The Tools You Need to Break It Down

The situation (or problem) that creates a need or urgency for a rhetorical response

If the text is the effect, the exigency is the cause

The aims that a person has or the end he or she expects to fulfill with the text

The intention

Those who will hear or read the text

More important than you might think

Argumentative Appeals

Logos

Appeal to reason Using logical

content to convince the audience

Pathos

Appeal to emotion

Using emotional content to convince the audience

Ethos

Personal appeal of one’s character

Credibility

Variety of structures used in essays Organization and structure can be part

of the rhetorical strategy.

The nitty gritty

The author’s word choices Examples of types of diction:

Formal or informalOrnate or plain

Word choice is directly linked with an author’s purpose

The deliberate sentence structure the author chooses to make his or her point

Consider…Sentence lengthNumber of sentencesSentence beginningsAnd more

The sensory details used to describe, arouse emotions, or represent abstractions

5 sensesVisualAuditoryTactileGustatoryOlfactory

One image can represent more than one thing.

Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid

Examples:Metaphors and similesSymbolismPersonificationHyperbole

The author’s implied attitude toward his subject and his audience

Examples of tone:PlayfulSarcasticSomber

Tone is created through diction and syntax