Rhetorical Devices and Logical Fallacies Rhetorical Devices

Rhetorical Devices and Logical Fallacies

Rhetorical Devices • Allusions – references to well-known people, places, works of art, etc. • Contrast – differences • Diction – word choice • Imagery – words and phrases that appeal to the five senses • Pacing – sentence length which moves reader through the passage

Rhetorical Devices • Point-of-view – the view taken by the author – 1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd limited, or 3 rd omniscient • Repetition – the use, over and over, of a word, phrase, clause or sentence to convey an effect • Sentence structure – simple sentences, compound sentences, complex sentences, compound-complex sentences • Structure of the passage – chronological order, order of importance, cause and effect, problem solution, comparison and contrast

Rhetorical Devices • Syntax – the arrangement of words within a sentence • Tone – writer’s attitude toward his or her subject matter • Example – specific event, person, or detail of an idea cited and/or developed to support or illustrate a thesis or topic • Contrast and Comparison – presenting similarities and differences between or among at least two persons, places, things, ideas, etc.

Rhetorical Devices • Definition – identifies the class to which a specific term belongs and those characteristics which make it different from all the other items in that class • Cause and Effect – establishes a relationship: B is the result of A • Process – “how to” do something or how something is done • Description – writing that appeals to the senses. Objective description is scientific or clinical. Impressionistic tries to involve the reader’s emotions or feelings

Rhetorical Devices • Classification – separates items into major categories and details the characteristics of each group and why each member of that group is placed within the category • Puns – one word used to suggest two meanings • Double Entendre – a type of pun whose one meaning is generally of a sexual nature • Onomatopoeia – words that represent sounds • Simile – comparison using like or as

Rhetorical Devices • Metaphor – direct comparison • Analogy – implicit comparison that sets up a proportional relationship between two sets of ideas • Personification – giving human characteristics to nonhuman things • Allegory – extended comparisons (beyond a sentence) where a set of abstract ideas (or philosophical statements) is personified through human characters • Fables – short allegorical stories that point out a lesson • Metonymy – to refer to an abstract and/or complex process by one of its concrete parts (to refer to a monarch as “the crown”)

Rhetorical Devices • Apposition – a word or phrase that adds more detailed information about the idea suggested by the first word • Epithets – the use of a single-word adjective linked to a person or thing to describe a specific quality associated with it (Alexander the Great) • Hyperbole – overstating, exaggerating • Understatement – playing down the magnitude of the idea

Rhetorical Devices • Euphemism – a type of understatement used to avoid offending the audience (“I need to use the restroom”) • Paradox – the expression of apparent contradiction, where opposing ideas are nevertheless on some level true • Oxymoron – linking together two apparently contradictory words into a single phrase or clause • Parallelism – the repetition within a sentence (or several sentences within the same paragraph) of the same type of grammatical forms – either the same part of speech, or the same type of grammatical unit

Rhetorical Devices • Ellipsis – the omission of a word or phrase that is implied by the context • Antithesis – specific use of parallelism: grammatical forms or parts of speech are repeated in a sentence (or series of sentences in a paragraph) and are used to express opposing or contrary meanings • Exclamation – type of interruption in which the speaker or writer stops a sentence midway and addresses an individual who may or may not be present • Parenthesis – type of interruption of a sentence before it has been completed in order to insert some word, phrase, or clause that launches a new idea.

Rhetorical Devices • Aphorism – brief, witty sayings • Apostrophe – direct address of character not present • Colloquialism – slang or informality in speech (It’s raining cats and dogs) • Conceit – extended metaphor

Rhetorical Devices • Anaphora – the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive sentences or clauses for rhetorical or poetic effect (“a time to be born, and a time to die; / a time to plant, and a time to pluck up. . . ”) • Litotes – a figure of speech by which conscious understatement is used to create emphasis by negation (“not bad!” and “no mean feat”)

Logical Fallacies • A fallacy is a mistake. • A logical fallacy is a mistake in argument. • Why study logical fallacies? – Good question.

