Farnsworth's Classical English Rhetoric

by Ward, Farnsworth

• ISBN13: 9781567923858
• ISBN10: 1567923852
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-11-01
• Publisher: David R. Godine Publisher

Summary

The way we use our language to convince and cajole is based on timeless principles - on repetition and variety, suspense and relief, expectation and satisfaction - that have been employed by writers and speakers since the Golden Age of Greece. They can be applied with effect to the construction of simple sentences and paragraphs, or entire compositions. Farnsworth's Classical English Rhetoric draws on examples from some of the great masters of English prose - Lincoln and Churchill, Dickens and Melville, Burke and Pain - to illustrate and analyze the most frequently used rhetorical devices with unrivaled clarity and detail. For anyone with an interest in the true potential of language, this is an indispensable guide, a highly useful reference, and a rewarding (and even entertaining) source of instruction.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Repetition of Words and Phrases
Simple Repetition of Words and Phrases: Epizeuxis, Epimone, etc.	p. 3
Repetition at the Start: Anaphora	p. 16
Repetition at the End: Epistrophe	p. 32
Repetition at the Start and End: Symploce	p. 46
Repeating the Ending at the Beginning: Anadiplosis	p. 55
Repetition of the Root: Polyptoton	p. 63
Structural Matters
Parallel Structure: Isocolon	p. 74
Reversal of Structure: Chiasmus	p. 97
Inversion of Words: Anastrophe	p. 115
Using Extra Conjunctions: Polysyndeton	p. 128
Leaving Out Conjunctions: Asyndeton	p. 147
Leaving Out Words: Ellipsis	p. 157
Dramatic Devices
Saying Things by Not Saying Them: Præteritio	p. 166
Breaking Off in Midstream: Aposiopesis	p. 182
Correcting Oneself: Metanoia	p. 194
Rhetorical Uses of the Negative: Litotes	p. 204
Rhetorical Questions: Erotema	p. 212
Asking Questions and Answering Them: Hypophora Anticipating Objections and Meeting Them: Prolepsis	p. 226
Bibliographical Note	p. 251
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