Gloriously Persuasive Rhetorical Devices
(Yes, it’s okay to love them, but with great power comes great responsibility)
Directions: The brackets on the left hand side in each category below indicate the 15 rhetorical devices
you must use or have a choice of using in your speech. You are welcome to use as many additional
rhetorical devices as you feel are appropriate to your speech, but be sure to include all 15 of the
required ones.
Repetition (Relationship Chart)
 anaphora – repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses
Use 2
 anadiplosis – repetition of the last word of one clause at the beginning of the next clause.
 epanalepsis – repetition of the first word of a clause at the end of the same clause
 epistrophe – repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses
Must Use
Use 1
 parallelism – intentional repetition of the same grammatical structure, which may also
include a repeated word or phrase, in the same structural position at least 3 times in
paragraphs, nearby sentences, or segments of a sentence. The distinguishing factor
between parallelism and anaphora/epistrophe is that parallelism will be either longer
repeated phrases starting or ending successive paragraphs with large amounts of text in
between OR identical grammatical structures with mostly different words.
 consonance - intentional repetition of 3 or more consonant sounds among nearby words
 assonance - intentional repetition of 3 or more vowel sounds among nearby words
 slogan – a repeated phrase or idea that identifies the audience with an essential concept
of a speech/campaign.
Sentence Structure
Must Use
 rhetorical fragment – intentional use of a sentence fragment to emphasize an idea
 rhetorical question – question intentionally posed to generate thought, but not intended
to be answered or answered by the author/speaker, not the audience.
Syntax Manipulation
Use 1
 asyndeton – deliberate omission of conjunctions in a series of related clauses
 polysyndeton – deliberate use of many conjunctions for special emphasis
Use 1
 ellipsis – intentional omission of a word or words that are readily implied by the context
 inverted syntax – intentional unconventional rearranging of word order to create an effect
Contrast (Relationship Chart)
Use 1
 juxtaposition – putting normally unassociated or contrasting ideas, words, or phrases
together to highlight the differences and generate a novel (new/interesting) effect
 antithesis – false choice created through pairing opposite extremes of actions/ideas in an
effort to make the writer’s/speaker’s desired choice seem more attractive to the audience.
Use 1
 oxymoron – combining two directly contradictory words into a single unusual 2-word expression
 paradox – a statement of seemingly incompatible ideas, which seems to make sense
when evaluated at a deeper level.
Exaggeration
 understatement – deliberate representation of something as much less than it really is
 hyperbole – deliberate exaggeration of something to create an effect
Use 1
 farce – extreme sarcastic/mocking exaggeration of something that in reality may be quite
logical in an effort to prove a point
 sarcasm – a form of verbal irony generally intended as a witty insult
 pun – a play on words created from words with multiple meanings or words that sound
the same
Diction (Relationship Chart)
 idiom – an expression specific to a culture whose intended meaning is different than the
literal meaning of the words used
 colloquialism/dialect – conversational/familiar language particular to a particular region
or dialect
Use 1
 loaded terms – words that inspire deeply positive (purr words) or deeply negative
reactions (weasel words)
Comparison (Relationship Chart)
 anecdote – a briefly summarized story usually included to personalize an issue and
connect emotionally with the reader/listener
Use 1
 analogy – using either a familiar object or idea to compare to a less familiar idea to help
the listener/reader understand, OR using a well-accepted favorable idea to compare with
a less-favorable one to gain audience approval or vice versa (not simile or metaphor)
Must Use
Use 1
 opponent’s point-of-view – acknowledge and refute opponent’s argument
 personification – an inanimate or abstract object is given human qualities
 allusion – brief reference to someone or something expected to be widely recognized by
the audience/reader from history, literature, religion, politics, sports, science, etc.,
intended to emphasize a point. Little to no information is given about the person or object
other than its name and the audience is expected to use their background knowledge of
the person or object referenced to infer the significance.
 symbol – an image, object, or character that stands for something intangible beyond its
literal meaning
 simile - comparison of two unlike things using "like" or "as"
 metaphor - direct comparison of two unlike things
Subtle, Manipulative Techniques with Strong Potential for Misuse/Abuse
 bandwagon – using peer pressure to make it seem like everyone else agrees with you
 flattery – directly or indirectly complimenting the audience to get them on your side
Use 1
 bribery/economy – indicating that your audience will gain something from agreeing with you
 name calling – directly or indirectly labeling those against you in a negative way
 security – indicating your audience may suffer harm/negative consequence if they don’t
agree with you