Scare Tactics • Playing on legitimate fears to panic or prejudice. • Exaggerates possible dangers • People who are scared act irrationally

Either-Or Choices • Simplifying arguments by reducing the choice to two options, one obviously preferable to the other • “Ask any company where they’d rather locate and hire workers – country with crumbling roads and bridges, or one that’s committed to high-speed Internet and high-speed railroads and high-tech research and development? ”

Slippery Slope • If A happens, then by a gradual series of small steps through B, C, …, X, Y, eventually Z will happen, too. Z should not happen. Therefore, A should not happen, either. (Causal) • or • A differs from Z by a continuum of insignificant changes, and there is no non-arbitrary place at which a sharp line between the two can be drawn. Therefore, there is really no difference between A and Z. • A differs from Z by a continuum of insignificant changes with no non-arbitrary line between the two. Therefore, A doesn't exist. (Vague) • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=5 v-Ju. G 6 YMq. I

Overly Sentimental Appeals • Use overly tender emotions excessively to distract from facts • Heartwarming or heartwrenching situations that make readers feel guilty if they challenge an idea, a policy, or a proposal.

Bandwagon Appeals • Urge people to follow the same path everyone else is taking • “But _____’s parents are letting him go to Spring Break without chaperones. ”

Appeals to False Authority • When a writer offers themselves or other authorities as sufficient warrant for believing a claim Claim: X is true because I say so. Warrant: What I say must be true. Claim: X is true because Y says so. Warrant: What Y says must be true.

Dogmatism • Asserting or assuming that a particular position is the only one that is conceivably acceptable • The truth is self-evident and needs no support

Ad Hominem Arguments • Attacking the character of a person rather than the claims he or she makes • “But can Congress and the media be expected to swallow the appointment of a proven coverup artist, a discredited historian, a busted liar, and a man who is wanted in many jurisdictions for the vilest of offenses? ”

Stacking the Deck • Showing only one side the argument or issue • Michael Moore's Sicko

Argument from Ignorance • There is no evidence against p. Therefore, p. • or • There is no evidence for p. Therefore, not-p.

False Dilemma • Bifurcation, black-or-white, either/or • Either p or q. If p then r. If q then r. Therefore, r. • Or • Either p or q. Not-p. Therefore, q.

Questionable Analogy • A is like B. B has property P. Therefore, A has property P. (Where the analogy between A and B is weak. )

Circular Definition • The conclusion occurs as one of the premises or a chain of arguments in which the final conclusion is a premise of one of the earlier arguments in the chain. • 1) The Bible affirms that it is inerrant • 2) Whatever the Bible says is true • Therefore: 3)The Bible is inerrant

Begging the Question • x is similar to y (where the similarity depends for its strength upon some assumption which begs the question). x is P. Therefore, y is P. • Do animals deserve the same respect as black people? That’s the question posed in an online exhibit by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The exhibit pairs a slave auction with a cattle auction, two hanging black men with a hanging steer, herded Native Americans with herded cattle, a burning black man with a burning chicken, a shackled black ankle with a chained elephant hoof, and a pygmy in a zoo with a monkey in a dress.

Hasty generalization • Not gathering enough evidence to prove argument. • Interviewing two people who agree that the Star Tribune paywall will make them not read the Star Tribune anymore.

Equivocation • Half truths or arguments that give lies an honest appearance – usually based on tricks of language • “I wrote the entire paper myself. ”

Non Sequitur • An argument whose claims, reasons, or warrants don’t connect logically. • Claim: You must not love me… • Reason: …because you did not buy me a new car on my 16 th birthday. • Warrant: Buying new cars for children is essential to loving them

Red Herring • Changing the subject abruptly to throw readers off the trail

Faulty Analogy • Inaccurate or inconsequential comparisons between objects or concepts • 9/11 was our generation’s Pearl Harbor.

Straw Man • Attacking a weaker or more extreme argument that isn’t really there.

Argument from Biased Authority • Person A: Public schools are institutions that primarily exist as a means of governmental indoctrination. Person B: You're just saying that because you don't like governmental institutions, therefore your assertion is false.

Argument from Popularity • Bandwagon fallacy • Idea A is popular. Therefore, A is correct.

Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc • After this, therefore because of this. • If X happens and Y occurs, you can conclude that X is the cause of Y. • My knee aches just before it rains, therefore the ache in my knee is the cause of the rain. It is consistent, repeatable, and accurate therefore it must be true. • Cable commercials

Loaded Question • A question with a false, disputed, or questionbegging presupposition. • "How am I to get in? " asked Alice again, in a louder tone. "Are you to get in at all? " said the Footman, "That's the first question, you know. "

Denying the Antecedent • If p then q. Not-p. Therefore, not-q. • If atheism/pantheism is true then evolution is true. Atheism/pantheism is false. Therefore, evolution is false.