identifying persuasive techniques Flashcards
adjectives
describing words usually connected to a noun (naming word)
example: the bright red house (bright and red - adjectives), (noun - house)
effect: adds emphasis
alliteration
repeating and playing upon the same letter.
example: a back breaking job
effects: adds emphasis and reinforces meaning
anecdote
a short story of an entertaining or interesting incident
example: ‘in my experience’, ‘many years ago’, ‘you may recall the story about’
effect: makes the reader sympathetic and receptive to the point
attacks
the writer attacks or praises an opponent or idea. this is really an assertion of the writer’s viewpoint
example: denigrating (‘putting down’) or humiliating the person, discrediting the opponents as unreliable or dishonest
cliche
worn-out, over-used expressions
examples: fit as a fiddle, turn over a new leaf, the bottom line
effect: are familiar and can offer a shortcut to convey meaning
connatations
the implied meanings of words, they are the shades of meaning that create subtle differences between similar words
examples: descriptive words such as beautiful, a range of words with related meanings can have different associations
emotional appeal
often subtle, plays on people emotions
examples: target a sense of justice or injustice, family values, moral values
emotive language
the deliberate use of strong emotive words to play on the readers feelings
examples: powerful emotive words like vicious, disgusting or outrageous - words that have a legitimate use in appropriate circumstances
evidence
information, facts or statement used to support a belief, opinion, point of view or proposition
examples: statistics, research, expert opinion, facts
often presented in graphs or diagrams
exaggeration (hyperbole)
overstatement, stating the case too strongly
examples: ‘i’ll die if he finds out’, ‘this weighs ten tonnes’
generalisation
a general statement that claims that whatever is being asserted is true for most people or a majority because it is true in one or some cases
examples: ‘australian children see too much violence on television’ - implies this statement is true for most or all children.
inclusive language
includes the reader/audience by assuming ‘we all agree or disagree’
examples: ‘we all know that’, ‘we all feel that’
repetition
repeated words, phrases, sentence patterns or ideas
example: ‘never, never, never to be released’
effect: repeats idea to reinforce point and makes the reader remember the point
rhetorical questions
questions that have the answers embedded in them
examples: ‘are we going to accept there third-world hospital conditions in our country?’
effect: manipulate the reader to agree because it assumes the answer is obvious
