Persuasive Techniques

Persuasive Language Techniques - Review

​Hyperbole

Exaggeration for effect, not to be taken literally.

Repetition

Repeating a word or phrase which has already been said.

​Jargon

Words or expressions used by a profession or group that are difficult for non-experts to understand.

​Rhetorical Question

A question asked for a purpose other than to obtain information, usually to prompt thought or consideration.

Match

Match the following!

• "The professor's tenure is due to expire."

• "He died of embarrasment."

• "What time do you call this?"

• "Buy. buy, buy! Time is running out."

Jargon

Hyperbole

Rhetorical Question

Repetition

• Jargon

• Hyperbole

• Rhetorical Question

• Repetition

Pathos

Appeals to the emotions and ideals of the audience, elicits feelings.

Example: "Behind me stands a wall that encircles the free sectors of this city, part of a vast system of barriers that divides the entire continent of Europe...Yet it is here in Berlin where the wall emerges most clearly...Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar..."

​Logos

Employs facts, figures, data, and other credible evidence to support an opinion, argument, or conclusion.

Example: "All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.”

—Aristotle’s The Art of Rhetoric

Anecdote

A story that’s short and self-contained. Most anecdotes revolve around a central theme or event without too much complexity.

Example: "I never will forget a moment in Birmingham when a white policeman accosted a little Negro girl, seven or eight years old, who was walking in a demonstration with her mother. “What do you want?” the policeman asked her gruffly, and the little girl looked him straight in the eye and answered, “Fee-dom.” She couldn’t even pronounce it, but she knew. It was beautiful! Many times when I have been in sorely trying situations, the memory of that little one has come into my mind, and has buoyed me." Dr Martin Luther-King, Jr.

​Statistical Evidence

A summary of the collective opinion or observation of subject-matter experts regarding a specific subject.

Example: "The rate of break-ins has doubled since July 2020, from 37 offences per 100,000 people in the population, compared to last month's rate of 74 offences per 100,000. But this increase comes off the back of the COVID-19 lockdown period, when the break-in rate plummeted 59 per cent between March and July 2020. This same pattern is reflected in other categories like car theft rates, which fell 51 per cent between March and July 2020 before making a resurgence to pre-pandemic levels." - ABC, Data suggests Queensland's crime rate decreasing despite reports of surging youth offences.

Multiple Choice

Which persuasive technique involves appealing to the audience's emotions?

• Pathos

• Logos

• Rhetorical question

• Anecdote

Multiple Choice

"My mother always told me to treat everyone with kindness." Is an example of which persuasive technique?

• Anecdote

• Logos

• Repetition