Rhetorical Devices

Last Updated: March 4, 2024

Rhetorical Devices

People are social creatures that will often take a specific stand towards a decision they want to advocate for. To convince people to change their beliefs through a simple call to action, one must use rhetorical devices to augment their message.

1. Rhetorical Devices List

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2. Rhetorical Devices in Writing

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3. Rhetorical Devices and Logical Fallacies

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4. Rhetorical Devices for Speeches

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5. Handbook of Rhetorical Devices

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6. Further Rhetorical Devices

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7. Rhetorical Devices Practice

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8. Rhetorical Devices Student Edition

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9. AP Lang Rhetorical Devices

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10. Use of Rhetorical Devices in Advertising

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11. Analysis of Russian Rhetorical Devices

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12. Rhetorical Devices in Analytic Philosophy

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13. AP Rhetorical Devices List

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What Are Rhetorical Devices

Rhetorical devices are techniques that people use to augment the persuasiveness of their writing or speaking. For example, if one were to try and convince someone of the stance the author has written in a specific biography or autobiography, they can try to write with rhetorical devices in their text.

How to Use Rhetorical Devices

Rhetorical devices are very useful as they can improve one’s ability to organize and lead people to reach a specific goal, tone, objective, or decision. If you want to learn more about rhetorical devices then you may read any of the lists and articles on the links above.

Step 1: Research or Look Up A List of Rhetorical Devices

Begin by researching or looking up a list of rhetorical devices you can use and integrate into your writing and/or speaking. This will help you have a reference within arms reach.

Step 2: Outline How You Will Use the Chosen Rhetorical Device/s

After researching or obtaining a list of rhetorical devices, you must now choose specific rhetorical devices you want to incorporate into your outputs. Not only that, but you must also outline how you are going to use them, to ensure that you are utilizing them to the highest extent.

Step 3a: If Spoken, Practice Speaking Using the Rhetorical Device

If you are planning to integrate rhetorical devices into your speech, then you must practice using rhetorical devices in your everyday conversations and dialogues. By properly practicing the rhetorical device, then you will be able to organically integrate said device into your speech.

Step 3b: If Written, Use the Rhetorical Device on the Written Output

If you are planning on using the chosen rhetorical device/s in your writing, then you must properly practice integrating it into your writing. Doing this will allow you to organically write using rhetorical devices without it looking very forced or out of place.


FAQs

How do rhetorical devices affect one’s persuasive abilities?

Rhetorical devices are techniques people use in their speech to augment the quality of a person’s words and vocabulary. This means that rhetorical devices can directly affect the persuasive tendencies of one’s speech. You can observe the relationship between rhetorical devices and persuasion by looking at the psychological effects and memory retention of the rhetorical devices. For example, some speakers use metaphors to increase the relatability of their speeches by talking about a concept and relating it to the human experience. This will not only increase the retention rate of what was said but will also improve the relatability of the speech, which will organically increase the listener’s interest. Rhetorical devices take advantage of human interests and psychology to improve and create an impact on one’s audience and listeners. In conclusion, rhetorical devices are techniques that people have researched, which are known to have a direct effect on a person’s persuasive tendencies.

What are the five elements of a rhetorical situation?

Writing a rhetorical piece in one’s book that will engage the readers, will require the author’s knowledge and understanding of the elements of a rhetorical situation. There are five elements of rhetoric that one will need to take into consideration when choosing and using a rhetorical device. The first element of a rhetorical situation is the text, which is the written or spoken output of the piece. This element refers to the intention or message the author wants to convey. The second element of a rhetorical situation is the audience, which is the people who are listening or reading the output. The third element of a rhetorical situation is the purpose/s, which refers to the reason that pertains to the interaction between the audience and the author. This element explains why the author wants to convey the message and why the audience listens. The fourth element of a rhetorical situation is the author, which refers to the person conveying the message. The final element of a rhetorical situation is the context or setting. This refers to the time, place, and environment the author’s output is set in. All of these elements of the rhetorical situation play together to create an output that will meet both the needs and wants of the author and their audience.

Does one’s communication skills affect the person’s rhetoric?

People have defined rhetoric as the ability to persuade one’s audience either through acts of speaking and/or writing. This ability relies on the person’s social instinct to take in the elements of a rhetorical situation, which means that said person will need to have sufficient knowledge and understanding of social cues and communication skills. Therefore, a person’s communication skills, like assertive communication, can affect said person’s rhetoric.

Rhetorical devices are techniques that can improve the persuasiveness of one’s writing or speech. This acts as a more persuasive counterpart of a literary device. Rhetorical devices only tackle the persuasive aspect of the text or speech, whereas literary devices tackle the overall quality of the output. Well-used rhetorical devices can improve one’s chances of obtaining support from the desired target audience. Therefore, if one wants to be persuasive and believable, then one will need to know how to best utilize rhetorical devices. 

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