. We've seen the unfurling of flags,
the lighting of candles, the giving of blood, the
saying of prayers -- in English, Hebrew, and
Arabic.”
—George Bush, Address to the Nation on Terrorism
Parallelism
5. Name the rhetorical device.
O “Sanitation engineer”
O “Pre-owned vehicle”
O “Economically disadvantaged”
Euphemism
6. Name the rhetorical device.
O In 1982, after all four engines of British Airways
Flight 9 failed 38,000 feet over the Atlantic due to
volcanic ash, the captain of the flight made the
following announcement to the passengers:
Understatement
7. Name the rhetorical device.
"I'll love you, dear, I'll love you till China and Africa meet,
And the river jumps over the mountain
And the salmon sing in the street,
I'll love you till the ocean
Is folded and hung up to dry
And the seven stars go squawking
Like geese about the sky.”
--From "As I Walked Out One Evening" by W.H. Auden:
Hyperbole
(also Anaphora, Personification, Simile)
8. Name the rhetorical device.
"Don't you ever talk about my friends! You
don't know any of my friends. You don't look
at any of my friends. And you certainly
wouldn't condescend to speak to any of my
friends.”
--Judd Nelson as John Bender in The Breakfast Club
Epistrophe
9. Name 2 rhetorical devices.
Juxtaposition, Parallelism
ACTIVITIES
Rhetorical Analysis
Rhetorical Devices:
Practice Activity
O On July 4, 1939, Lou Gehrig delivered his “Farewell to Baseball
Address” to a packed Yankee Stadium. Considered the greatest first
baseman in history, Gehrig had just learned of the fatal medical
condition --amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)-- that would destroy
his physical abilities. Moved to tears by the tribute from his
teammates and fans that day, the naturally shy athlete delivered,
without notes, the now iconic speech.
O Read the speech on the handout provided, underlining any
rhetorical devices you find.
O Identify five strong examples of rhetorical examples within the
speech, then explain how each helps the speaker to achieve his
purpose.
NOTE: You can watch the MLB 75th Anniversary video honoring Gehrig here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oW1RuGqw7g
Rhetorical Analysis
Group Activity
O Choose one of the speeches on the following page
O Closely read the speech, highlighting and identifying
any rhetorical devices you find.
O Select the 10 best examples of rhetorical devices you
found and record them on the sheet provided.
O Explain how the author’s use of rhetorical devices
helped to achieve his/her purpose.
Note: All speeches can be found on the American Rhetoric web site:http://www.americanrhetoric.com
Group Activity Speech List:
Choose one speech from the list below:
Martin Luther King Jr. I Have a Dream
President Obama First Inaugural Address
Elie Wiesel The Perils of Indifference
John F. Kennedy Inaugural Address
Albert Einstein The Menace of Mass Destruction
George Bush Address to Nation after 9/11
Hilary Rodham Clinton Women’s Rights are Human Rights
Ronald Reagan The "Challenger" Tragedy Address
Barbara Bush Commencement Address Wellesley College
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation
Frederick Douglass The Hypocrisy of American Slavery
Note: All listed speeches can be found on the American Rhetoric web site: http://www.americanrhetoric.com
Writing Activity
Choose one of the following topics. Write 2-3 well developed
paragraphs arguing your stance on that topic. Use AT LEAST FOUR
rhetorical device studied in class to help strengthen your argument.
TOPICS
• Can money buy love?
• Should video games be considered a sport?
• Should school cafeterias be forced to serve only
healthy foods?
• Do teachers assign too much homework?
• Should video cameras be posted in classrooms?
• Which is more important: talent or hard work?
Looking for more rhetorical
analysis activities?
Use Martin Luther King’s impassioned
“Letter from Birmingham Jail” (a CCSS
exemplar text) to practice rhetorical
analysis, including:
• Detailed Lesson Plans
• Introductory PowerPoint
• Pre-reading Debate Activity
• Vocabulary Inventory and Builder
• SOAPTSTone Analysis
• Rhetorical Analysis
• Reflection and Writing Activities
• Detailed Answer Keys, Rubrics