Rhetorical Strategies and Literary Terms

Rhetorical Devices Cheat Sheet

Devices found in every piece: Devices found in most pieces:

Punctuation Imagery
Diction Metaphor
Mood Alliteration, Assonance, Consonance
Point of View Parallelism
Setting
Tone

Figurative Language--Means something other than what it says (You have to figure it out) Imagery--Relating to one of the five senses.
I walked outside and the cool grass brushed against my bair feet.   Metaphor--Comparison of two unlike things. (Make sure that the comparison is not actually real. For instance, I don't actually have an iron heart. If the line said Mr. Flynn has a "beating heart," that would just be a description.)
Mr. Flynn has an iron heart. Simile--Comparison of two unlike things using “like” or “as”
I run like an antelope. Personification--Giving objects human characteristics.
The sky looked angry. Allusion--A reference to something outside the text
Call me Ishmael.  (Ishmael is a Biblical name) Symbol--When an object has a meaning larger than itself

Frederick Douglass Project

Frederick Douglass Project

Create a prezi in which you present the following:
(Prezi.com) ← Mainsite
(prezi.com/learn) ← Teach yourself Prezi
Example

3 arguments that Douglass makes against Slavery.

-These should be factual, in your own words, type of statements. For instance, if I were doing this for Into the Wild and nature, I might say that “Chris McCandless states that nature is a place where man can challenge himself and bring out the truest version of his humanity.”

-They must be backed up BY QUOTING THE TEXT
-The text must be close read, and unpacked. In the close reading (2-3 sentences) there should be an explanation of why the text leads you to believe that Douglass is making the argument you have previously identified.

3 different “rhetorical strategies” that Douglass employs to deliver this argument
(Note, the strategies do not have to match with the arguments.)

-It’s one thing to state an argument, it’s another thing entirely to sway others to your point of view. To do so takes craft and skill as a writer. Here is a list from the almighty AP board:

Diction, Syntax, Imagery, Tone, Selection of detail, Irony, Satire, Point of View, Structure, Humor, Sarcasm, Analogy, Soliloquy, Persuasion, Oxymoron, Onomatopoeia, Parallel Structure, Contrast, Comparison, Metaphor, Simile, Personification, Symbolism, Assonance, Alliteration, Paradox, Anecdote, Attitude, Juxtaposition, Hyperbole, Exaggeration, Repetition, Punctuation, Quotations, Foreshadowing, Characterization, Flashback, Rhetorical questioning

(We’ve already gone over a number of these strategies both as vocabulary and within our own close reading work.)

-However, you might also think about rhetorical strategies in a more general way and come up with your own concepts. For instance, you might claim that Jon Krakauer uses “mystery” when he presents McCandless as an anonymous hitchiker on the side of the road sporting an odd nickname. You might build on a term from above and discuss how Abraham Lincoln uses “Religious Allusions” when he writes about “the better angels of our nature” in the First Inaugural Address.

-Again, once you state the rhetorical strategies you MUST QUOTE THE TEXT you’re referrring to.

-Additionally, you must close read the text (2-3 sentences) and explain the rhetorical strategy and why the strategy is effective.

2 different myths that Douglass attempts to dispel with his Autobiography
-Be sure to include the myth and how Douglass attempts to dispel it.
-As always, you need a statement, a textual example, and a close reading.

2 different examples of emotional appeals that Douglass makes to the reader
-Not everything that Douglass tries to do is rational. At times he tries to make the reader FEEL something.
-Explain what he makes us feel and how he gets the feeling across.
-As always, quote the text and analyze it.


Grading: 100 points

10 points for each argument, rhetorical, myth, or emotional appeal strategy
-Proper label for the argument and rhetorical strategy (2 points)
-Textual evidence (2 points)
-Close reading that refers back to the quotations and the particular argument and strategy (5 points.
The key to this project is to explain clearly HOW Douglass gets his point across. This is where rhetorical analysis and close reading comes in.
-Perfect grammar (1 point)

ITW Blogging Assignment

ITW Blogging Assignment--Non-fiction Reporting 50 points
Due Friday October 28th at 11:59 PM

One of the most compelling parts of the novel is how Jon Krakauer builds a non-fictional character using a number of different strategies.
   
