RHETORIC IS EVERYWHERE Mrs Oualline English I RHETORIC

RHETORIC IS EVERYWHERE Mrs. Oualline English I

RHETORIC IS SERIOUSLY EVERYWHERE Whether you realize it or not, you are surrounded by RHETORIC! � (It’s really not as creepy as it sounds. ) � Billboards, Commercials, Ads � Magazines � Movies, Music Just call me Rhetoric. Grrrr.

SO, IF THIS THING ISEVERYWHERE… WHY HAVEN’T I NOTICED IT BEFORE? You are already a master of RHETORIC. Persuade your mom to let you go to a concert… Persuade your teacher to give you an extension… Persuade your boyfriend to watch the latest Nicholas Sparks movie… (It’s a survival skill!!) The goal for this unit is to become masters of RHETORICAL ANALYSIS and PERSUASION.

WELL, WHAT EXACTLY ISRHETORIC? !! Rhetoric is: � The art of all specialized literary uses of language in prose or verse, including the figures of speech. � The study of effective use of language. � The art of speaking or writing effectively. � The art of making persuasive arguments. � The art of influencing the thought and conduct of an audience. YIKES! That’s a lot of definition for one word!

BASICALLY… r ou hea Can y d o o ! w? G o n e m Rhetoric deals with the way we use language. For the purposes of our class, RHETORIC is the art of speaking or writing effectively. THEREFORE: Rhetorical ANALYSIS is ANALYZING the way someone has used language. (Usually with a focus on a person’s effectiveness regarding persuasion or argument. )

THE CLASSICAL APPEALS Ethos � The Ethical Appeal Pathos � The Emotional Appeal Logos � The Logical Appeal You can thank the famous Greek philosopher and teacher, Aristotle, for these terms. NOTE: A good argument will generally use a combination of all three appeals to make its case.

ETHOS – THE ETHICAL APPEAL Ethos (Credibility), or ethical appeal, involves convincing by the character of the writer or speaker. We tend to believe people whom we respect. One of the central problems of argumentation is to project an impression to the reader that you are someone worth listening to, in other words making yourself as author into an authority on the subject of the paper, as well as someone who is likable and worthy of respect.

PATHOS – THE EMOTIONAL APPEAL Pathos (Emotional) means persuading by appealing to the reader's emotions. We can look at texts ranging from classic essays to contemporary advertisements to see how pathos, emotional appeals, are used to persuade. Language choice affects the audience's emotional response, and emotional appeal can effectively be used to enhance an argument.

“JUST THE FACTS, MA’AM. ” LOGOS – THE LOGICAL APPEAL Logos (Logical) means persuading by the use of reasoning. This will be the most important technique we will study, and Aristotle's favorite. We'll look at deductive and inductive reasoning, and discuss what makes an effective, persuasive reason to back up your claims. Giving reasons is the heart of argumentation, and cannot be emphasized enough. We'll study the types of support you can use to substantiate your thesis, and look at some of the common logical fallacies, in order to avoid them in your writing.

LOGOS: INDUCTIVE AND DEDUCTIVE REASONING Inductive Reasoning � Drawing a conclusion based on a fact or factual information. � Gather the facts, draw the conclusion. Research; Scientific Method Deductive Reasoning � Beginning with a general conclusion or idea and applying it directly to a specific case. � Start with a proven conclusion or generalization, apply it to a scenario. Profilers (like Criminal Minds)

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES When trying to get one’s message across, one must have a PLAN! This is where Rhetorical Strategies come in! � Analogy � Antithesis � Anticipate the Objection � Concession � Reduce to the Absurd � Rhetorical Question � Hyperbole

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES ANALOGY You should be pretty familiar with this one. An Analogy is a comparison between two things. (‘Simile’ and ‘metaphor’ should come to mind. ) As a strategy, a writer or speaker can use an analogy to clarify a concept by showing a similarity to something more familiar. � Teachers do this all the time. � If you ever watched the TV show “Numb 3 rs” the main character does this often.

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES ANAPHORA Anaphora is the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive sentences or paragraphs. Meaningful repetition can be effective, but the key word is meaningful. Repetition that is not meaningful is just redundant. � Martin Luther King, Jr. ’s “I Have a Dream” speech uses anaphora.

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES ANTITHESIS Antithesis is an opposition or a contrast of ideas or words in a balanced or parallel construction. � It was the best of times, it was the worst of times… A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens � Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more. Brutus, Julius Caesar, Shakespeare � Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing. Goethe � Everybody doesn't like something, but nobody doesn't like Sara Lee. Advertisement

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES ANTICIPATE THE OBJECTION Anticipating the Objection is addressing a possible protest to your argument before your opposition has a chance to raise the question. Part of producing an effective argument is knowing the arguments of the opposition. If a speaker addresses the issues first, the opposition loses some of it’s ability to argue against the stance.

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES CONCESSION Concession is an admission in an argument that the opposing side has valid points; to grant, allow, or yield to a point. Why would a person acknowledge the arguments of his opposition? � Avoid looking ignorant or obtuse. � Take the “steam” out of the opposing argument by confronting it head-on. � Avoid alienating those who have not yet made up their mind. (See: Glenn Beck)

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES REDUCE TO THE ABSURD Reduce to the Absurd is a statement to show the utter absurdity of an opposing argument. � The Detroit Lions will win the Super Bowl when hell freezes over. � I will go out with him when pigs fly.

