Read the partial reference entry for the word devious.

(adj) 1 located in a remote place  2 varying from a straight line  3 varying from an accepted or common course  4 hard to pin down

Origin: 1500s; Latin devius, from de, from, away, + -vius (from via, “way, road”)

Based on the information provided, which reference source does this entry most likely come from?

Read the passage.

A warm, promising wind blew across the prairie that Easter Sunday in 1889 as Molly and her sister carefully folded their blankets and packed their few belongings in a large burlap sack. In the morning they would rise at dawn, throw everything they owned into the back of their small covered wagon, and take their place in line. The border was filled with people ready to stake their claims on the pristine land that would one day become the state of Oklahoma.

Read the thesaurus entry.

pristine (adj) immaculate, intact, natural, new, snowy, spotless, unspoiled

Which word from the thesaurus entry best illustrates what pristine means in this passage?

Read the Fifth Amendment to the US Constitution.

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

What is the purpose of this amendment?

Read this passage from "A Defense of the Constitution" by John Adams:

"… if ever this maxim was fully demonstrated and exemplified among men, it was in the late American Revolution, where thirteen governments were taken down from the foundation, and new ones elected wholly by the people, as an architect would pull down an old building and erect a new one."

What rhetorical device does he use here?

Read this passage:

Did you know that high school graduates earn over $10,000 more per year than high school dropouts? Imagine what that increase in salary could do for your financial stability! Additionally, about half of all Americans who rely on public assistance funds are people who have not completed their high school education, creating a higher financial burden on our society.

What rhetorical appeal is used?

Read this passage from “A Defense of the Constitution" by John Adams.

An excellent writer has said, somewhat incautiously, that “a people will never oppress themselves, or invade their own rights.”⁸ This compliment, if applied to human nature, or to mankind, or to any nation or people in being or in memory, is more than has been merited. If it should be admitted that a people will not unanimously agree to oppress themselves, it is as much as is ever, and more than is always, true. All kinds of experience show, that great numbers of individuals do oppress great numbers of other individuals; that parties often, if not always, oppress other parties, and majorities almost universally minorities. All that this observation can mean then, consistently with any color of fact, is, that the people will never unanimously⁹ agree to oppress themselves. But if one party agrees to oppress another, or the majority the minority, the people still oppress themselves, for one part of them oppress another.

Which rhetorical device is used in this passage?

Read this passage from “Let’s Give Up on the Constitution” by Louis Michael Seidman.

As the nation teeters at the edge of fiscal chaos, observers are reaching the conclusion that the American system of government is broken. But almost no one blames the culprit: our insistence on obedience to the Constitution, with all its archaic, idiosyncratic and downright evil provisions.

What rhetorical device does the author use to convey to the audience why the American system of government is broken?

Read the passage from “Declaration of Conscience” by Margaret Chase Smith.

Today our country is being psychologically divided by the confusion and the suspicions that are bred in the United States Senate to spread like cancerous tentacles of “know nothing, suspect everything” attitudes.

What rhetorical device is used in this passage?

Read the passage from “Declaration of Conscience” by Margaret Chase Smith.

I think that it is high time for the United States Senate and its members to do some soul-searching—for us to weigh our consciences—on the manner in which we are performing our duty to the people of America—on the manner in which we are using or abusing our individual powers and privileges.

Which option best states the main claim of the passage?

Which definition best applies to the rhetorical device ALLUSION?

Read the sentence from former President John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address.

Let both sides unite to heed, in all corners of the earth, the command of Isaiah— to “undo the heavy burdens, and [to] let the oppressed go free.”

What rhetorical feature is used in this sentence?

What legal precedent did the court case Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier establish?

Which is one of the purposes of Margaret Chase Smith's "Declaration of Conscience"?

Which is the correct format for an in-text citation for the following quote from President Kennedy's Inaugural Address from our Canvas page?

"And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country."