Rhetorical Modes
Rhetorical refers to the ancient art of
argumentation and discourse. Thus, rhetorical
modes would be the techniques used to
manipulate the language to effectively transmit
the author’s message to a reader. Patterns.
Mode may be defined as:
a. A manner, way, or method of doing or acting:
e.g., modern modes of travel.
b. A particular form, variety, or manner: a mode
of expression.
Thus, rhetorical modes would be the techniques
used to manipulate the language to effectively
transmit the author’s message to a reader.
Patterns.
Let the question decide the mode.
For example:
1. Which is more important, college or
university? - Use Comparison.
2. What happens when I don’t attend class
regularly? - Use Cause/Effect.
How to decide which to use
Definition
Uses
• Helps you better understand your topic.
• May suggest an organization for your essay.
• Tells the reader exactly what you are talking
about.
Example
• What is fast-food? A frozen dinner or a Big
Mac?
Chronology
Uses
• Trace a topic’s development over time.
• Could involve a cause-effect or problemsolving approach.
Example
• Trace the development of fast-food
restaurants since 1950.
Description
Uses
• Adds concrete, physical details to an essay.
• Must be organized systematically.
• May be needed in Definition.
Example
• Describe a Big Mac.
Narration
Uses
• Introduce or reinforce your topic.
• Illustrate a principle.
• Clearly identify a problem.
Example
• Relate an occurrence at a fast-food restaurant
that illustrates the dangers of food poisoning.
Process (“how to”)
Uses
• Focus on the steps needed to do something.
Example
• Describe the process for obtaining a burger
from the time the customer places his/her
order to the time they receive it.
Classification/Division
Uses
• Organize a large number of items into more
manageable groups according to their relative
similarities.
• Break a subject down to better understand
the whole.
Example
• Burgers: hamburgers, fish burgers, veggie
burgers.
Cause-Effect
Uses
• Explain the cause(s) of a condition.
• Explain the result(s) or effect(s) of a condition.
Example
• Show how eating too much fast-food may cause
obesity and other health-related conditions.
• Show the causes of obesity related to the fastfood industry.
Question/Answer
Uses
• Introduce the topic of a paragraph or essay.
• Engage the reader with a question that
arouses their curiosity.
Example
• Ask the traditional questions:
Who, What, When, Where, Why, How
Example/Illustration
Uses
• Support a point.
• Clarify an idea.
Example
“Fast-food restaurants save time.”
Illustrate by showing the convenience of drivethroughs.
Problem-Solution
Uses
• Introduce a solution.
• Could focus on both problem and solution.
Example
Problem - “Dubious nutritious value of fastfoods.”
Solution - Propose ways fast-foods could be
made healthier.
Cost Benefit
Uses
• Analyse the pros and cons of a topic.
• Weigh advantages and disadvantages.
Example
• Focus on individual, community, or global
costs or benefits of fast-foods.
• These could include financial, time, health,
energy for example.
Analogy
Uses
• Compare two unlike objects to better
understand one of them.
Example
• Compare fast-foods to the pace of
contemporary society.
Compare/Contrast
Uses
• Show similarities and/or differences.
Example
• Compare some aspect of one fast-food
restaurant to another.
Practice
Below are 15 general topics.
Using at least three different organizational
modes (methods) per topic, write three different
topic sentences for each topic.
Topics
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Alternative schooling
Animal rights
Eating disorders
Email
Evolution
Exercise
Gas prices
Internet piracy
Topics continued
9. Global warming
10.Organ transplants
11.Privacy
12.Public speaking
13.Same-sex marriages
14.Sports violence
15.Stress
Examples using the topic “rap music”
1. Cause-Effect: Rap music, with its reliance on
ever-changing slang, has expanded people’s
vocabulary; for instance, one’s boyfriend is
now called one’s “boo.”
2. Definition: Rap music is defined by some as
being no more than talking over someone
else’s music.
3. Description or Narration: The lights were
dim, and the crowd, writhing to the rhythm
of the bass, was pressing forward to the
stage.
4. Chronology: The style of rap music has
evolved considerably since it first gained
popularity with North American youth in the
early 1990s.
5. Question-Answer: How does rap music
manage to offend a broad demographic
group while maintaining a strong fan base?
6. Problem-Solution: It may seem somewhat
ironic, but it is possible that many of the
problems addressed in rap lyrics could be
solved through this very same medium.
7. Compare (and Contrast): Rap and hip-hop
music in the late 1980s and early 1990s, with
their offensive lyrics and radical countercultural appeal, can be compared in terms of
their sociological implications to the rockand-roll revolution of the late 1960s and
early 1970s.
8. Personal: When I first heard rap music I
found the type of lyrics offensive and sexist.
9. Cause-Effect: Living in the ghetto,
surrounded by “booty’ and the ‘brothers,”
can sometimes cause young men to chant
words to a particular rhythm that has no
melody.
10. Also: Rap music has been used as a vehicle
for the oppressed minority to get its voice
heard.
11. Process: To create rap music you need a DJ
to provide the beats by mixing records and an
MC who takes the beats and contributes the
vocals to make the finished product.
12. Classification: There are many different
forms of rap; these include hop-hop, hard core,
and R&B.
13. Definition and Division: Rap is a unique
form of music that is built around heavy bass
beats mixed with sharp, quick lyrics. There is a
whole spectrum of rap music, ranging from slow
love ballads to fast-paced dance songs.
14. Cost-Benefit: Though rap may lead young
people to openly and healthily question
authority and the status quo, it can lead some
adolescents to commit acts of violence against
society.
14. Analogy: Rap can be compared to the
insistent and repetitive chants of an
evangelist preacher.
Credits
Henderson, Eric. The Empowered Writer. Don
Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press,
2010. pp. 110-120.