Advanced Rhetorical Devices

Identification vs. Purpose vs. Effect

Review VocabularyOAlliteration – tongue twister

O Same consonant sound at the start of words

OAnaphora – Get Up Offa That ThingO Repetition of a word or words at the

start of a sentence or phraseOChiasmus – Waldo finds you

O Reversal in syntax to make the second half have different meaning

New Vocabulary

New Vocabulary

OHyperbole

OAllusion

OSynecdoche

Hyperbole

Allusion

Synecdoche

New Vocabulary

OHyperbole

OAllusion

OSynecdoche

New Vocabulary

OHyperbole – Greatest thing ever!

OAllusion – But soft…(bear)

OSynecdoche – Give us bread

Hyperbole

OExaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally

HyperboleO Examples:

O My grandma is as old as the hills.

O I’m dying of embarrassment.

O I can’t go to the party; I’ve got a million things going on.

O Mr. Phelps is the best teacher ever.

Hyperbole in LiteratureO Examples:

O People moved slowly then. There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County.

---Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

O If I profane with my unworthiest hand / This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this: / My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand / To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.

--from Romeo and Juliet

Hyperbole in SongsO Examples:

O Her eyes, her eyes make the stars look like they’re not shining

-Bruno Mars, Just the Way You Are

O I’ve been everywhere, man, I’ve been everywhere

-Johnny Cash, I’ve Been Everywhere

Hyperbole in Yo Mama Jokes

O Examples:O Yo mama so fat she sat on an iPhone

and turned it into an iPad. 

O Yo mama so old she knew Burger King when he was just a prince.

O Yo mama so lazy she put cheat codes in for Wii Fit.

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

• Obviously, exaggeration of a point

• Impossibility of a statement adds emphasis

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

• Obviously, exaggeration of a point

• Impossibility of a statement adds emphasis

• Draws attention to the point

• Conveys seriousness, importance of an emotion

Allusion

Oa brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance. It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers.

Oallude, alluding, alluded (v)

AllusionO Examples:

O He was lying so much his nose should have been growing.

O Chocolate was her Achilles’ heel.

AllusionO Examples:

O He was lying so much his nose should have been growing.

O Chocolate was her Achilles’ heel.

O Yo mama so fat her patronus is a cake.

Allusion in SongsO Examples:

O That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles / and my daddy said, “Stay away from Juliet”

--Taylor Swift, Love Story

O I’m the new Sinatra, and since I made it here, I can make it anywhere

--Jay Z, Empire State of Mind

Problem with Allusion

Problem with Allusion

Problem with Allusion

Problem with Allusion

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

• Creates a comparison between known references

• Add emphasis• Creates mood

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

• Creates a comparison between known references

• Add emphasis• Creates mood

• Reference relies on readers’ prior knowledge—their understanding of the reference adds the weight of the entire subject to the text

• Mood manipulated by the power of the reference

Synecdoche

Oa figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa

SynecdocheO Examples:

O Look at my new wheels!O The word “wheels” is used to represent

the whole carO I’ve got too many mouths to feed.

O “Mouths” to represent peopleO “9/11 is both singular and essentially

repeatable.”--Martin McQuillian, Deconstruction after

9/11

Synecdoche in SongsO Example:

OYour butt is mine / Gonna take you right / Just show your face / In broad daylight

--Michael Jackson, Bad

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

• Gives objects different meaning

• Achieves brevity• Draws attention• Uses slang

Purpose vs. EffectAuthor’sPurpose

Effect on the Reader

• Gives objects different meaning

• Achieves brevity• Draws attention• Uses slang

• Small section of the whole may mean more than the whole

• Saying “steel” instead of “swords, knifes, and armor” is much more succinct

• Changes mood by using slang words