Elements of Rhetoric and Persuasion
Rhetoric is the art of using language to manipulate or persuade, to make your point seem reasonable and
compelling. Skilled rhetoricians use language as part of their appeals to LOGIC (LOGOS), EMOTION
(PATHOS), and ETHOS. As good critical readers, we learn to recognize these terms and to understand their
effects in the work we are reading. By understanding how the effects of these terms contribute to a
writer/speaker’s rhetorical purpose, we more fully understand the intended effect of the work.
I.
Persuasive Considerations: SOAPSTone (See pg. 23 in Resource Packet for more)
Speaker: Is there someone identified as the speaker? Can you make some assumptions about this
person? What class does the speaker come from? What political bias can be inferred? What
gender?
Occasion: What may have prompted the author to write this piece? What even led to its
publication or development?
Audience: Does the speaker identify the audience? What assumptions can you make about the
audience? Is it mixed in terms of: race, politics, gender, social class, religion, etc? Who was the
document created for? Does the speaker use language that is specific for a unique audience?
Does the speaker evoke: Nation? Liberty? God? History? Hell?
Purpose: What is the speaker’s purpose? In what ways does the author convey this message?
What seems to be the emotional state of the speaker? How is the speaker trying to spark a reaction
in the audience? What words or phrases show the speaker’s tone? How is this document supposed
to make the audience feel?
Subject: What is the subject of the piece? How do you know this? How has the subject been
selected and presented by the author?
Tone: What is the author’s attitude toward the subject? How is the writer’s attitude revealed? The
tools a writer uses to create tone are diction, imagery/figurative language, details, language
(formal/informal/jargon/etc.) and syntax.
II.
Persuasive Appeals
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Ethos is how the speaker establishes his or her authority or the source’s credibility. To establish
authority, the speaker often references his or her expertise or personal experience.
Logos is the logic used to support a claim (induction and deduction); it can also be facts and
statistics used to help support the argument.
Pathos is the emotional or motivational appeal; a pathos appeal uses vivid language, emotional
language and numerous sensory details.
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
III. Rhetorical Modes
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To describe
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To narrate
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To compare/contrast
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To define
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To analyze
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To persuade/argue
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To explain
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To classify
IV. Argumentation Terms
The examples illustrating these terms are taken from the memoir Fist Stick Knife Gun by Geoffrey Canada.
*Assertion/claim (noun)/ assert (verb): Assertions are opinions stated as facts—the basis of all arguments.
Assertions are always arguable. Another word for an assertion that controls an argument is claim.
“America has long had a love affair with violence and guns”(x). Canada begins his book by claiming, or asserting that
an important part of America’s experience has been their love of violence and guns. He supports this claim by citing
examples from our history (the American Revolution, the Wild West, and so on) in which guns and violence played a
major role.
*Generalizations: an assertion about a group or class which implies that every member of this group or class shares a
common characteristic. Subjective generalizations depend on personal attitudes and cannot be logically proven (ice
cream is better than pie). Objective or probable generalizations are true in most cases but not all, and are useful in
argumentation.
Canada’s comment above is a probable generalization because lots of support exists in American history; still, it is a
generalization because you can always find Americans who hate guns.
*Assumption/unspoken assumption (noun): a supposed “fact” that is actually never proved. The assumption may be
part of a speaker’s belief system.
In the above quote, Canada assumes that the role of guns in American history comes about because Americans love
guns. Another assumption (or belief system) might be that guns are simply necessary for defense against outside
threats.
*Qualification (noun): to modify, restrict or limit. A qualification of an assertion or claim means that you agree in
part, or you wish to redefine or reshape the assertion.
If you were asked your opinion of Canada’s assertion, or claim, you might agree that guns have held an important place
in the defense of America, but that “love affair” is too strong a term to describe Americans’ feelings for guns. So you
would express your opinion as a qualification of Canada’s argument: while it is true that guns have played an
important part in American history, the reason is not Americans’ love for guns but rather their desire for safety and
security.
*Issue: a debatable question that gives rise to different positions or stances. A current issue that concerns Americans is
what our role in Iraq should be. The Bush administration’s stance or position is that we must use our military strength
to achieve a democratic government.
An issue Canada addresses in his book is human nature: “As an adult I have heard many times the debate about
whether violence is part of the human makeup or a learned behavior”(23).
*Speaker’s Stance: a “stance” is a position, where you stand on an issue. You might, for example, disagree with
Bush’s stance on Iraq and believe instead that we should withdraw our troops. That belief, then, would be your stance.
Canada asserts his stance on the issue of violence in human nature: “There is no way that I can buy the theory that
humans have some genetic predisposition to violence. I know better. . . . My initial belief that violence is learned has
been reinforced by years of counseling and teaching children and adolescents in inner-city neighborhoods in Boston
and New York”(23).
