Language of Persuasion
 Persuasive texts use complex language to express and
justify an opinion. The writer is trying to persuade the
reader to their point of view.
 Examples: letter, speech, debate, thesis, essay, expert
opinion
 Facts, statistics and information are evidence that
support your argument.
Persuasive Letter Writing
Hi Mum and Dad,
Camp i$ fun. You can buy $weet$ and chip$ at the
$hop but I don’t have any $. Plea$e write $oon and
$end a $urpri$e.
Your $on, Norri$
Structure of a Persuasive Text
Form your opinion then:
 State your position in your introduction
 Provide argument(s) or reasons for your opinion:
make the point + elaborate
 Use evidence to support your argument
 New paragraph for each idea
 Reinforce your statement position in your
conclusion
Audience
The audience will influence the way you try to
persuade someone.
Problem: You want your friend to sleep over on the
weekend. Roleplay:
 How would you persuade your friend?
 How would you persuade your dad?
 How would you persuade your mum?
 How would you persuade your friend’s parent?
Opinions
Persuasive texts use language to express and
justify an opinion. Gone are the days when
children should be seen but not heard!
Opinions differ ...
My Opinion
Choose from the following list and explain your
opinion:
Dogs, fruit, swimming, ball games, watching
television
I like __________________________________________
because________________________________________
_______________________________________________
Evidence
 Information, facts or
statements used to support
your belief, opinion, point of
view or proposition.
 Evidence is found in: research,
statistics, facts, expert opinions,
reports, case studies, editorials,
ideas.
 The reader must make decisions
as to the accuracy of the
evidence.
Presenting Evidence

‘These are the facts ...’

‘Statistics say ...’

‘Experts are of the opinion ...’

