Which of These Rhetorical Devices Is Most Clearly Used Here?

Rhetorical devices are tools that writers use to persuade, inform, or entertain their audience. They can be used to make a point more forcefully, to clarify a concept, or to simply make writing more interesting. There are many different types of rhetorical devices, but some of the most common include:

• Simile: A comparison using “like” or “as”
• Metaphor: A comparison that does not use “like” or “as”
• Personification: Giving human qualities to nonhuman things
• Hyperbole: Exaggeration
• Irony: Saying the opposite of what is meant
• Rhetorical question: A question that does not expect an answer
• Alliteration: The repetition of consonant sounds
• Assonance: The repetition of vowel sounds
• Consonance: The repetition of consonant sounds at the end of words
• Anaphora: The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences
• Epiphora: The repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses or sentences

Each of these rhetorical devices has its own unique purpose and effect. Writers can use them to create a variety of effects, from humor to persuasion. By understanding the different types of rhetorical devices, writers can use them effectively to improve their writing.

Which of the following rhetorical devices is most clearly used in the following passage?

“The wind howled like a banshee, tearing through the trees and sending leaves flying like confetti. The rain lashed down in sheets, obscuring the world in a watery haze. The thunder roared like a lion, shaking the ground beneath our feet.”

The rhetorical device that is most clearly used in this passage is simile. The writer uses similes to compare the wind to a banshee, the leaves to confetti, the rain to sheets, and the thunder to a lion. These comparisons help to create a vivid and memorable image of the storm.

Here are some other examples of how rhetorical devices can be used:

• Metaphor: “Life is a journey.”
• Personification: “The wind whispered secrets in my ear.”
• Hyperbole: “I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.”
• Irony: “The best way to avoid a cold is to stay indoors.”
• Rhetorical question: “Who needs homework?”
• Alliteration: “The soft, sweet sounds of summer”
• Assonance: “The cat sat on the mat”
• Consonance: “The wind whipped through the trees”
• Anaphora: “We shall not be moved. We shall not be defeated. We shall not be denied.”
• Epiphora: “I came, I saw, I conquered.”

Rhetorical devices are a powerful tool that writers can use to make their writing more effective. By understanding the different types of rhetorical devices and how to use them, writers can improve their ability to persuade, inform, and entertain their audience.

Exercise

Identify the rhetorical device that is used in each of the following sentences:

1. The wind howled like a banshee.
2. Life is a journey.
3. The wind whispered secrets in my ear.
4. I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.
5. The best way to avoid a cold is to stay indoors.
6. Who needs homework?
7. The soft, sweet sounds of summer
8. The cat sat on the mat
9. The wind whipped through the trees
10. We shall not be moved. We shall not be defeated. We shall not be denied.
11. I came, I saw, I conquered.

Answers:

1. Simile
2. Metaphor
3. Personification
4. Hyperbole
5. Irony
6. Rhetorical question
7. Alliteration
8. Assonance
9. Consonance
10. Anaphora
11. Epiphora