As we’re learning in our McCandless Presentation Projects, Krakauer uses setting, actions, writings, influences, effects, different points of view, and family influences in an attempt to explain why Chris does what he does. The effect is a multifacated, intriguing mosaic--a deep picture of a man.  
   
In an attempt to understand this style, I would like you to copy it.  
   
Pick a real person. It can be any person, living or dead, and describe him or her in a compelling way using at least two of the above characterization strategies. If you want to use a characterization strategy that Krakauer doesn’t use, that’s fine, but you should have at least two different ways of “framing” your subject.  
    
You are going to have to do some research. Not academic research, gathering facts in an effort to frame your idea.      
    
This post should be a little bit longer--around 500 words at a minimum. It will also be given a slightly larger grading weight. 50 points.

Grading:
30 Points--Graded as a normal blog post
20 points--How effective are the characterization strategies? Are there two distinct ways of framing the subject? Do the strategies work together or is the piece disjointed and jumbled? At the end of the day, how effective is the piece at presenting the subject?

A post by Eric LeGrand

This is a recent blog post by Eric LeGrand, a Rutgers linebacker who was paralyzed a little over a year ago.  A great example of strong, personal writing.  And just a great story.  Taken from si.com.

     My sophomore year at Rutgers, I bought a black Nissan Altima. I had been saving up for years to buy that car. Over the winters, I had a job hauling Christmas trees. The money I made went toward the car. Over the summers, I worked on the Rutgers grounds crew. Those paychecks, too, went into the "car account."

     The day I finally took ownership of the car, it started to rain. I was driving in southern New Jersey near the dealership and stopped short when the car in front of me screeched to a sudden halt. The driver behind me either wasn't paying attention or forgot that his car came equipped with brakes. He rear-ended me so badly that the hood of his car was practically in my back seat. No one was hurt, thankfully. But after owning that Altima for a grand total of two hours, suddenly it was totaled. My mom was going crazy. I tried to be cool. I told her, "I guess it just wasn't meant to be." And you know what? I was right. A few months later, we got the insurance money and I bought another Altima, silver this time. It was the same price as the first one, but with 30,000 fewer miles.

      I've thought of that story often over the past year. On October 16, 2010, I was a junior playing special teams for Rutgers during a midseason game against Army. We were playing at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., not far from our campus. With the game tied at 17 and about five minutes left in the fourth quarter, I ran downfield after a kickoff and collided with the returner, Malcolm Brown. I hit him pretty good -- I learned later that he broke his collarbone on the play. But I tucked my head. If you have a strong stomach, you can watch it for yourself. (Personally, I do it all the time. It's the last football play I ever made. I figure I might as well watch it.)

The Chris McCandless Project

Your task for the following project is to create a Google Presentation that answers the following question: Who is Chris McCandless?

To do this we must study how Krakauer builds the character of McCandless. In your presentation you need to include a quotation and a close reading from the following elements:

Setting--How a place affects McCandless/How it shows us something about him/How he interacts with his setting/Why setting is important to McCandless/Why does he want to go to the places he does? (3 examples)
Points of View--We get many different opinions on Chris: readers, friends, family members, people who knew him and people who didn’t. What perspective do these points of view add? Be sure to discuss the source’s credibility or lack of credibility. (2 examples)
Writings--What McCandless’ actual words and reflections tell us about him. (2 examples)
Actions--What McCandless’ actions tell us about him. (2 examples)
Inspirations--How the books/ideas/theories shaped McCandless’ life. (1 example)
Influences--How McCandless shapes and influences the people around him/what his friendships, and lack of friendships, tell us about him. (1 example)
Family--How McCandless’ family life, especially his relationship with his sister, mother, and father, formed him. (1 example)



As a summation, include a final slide that draws on evidence from the previous slides, and attempts to answer the question: Why does Chris McCandless travel to Alaska?