‘As a result ...’
Language Techniques
Don't Let The Pigeon Drive The Bus by Mo Williams
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuGFiphslAk&featur
e=email
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuGFiphslAk&featur
e=email
Emotive Language
 Emotive language plays on
people’s feelings and persuades
them to agree.
 We care about human traits:
loyalty, humility, generosity,
patience, strength, honesty,
humour.
 Heavily weigh the persuasive
text with abstract words such as
heart, love, sorrow, despair, hate,
destiny, truth or pain.
 Use humour.
Examples of Emotive Language
 Negative Emotive Words
liar, cheat, lazy, rude, thoughtless, disgusting, slimy,
sleazy
 Positive Emotive Words
beautiful, friendly, intelligent, talented, athletic, kind,
thoughtful
 Evaluative or Value-laden Words
important, valuable, significant, innocence, guilt,
serious
Exaggeration
When you overstate, or
exaggerate, it reinforces
your point and gives it
greater importance. Don’t
just like or dislike, love or
detest.
Hyperbole is a figure of
speech which is an
exaggeration:
 ‘I cried a million tears’
 ‘I nearly died from
laughing’
 ‘I’m so full I could burst’
Exaggeration Examples
1) ‘My mum’s going to be angry with me.’
2) ‘Well, my mum’s going to kill me.’
3) ‘That’s nothing. My mum’s going to kill me, then boil me
in oil.’
1) ‘I caught this fish which was big enough to eat.’
2) ‘I caught this fish which was big enough to feed my
whole family.’
3) ‘Well, I caught this fish that was big enough to feed the
whole navy.’
Colourful or Descriptive Words
 Colourful or descriptive
words make your writing
more interesting and
exciting
 They command attention
and add emphasis
 Descriptive words are used
for colour, touch, sound,
smell, shape and pattern
Examples of Colourful or Descriptive Words
 Colour – scarlet, charcoal, aquamarine, copper, emerald
 Touch – polished, clammy, stubbly, waxy, matted
 Sound – wheezing, yapping, rasping, screeching, tinkling
 Smell – musty, spicy, earthy, doggy, acrid
 Shape – corkscrew, crescent, spiked, sunken, swollen
 Pattern – chequered, dappled, veined, banded, striped
Ranking Colourful Words
Example: cool, chilly cold, freezing
1) devastated, upset, distraught, sad
2) ravenous, starving, hungry, peckish
3) hot, burning, warm, red-hot
4) smart, clever, brilliant, genius
Modality
 The selection of words used by a writer or speaker to express different
shades and degrees of meaning.
 Examples: may, will, must, probably, possibly, usually, definitely
 Modality can be expressed through various language features such as:
• modal verbs
• modal adverbs
• modal nouns
• modal adjectives
I might go, I must go, I could go
I could possibly go, Perhaps I will go
There is a possibility I will go
What is the probable ending?
Modality
Different modalities have different degrees of emphasis.
The stronger the emphasis, the more persuasive.
 It might have been her.
 It must have been her.
 It probably was her.
 It possibly might have been her.
 It was her.
 It was definitely her.
Cliché
 Clichés are overused expressions that are familiar to
the audience
 Because they are well-known they are easier to
understand and this makes them more persuasive
 Compile a list of the most clichéd excuses for not
doing your homework
Anecdotes
 Anecdotes, or yarns, are
short stories about an
amusing or interesting
incident
 They engage the audience
and make them receptive
to the point you are
making
 Anecdotes are often
humorous with a punchline
Anecdotes Continued
Familiar narrative beginnings set up expectations for
the reader, helping them to relate or engage with the
writer’s point of view.
Once upon a time ...
It was a dark and stormy night …
A long, long time ago …
In a land far, far away ...
Inclusive Language
 This is language that
includes the
reader/audience
 Examples: us, we, you, I,
me
 It sounds friendly and
engaging
 ‘Know what I mean?’
 ‘Most people
think/feel/know ...’
 ‘Wouldn’t you agree that ...’
 ‘We all know ...’
Rhetorical Questions
 Questions that we don’t
expect our audience to
answer
 The answer is implied
Why is it that when
someone tells you that
there's billions of stars in
the universe, you believe
them. But if they tell you
there's wet paint on
something you have to
touch it?
Rhetorical Questions Continued
 Because the answer is obvious, a rhetorical question is
more like a statement (or fact) and can be a powerful
persuasive device
 Are we there yet? [I’m bored]
 Who do you think you are? [You’re arrogant or
conceited]
 Think of some situations where you might start your
exposition with:
How many more children have to die?
Repetition
 The repetition of a word,
phrase or idea
emphasises the point
you are trying to make. It
reinforces the point and
helps the reader to
remember it
‘Constant repetition
carries conviction’
Robert Collier
 For example:
Never, never, never
to be released
Alliteration
 Repeating and playing
upon the same letter
 Alliteration is persuasive
because it adds emphasis
and reinforces meaning
 It occurs in everyday
speech:
‘Look before you leap’
 In the names ‘Severus
Snape’ and ‘Salazar
Slytherin’ the ‘s’ creates a
hissing, scary sound.
Examples:
 Fee, fi, fo, fum!
 Stop, Drop, and Roll
 Veni, vidi, vici [Julius Caesar]
Repetition Continued
What are these texts trying to persuade us to
believe?
 Practise, practise, practise
 Of the people, by the people, for the people (Abraham
Lincoln)
 That’s the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the
truth
 Location, location, location
Bias
 When only one opinion or
point of view is presented
the reader is persuaded
that no other opinion or
point of view exists or is
worth reading.
 I’d like to you to think
about …
 Against that, it could be
said …
 The best piece of advice I
can give is …
 I understand that but …
Generalisations
 These are sweeping
 Examples: Children
statements that claim to
be true for nearly
everyone
 They contain words such
as ‘everybody’, ‘nobody’,
‘everything’, or ‘nothing’,
- inclusive words which
leave nothing (or very
little) out
today watch far too
much TV;
 All kids love pizza;
 Most students hate
broccoli.
Generalisations Continued
What can you notice about this?
English speakers often prefer to make
generalisations, rather than saying
something is a fact.
Active Voice
Active voice is more direct, simple and shorter than
passive voice
Because it is easier to understand it is more persuasive
Active Voice Examples
 A copy of this letter will be sent to you by me.
I will send you a copy of this letter.
 The report was lost by me.
I lost the report.
Rule of Three
 Things that come in threes
are more persuasive.
 Humans process
information using
patterns.
 Three is the smallest
number of elements
required to create a
pattern.
 Being brief and having a
pattern makes our content
more memorable.
 Blood, sweat and tears
 Cool, calm and collected
 Scissors, paper, rock
 Stop, look and listen
Rule of Three Continued
What children’s stories, songs or nursery rhymes are
based on the number three?
Summary of The Language of Persuasion
 Opinions
 Anecdotes
 Audience
 Inclusive Language
 Evidence
 Rhetorical Questions
 Emotive Language
 Repetition
 Exaggeration
 Alliteration
 Colourful or Descriptive
 Bias
Words
 Modality
 Cliché
 Generalisations
 Active Voice
 Rule of Three
Task:
You will be assigned one aspect of persuasive language from
this PowerPoint. It is your job to become the expert in that
aspect.
 Task Part 1:
 You will need to create a
poster which includes
the definition and
examples. Make sure
your poster is clearly
understood, colourful
and eye catching.
 Task Part 2:
 Create a short activity for
your class to teach them
about the use and effect of
your persuasive aspect.
Make sure your activity is
clear and educational but
try to make it fun as well!