*Rebuttal/Refutation(nouns) rebut/refute (verbs): an opposing argument; a contradiction. To prove an argument
wrong.
Canada cites the common solutions proposed to end violence in our society: “tougher sentencing for youth caught with
guns, . . . boot camp programs, quick fix conflict mediation . . . “(68). But he rebuts or refutes the idea that these
solutions will solve the problem , pointing out that “the death toll continues to rise” and that that current policies “fail
to address the problem of the sheer availability of guns”(68).
*Hypothesis (noun): an unproved theory, proposition or supposition.
Near the end of his book, Canada makes a hypothesis that “Peace officers could bring a whole new approach to
violence prevention” in crime-ridden neighborhoods. He is attempting to prove this hypothesis by establishing
communities within Harlem.
*Speculation(noun) speculate(verb): A guess about what may happen in the future.
In his plans to save Harlem, Canada speculates that the cost of educating young people about drugs will be offset by the
savings in incarcerations(162).
*Objective: without personal bias or prejudice.
When Canada argues that “in some cities more than forty percent of minority youth who want to work can’t find
employment”(162), his evidence from the New York City Office of the Comptroller shows the reader that this is an
objective remark, based on fact.
*Subjective: conclusions based on personal feelings/prejudice or bias.
Canada retells many of the incidents from his childhood from a subjective point of view, revealing his hurt, confusion
and frustrations in learning the “codes of conduct” in his neighborhood.
*Recapitulate: to repeat briefly; to summarize. Often when you write an argument essay or give a speech, you
recapitulate, or sum up your points, in your conclusion.
After describing his experience as a teacher with some difficult students (Ch. 4), Canada
recapitulates by comparing these students to those he had grown up with in the Bronx and restating his claim that
“Violence is a learned response”(28).
Terms having to do with syntactical constructions/patterns
Syntax: the order of words in a sentence; sentence structure.
Syntactical patterns: the repetition of ordering of words in a sentence for effect.
Clause: a group of words containing a subject and a verb.
Subordinate Clause: a group of words containing a subject and a verb that cannot stand alone as a
sentence.
Complex Sentence: sentence containing an independent clause and a subordinate clause.
Compound Sentence: sentence containing two independent clauses
Parallelism: a set of similarly structured words, phrases or clauses that appears in a sentence or
paragraph.
Antithesis: the juxtaposition (placing side by side) of opposing or contrasting words or ideas, in parallel
structure. "Place your virtues on a pedestal; put your vices under a rock."
Balanced (phrases, clauses, ideas): two equal words, phrases, clauses or sentences.
Oxymoron: juxtaposed words (words placed side by side) with seemingly opposite meanings. "Jumbo
shrimp"
Rhetorical terms having to do with meaning of words/author's purpose
*Appeals to authority: using the endorsement , approval or voice of an authority to make an argument seem more
convincing. When students voice their opinions in a synthesis essay, they often quote from authority figures to support
their opinions.
Canada argues that our war on drugs has been a failure. To make this argument more convincing, he appeals to
authority by quoting an academic study by Jerome G. Miller who did much research on the effect of laws on the amount
of drug sales on the streets(130).
*Anecdote: the retelling of a brief incident that may illustrate or prove a point made in an argument.
Canada begins his book with the incident of the lost jacket which his mother insisted his brother go back and get(Ch.
1). With this anecdote he provides the foundation for his argument that the streets of the Bronx required special “codes
of conduct.”
*Dilemma: a conflict whose resolution requires one of two choices, both of which are unfavorable or disagreeable.
For example, a teen-ager may have to decide which parent to live with, realizing that either choice will cause pain. A
false dilemma occurs when a speaker oversimplifies a complex situation so that it seems that only two choices are
presented. Example: America: love it or leave it. The choice of staying in American but working for change is not
presented as an option.
Canada tells us of the dilemma he faced as a parent after his daughter was attacked on the school bus: If he taught her
to be peaceful, which he believed in, she would be a victim to crueler children. But if he taught her to be a fighter, he
would be contributing to the violent world he hated (6-7).
*Invective: an emotionally violent attack, using strong and critical language, on an individual or an institution.
Canada ends his book with an emotional criticism of those who fail to help poor children. In this invective, he speaks
of “monsters” who “deprive them (children) of heat in the winter, . . . don’t fix their sinks and toilets, . . . let garbage
pile up in their hallways, . . . kick them out of their homes, . . . beat them, . . . shoot them, . . . stab them . . . rape their
bodies and their minds”(178).
