Five Ways to Identify

Rhetorical Devices
Course Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the module, the students will be able to:

1. Recognize rhetorical devices in speeches, literature and other

forms
2. Find it easier to apply rhetorical devices
3. Use rhetorical devices in the specifications of the course
READ CAREFULLY
Reading carefully may seem common sense; however, this is the
most crucial strategy in identifying rhetorical devices. We are sure
that you have heard that you must read carefully before, but in this
case you must read carefully for persuasiveness. If you find that some
aspect of the work is particularly convincing, then there is a rhetorical
device at work. This simple strategy of finding rhetorical devices will
allow you to quickly find these devices, which is often half the battle.
KNOW YOUR RHETORICAL DEVICES
In order to be able to identify rhetorical devices, then you must
first have a working knowledge of the most common rhetorical
devices. After all, you cannot identify what you do not know. By
knowing the various terms for an effective argument you come one
step closer to being able to identify them in context.
KNOW THE AUDIENCE
Being able to figure out who the intended audience is for the
passage can be a very helpful strategy in identifying rhetorical
devices. That is important to know, because certain groups of people
have different rhetorical devices that work on them.
ANNOTATE THE TEXT
Annotating is an elegant way to jot down your thoughts. Even if
all you do is underline the sentence that strikes you as persuasive,
then you are one step closer to identifying that rhetorical device.
When you are jotting down notes be sure not to spend more than five
minutes reading the passage, otherwise you may run out of time
writing your rhetorical essay.
READ THE PASSAGE TWICE
The final strategy for identifying rhetorical devices is to read the
passage twice. This goes along well with annotating the text, because
the persuasive elements of the passage that you found on the first
reading. By reading the text again you can jog your memory on which
rhetorical devices that you want to include in the essay.
Source:
The Albert.io Team. (2016) AP English Language: 5 Ways to
Identify Rhetorical Devices. Date Retrieved November 20,
2019 from https://www.albert.io/blog/ap-english-language-
5-ways-to-identify-rhetorical-devices/