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES RHETORICAL QUESTION A Rhetorical Question is a question that is posed for the purpose of thought, not an actual answer. Did you want us to respect your cause? You just damned your cause. Did you want to make us fear? You just steeled our resolve. Did you want to tear us apart? You just brought us together. Leonard Pitts, September 12, 2001

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES HYPERBOLE Hyperbole, or overstatement, is an exaggeration for the sake of effect. Let’s be honest. We use hyperbole all the time whether we realize it or not. This essay is literally killing me. It’s so hard! You, every time your English teacher asks you to write an essay. If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times. Clean your room! Your mom

LOGICAL FALLACIES Fallacies are inconsistencies within an argument. In order to adequately analyze one’s arguments (or create your own), you must be aware of the various types of fallacies! A logical fallacy can seriously undermine one’s argument – BEWARE! BUT…politicians use them ALL THE TIME, so pay attention and you won’t be fooled by fancy rhetoric.

LOGICAL FALLACIES AD HOMINEM Latin: “To the Man” Ad Hominem: This is an attack on the character of a person rather than their opinions or arguments. Example: � Green Peace's strategies aren't effective because they are all dirty, lazy hippies. In this example the author doesn't even name particular strategies Green Peace has suggested, much less evaluate those strategies on their merits. Instead, the author attacks the characters of the individuals in the group.

LOGICAL FALLACIES BANDWAGON APPEAL Bandwagon Appeal: Everyone else is doing it, so why shouldn’t you? This appeal uses a threat of rejection from one’s peers to replace the evidence in an argument. � If you’re not with us, you’re against us. This is a favorite among politicians. Most recently, it has been used to gain support for “The War on Terror, ” but in the 1950’s, Senator Joseph Mc. Carthy and company used this same argument to persecute Americans who were viewed as a threat to democracy (SEE: Mc. Carthyism, Red Scare, Blacklisting, etc. ).

LOGICAL FALLACIES CIRCULAR ARGUMENT Circular Argument: This restates the argument rather than actually proving it. � George Bush is a good communicator because he speaks effectively. In this example the conclusion that Bush is a "good communicator" and the evidence used to prove it – "he speaks effectively" – are basically the same idea. Specific evidence such as using everyday language, breaking down complex problems, or illustrating his points with humorous stories would be needed to prove either half of the sentence.

LOGICAL FALLACIES EITHER/OR FALLACY Either/Or: This is a conclusion that oversimplifies the argument by reducing it to only two sides or choices. � We can either stop using cars or destroy the earth. In this example where two choices are presented as the only options, yet the author ignores a range of choices in between such as developing cleaner technology, car sharing systems for necessities and emergencies, or better community planning to discourage daily driving.

LOGICAL FALLACIES FAULTY ANALOGY Faulty Analogy: Making a comparison while overlooking important dissimilarities between two situations. � What’s happening in America today is exactly like Nazi Germany in the 1930 s. If we don’t do something now, we are going to end up just like the Germans! This claim conveniently overlooks the fact that the American government is not rounding up citizens for mass slaughter.

LOGICAL FALLACIES LOADED WORDS *Pet Peeve Alert* Loaded Words: Unjustifiably using highly connotative (i. e. , emotional) diction to describe something favorably or not. � No Child Left Behind � The War on Terror � Weapons of Mass Destruction � Homeland Security � Taxpayer-Funded Bailout � Using –gate for any scandal (e. g. , deflate-gate)

LOGICAL FALLACIES NON SEQUITUR Latin: “It does not follow. ” Non Sequitur: an inference or conclusion that does not follow established evidence or premises. � Tens of thousands of Americans have seen lights in the night sky which they could not identify. The existence of life on other planets is fast becoming certainty! � Our Church is responsible for helping many of those in need. This surely proves that our God is alive. � The local church did not participate in my fundraiser. This surely proves that God doesn’t exist.

LOGICAL FALLACIES POST HOC, ERGO PROPTER HOC Latin: “After this, therefore because of this. ” Post Hoc Fallacy: This is a conclusion that assumes that if ‘A’ occurred after ‘B’ then ‘B’ must have caused ‘A. ’ � I drank bottled water and now I am sick, so the water must have made me sick. In this example the author assumes that if one event chronologically follows another the first event must have caused the second. But the illness could have been caused by the burrito the night before, a flu bug that had been working on the body for days, or a chemical spill across campus. There is no reason, without more evidence, to assume the water caused the person to be sick.

LOGICAL FALLACIES THE SLIPPERY SLOPE Slippery Slope: This is a conclusion based on the premise that if A happens, then eventually through a series of small steps, B, C, . . . , X, Y, Z will happen, too, basically equating A and Z. So, if we don't want Z to occur A must not be allowed to occur either. � If we ban Hummers because they are bad for the environment, eventually the government will ban all cars, so we should not ban Hummers. In this example the author is equating banning Hummers with banning all cars, which is not the same thing.

OTHER LOGICAL FALLACIES There are many, many logical fallacies (more than you want to know). Here’s a few: � Ad Populum � Straw Man � Hasty Generalization � Appeal to Ignorance � Appeal to Pity � Red Herring � Genetic Fallacy

WITH A PARTNER: Pick ONE of the RHETORICAL STRATEGIES that we discussed today and think of a new example. Pick ONE of the LOGICAL FALLACIES that we discussed today and think of an example. Be prepared to share with the class.