*Rhetorical Question: a question asked to make a point. The speaker/writer already knows the answer to the
question, and he asks the question to remind his audience of this answer.
In his first encounter with the police, Canada learns that they expect and accept the level of violence that occurs in his
neighborhood. He imagines the police asking a rhetorical question: “What’s the matter with you people, don’t you
know where you live?” Obviously, the people know where they live. The police use this question to remind the
inhabitants of the ghetto that violence is part of their world.
*Juxtaposition: a device by which a writer or speaker juxtaposes, or places two items side by side. This is done to
create an ironic contrast or effect. A famous photograph from the Depression shows a long line of men waiting for
bread who are standing in front of a billboard that says, “America, Land of Opportunity.” The picture of men who are
out of work and must rely on food hand-outs is juxtaposed with the message that America provides opportunities for
all.
When Canada and his co-workers find the building they wish to convert into the Beacon community center, Canada
juxtaposes the description of a “woman nodding from heroin on the old coach” with his dream that this building could
“transform the community”(134). The ironic contrast of the visible effect of the ruin of the neighborhood with the
idealistic dream for its revival enhances our understanding of the challenge Canada faces.
*Paradox: a reconciliation of opposites; a true statement that seems contradictory. Example:“It was the best of times;
it was the worst of times” (Dickens Tale of Two Cities). Dickens points out that the historical time of his novel had
both positive and negative qualities co-existing.
Canada’s reasoning for teaching martial arts to his neighborhood children represents a paradox because it seems to be
contradictory. He explains this contradiction or paradox:
“I knew it seemed counter-intuitive that teaching young people how to punch, kick, and defend themselves would
reduce violence.” He goes on to reconcile the seeming contradiction by pointing out that those with the confidence
martial arts brings are more able to resist fighting.
*Oxymoron: a two-word expression of seeming contradiction. (jumbo shrimp, deafening silence)
Canada says of his friend who didn’t like to fight: “Butchie was a gentle giant”(16).
The meaning of “gentle” contrasts with our accepted notion of a “giant” as a powerful figure of strength.
*Antithesis: the contrast of opposites within parallel clauses or phrases.
Canada uses antithesis to point out the contrast between his innocent belief that the police would help him and his
growing awareness that they didn’t care about people in his neighborhood: “It was nothing they did, it was what they
didn’t do”(14).
*Textual Irony: a writer or speaker says one thing but actually means something else. The reader/listener gets the
actual or ironic meaning from tone and context.
As Canada concludes the anecdote about the boy with ringworm, he ends his chapter by saying “I thought I had worked
out all of the violence and fear issues in my life”(11). The reader recognizes this comment as ironic because of
Canada’s strong focus on the problem of violence at the beginning of the book. Canada’s intended meaning is to point
out, ironically, that he will continue to face violence.
*Theme: the universal truth. This may be a truth about human nature, nature itself, and/or society. Themes are truths
about human experience that are timeless—they apply to everyone in every place at every time.
One of Canada’s themes, which he develops with his idea of neighborhoods being “jungles” with “codes of conduct”
based on survival, is that human beings who must learn to survive in a cruel environment will lose their humanity.
*Hyperbole (overstatement): a deliberate exaggeration for effect. One nature writer said of the screech owl, that if it
could, it would devour the whole world. This, obviously, is an exaggeration; its effect is to emphasize the danger of
this owl.
Canada’s description of boys at his school who were like “hungry sharks at a feeding frenzy” (which is also a simile) is
hyperbole or overstatement. Through exaggeration (not every single boy was as dangerous as a hungry shark) we
understand how scared and vulnerable Canada felt at the school.
*Litotes (understatement): deliberately representing something as less than it is in order to create a particular effect.
Canada relates an incident which begins with the claiming of a basketball and escalates into the confrontation of a man
with a gun. He watches as the older boys reach for their knives and face down an opponent who has a much more
powerful weapon. Later, when Geoffrey wants to talk about this incident, Mike and Junior deliberately understate the
severity of what happened: ‘“He was an asshole. Forget it.”’(42). Their use of litotes or understatement is meant to
teach an important lesson: you must keep your emotions under control in order to survive on the streets.
*Tone: the author’s attitude toward his/her material and/or his/er audience. Tone Shifts frequently occur in complex
passages and are often clues to meaning. Identifying the tone or tones of a passage is an essential critical reading skill.
When Geoffrey tries to avoid fighting, the older boys speak to him in a taunting tone: ‘“You scared?” “You scared of
everybody bigga than you. Alan’s bigga than you, you scared of him?”’(38).
