Module 2: Section A

Power of the Pen: Introduction

Rhetorically Speaking

"What were you thinking?!?"

"How could you?!?"

"Just who do you think you are?!?"

Have you ever been reprimanded in the form of a question? (That is not a rhetorical question, by the way.) I imagine that all of us have. The person questioning you doesn't expect an answer. He or she is asking the question to make a point. Rhetoric is all about making a point. So, sharpen your wit and get ready to carve out some opinions of you own in this section.

In this section, you will get to ask rhetorical questions after you learn about the rhetorical triangle, rhetorical purposes, and other rhetorical devices. As you continue to explore American literature, you will read opinions of the Transcendentalists and Romantics and see the part rhetoric plays in the stories, poems, and journals these writers created.