AN INTRODUCTION TO RHETORIC:
USING THE “AVAILABLE MEANS”
Chapter 1
ASSIGNMENT
Follow along with your Cornell Notes.
Topic/Objective: Chapter 1 – Rhetoric
You will complete the Notes (right side) in
class.
You will complete the Questions/Main Idea
(left side) for homework.
Cornell Notes on Chapter 1 will be due on
Tuesday, August 23, 2011.
KEY ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC
Nowadays, the word “rhetoric” is often
used to signal deception.
Rhetoric means the effective use of
language to communicate an idea.
Rhetoric can serve sincerity (as in Lou
Gehrig’s speech) as well as trickery.
KEY ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC
(CONTINUED)
Rhetoric is always situational: it always has a
context and a purpose.
Context: the occasion, time, place it was
written or spoken
Purpose: goal that the speaker or writer
wants to achieve.
KEY ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC
(CONTINUED)
Context?
Purpose?
KEY ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC
(CONTINUED)
Context of Lou Gehrig’s speech is the
emotional contrast between the
celebration of his athletic career and
his life-threatening diagnosis.
Purpose of Lou Gehrig’s speech is to
remain positive and downplay his “bad
break.”
KEY ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC
(CONTINUED)
Context and purpose are essential to
analyzing effective rhetoric.
First, consider the context: The occasion,
time, and place
Then, consider the purpose: What is the
speaker’s goal in this communication?
KEY ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC
(CONTINUED)
Remember that sometimes context arises
from current events or cultural bias.
THE RHETORICAL TRIANGLE
THE RHETORICAL TRIANGLE
 Author:
 Audience:
•
Who is the author?
•
•
What do you know about the
author?
How do they feel about the
subject?
•
How does the writer expect
them to respond to their topic?
•
Is he/she trustworthy? Why?
•
What else has he/she written on the
subject?
 Purpose:
•
Does the writer propose
something?
 Audience:
•
Who is my audience? What do they
mean to me?
•
Does the writer convey
specific information?
•
What is their interest in the
subject?
•
Does the writer convince you
of something?
•
What do they know about the
subject?
•
Does the writer try to sell
something?
P ERSONA
I NTENTION
Analyzing a Text
=
Pigsacing a Text
G ENRE
S UBJCT
A UDIENCE
C ONTEXT
PIGSAC
Persona
The voice that tells the story. The author and the
speaker are NOT necessarily the same. An author
may choose to tell the story from any number of
different points of view (character or persona).
 3 Components
 Tone
 Diction
 Logic
PIGSAC
Intention
The reason behind the text. The author/speaker’s
GOAL in the communication.
 Consider the purpose of the text in order to
examine the argument and its logic.
“What does the speaker want the audience to think
or do as a result of reading this text?”
PIGSAC
Intention (continued)
TONE
 The attitude of the author toward the subject
matter. With the written work, it is tone that
extends meaning beyond the literal.
 can be determined by examining the author’s
diction (choice of words), syntax (word order), and
imagery (vivid descriptions that appeal to the
senses).
PIGSAC
Intention (continued)
TONE
 amiable?
Is the author:
 sincere?
 detached?
 matter-of-fact?
 passionate?
 authoritative?
 zealous?
 nostalgic?
 sardonic?
 condescending?
 sincere?
 insolent?
 matter-of-fact?
 angry?
 authoritative?
 condescending?
 nostalgic?
 insolent?
 angry?
PIGSAC
Intention (continued)
Is the Speaker:
 Trying to win
agreement?
 Persuade us to
take action?
 Evoke sympathy?
 Make us laugh?
 Inform?
TONE
Does the Speaker
 Provoke?
 Celebrate?
 Repudiate?
 Put forth a proposal?
 Secure support?
 Bring about a
favorable decision?
PIGSAC
Genre










The type of writing. Also called modes:
Creative/Expressive
Descriptive
Expository/Informative
Narrative
Argumentative
Business
Comparison/Contrast
Literary Response
Technical
PIGSAC
Subject
The general topic, content, and ideas
contained in the text; the main idea.
PIGSAC
Audience
The audience may be one person, a small
group, or a large group; it may be a certain
person or a certain people.
APPEALS: HOW TO PERSUADE
Ethos
Appeals to a sense of character, credibility, authority
The writer makes a good impression.
The reader believes the writer knows what he or she is
talking about.
The speaker’s ethos is his expertise,
knowledge experience, training,
sincerity, or a combination.
APPEALS: HOW TO PERSUADE
Logos
Appeals to reason and sense of logic
 Solid facts
 Sound argument
 Acknowledge the counterargument
 Concession and refutation
APPEALS: HOW TO PERSUADE
Pathos
Appeals to emotion
 Figurative language
 Personal Anecdote
 First Person
 Strong
 Connotations
FALLACIES
Attractive but unreliable
pieces of reasoning.
THE FLAW OF FALLACIES
 Relying too heavily on ethos (such as celebrity
endorsement) without corroborating logos, can be a
fallacy.
 Relying too much on emotion without corroborating
logos, can be a fallacy.
ASSIGNMENT
Pg. 9
Due Tuesday, August 23, 2011
ASSIGNMENT
Follow along with your Cornell Notes.
Topic/Objective: Chapter 1 – Rhetoric
You will complete the Notes (right side) in
class.
You will complete the Questions/Main Idea
(left side) for homework.
Cornell Notes on Chapter 1 will be due on
Thursday, August 25, 2011.
VISUAL RHETORIC: EDITORIAL
CARTOONS
uses images to create meaning or construct an
argument.
VISUAL RHETORIC: EDITORIAL
CARTOONS
uses images to create meaning or construct an
argument.
VISUAL RHETORIC: ORGANIZATION
OF AN ESSAY
Classic arrangement:
 Introduction: draws the reader in
 Narration: facts and background
 Confirmation: main part developing the proof
 Refutation: addresses the counterargument
 Conclusion: appeal to pathos, reminds reader of
ethos established earlier. Answers the question,
“so what?”
VISUAL RHETORIC: ORGANIZATION
OF AN ESSAY
 Modern Patterns of Development:
 Narration: Telling a story or recounting a series of events
 Description: emphasizes the senses by painting a picture
(activates the 5 senses)
 Process Analysis: Explains how something works or how to
do something
 Exemplification: Facts, specific cases or instances; turns a
general idea into a more concrete one.
 Comparison and Contrast: Highlighting similarities and
differences
 Classification and Division: Sorting of ideas
 Definition: Defining a term as the basis of an argument
ASSIGNMENT
Pg. 12 Assignment
Pg. 26. Assignment
Review for quiz (review “assignment”)
on pg. 28
Due Thursday, August 25, 2011