Often, Canada’s tone becomes didactic, or preachy, as he points out what society must do to solve the problem of
violence: “The only way we are going to make a difference is by placing well-trained and caring adults in the middle
of what can only be called a free-fire zone in our poorest communities. Adults standing side by side with children in
the war zones o America is the only way to turn this thing around”(109).
*Figurative Language(metaphor, simile/analogy, personification): language that asks us to imagine, or “see” one
thing (schools) as something else (gladiator societies). Canada creates a particular effect about the schools that gives
the reader a particular impression: they are places where you must fight to survive.
*Metaphor: a direct comparison, sometimes implied
Canada described metaphorically a teen-age girl killed by a bullet as if she were a piece of material: ‘The bullet
entered her head, killing her instantly, leaving her draped on the fence”(1). The image of the girl “draped” on the fence
emphasizes her lifelessness.
*Simile: an indirect comparison using “like” or “as”
Canada uses a simile to compare the boys in his new schools to sharks: “These boys were like hungry sharks in a
feeding frenzy”(32). This simile emphasizes the fear he felt in such an environment.
*Analogy: a more developed simile
Canada uses an analogy to show how parents often fear for their children’s safety: “Many of them see their child as a
fawn penned in amongst lion cubs. They know that the cubs will scratch and bite, eventually even kill the fawn”(8).
*Personification: giving life to inanimate objects
Canada writes that children “live in a world where danger lurks all around them”(178).
The verb “lurks” implies human intention; to lurk is to stay hidden until it is time to attack. Canada personifies danger
as a living force.
*Symbol: A figure that represents an abstract idea. Through visualization, we better understand an abstract idea. In
To Kill a Mockingbird, the mockingbird, an innocent bird who hurts nothing, represents Tom Robinson.
Canada makes the gun a symbol of the explosion of violence in our poor neighborhoods. As a gun is threatening to life,
the threat of violence which it represents promises to destroy the future of our young children if, Canada argues, we do
not take a stand.
*Imagery: language that appeals to any of the five senses. Example: the snow is velvety appeals to our sense of
touch.
Canada uses vivid imagery to describe his daughter’s face after her attack: “Another little girl on the bus had started
bullying her and had ended up raking her face with her fingernails, leaving a set of four bloody trails down Melina’s
face”(7). We feel both the physical and emotional pain of this disfigurement because of Canada’s imagery, and we
share in his outrage as a parent.
*Connotation: words that have an emotional power or are strongly suggestive. “Throne” has a stronger connotation
than “chair”; “mother” has a stronger connotation than “person.”
Canada writes that “The handgun had replaced the fist or knife as the weapon of choice. The codes of conduct on the
streets across the nation were about to undergo a major and lethal shift”(81). “Lethal” has the connotation, or
suggestion, of something that is extremely threatening to life. By using the word “lethal” to describe the changing rules
on the street, Canada develops his argument that guns are destroying America’s poorer neighborhoods.
*Concrete details: specific nouns, verbs and modifiers that allow the reader or listener to visualize exactly what the
speaker/writer depicts.
At the conclusion of his book, Canada asks our leaders to “look into the eyes of the five-year-olds of this nation,
dressed in old raggedy clothes, whose zippers are broken but whose dreams are still alive”(178). Rather than
generalizing about poor children, Canada’s concrete details bring to life a particular child, five years old, with a broken
zipper. With this specific picture he hopes to achieve his rhetorical purpose, which is to motivate leaders to take action.
*Allusions: indirect references to works, events or figures that the author assumes the reader is familiar with. The
most commonly alluded to works are the Bible and Greek/Roman mythology. A writer also may allude to historical
fact or to common cultural knowledge.
Canada refers to his neighborhood on Union Avenue as paradise, but then writes that “Paradise didn’t last long”(14).
This allusion refers to the Christian concept of Paradise as a perfect place with no conflict (the Garden of Eden).
*Alliteration: the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words in order to emphasize these words (the day
of his death was a deep dark day) or to create a particular mood (Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers—silly or
humorous).
Canada writes of Mayor David Dinkins, who had “dedicated his life to saving poor children in Harlem and in other
pockets of poverty”108. Repetition of the “p” sound connects the words “poor” to “pockets” of “poverty”. This
alliteration emphasizes these words ; the reader must notice the deep areas (pockets) containing poor children. This
alliteration thus contributes to Canada’s purpose in compelling the reader to concentrate on this societal problem.
*Onomatopoeia: words that sound like what they are. These words create energy in a written or spoken piece and
emphasize a particular action or the force of an incident.
Canada remembers that the young boys were sometimes allowed contact with the older ones, but often were run off
with a “smack upside the head”(38). The word “smack” sounds like an actual hit on the skin, and the occurrence of
frequent smacks even among those of the same circle illustrates the harsh codes of conduct in the neighborhood.