Rhetorical devices use psychological persuasion, rather than
reason, to persuade others to accept a particular position. They include
euphemisms, dysphemism, sarcasm and hyperbole. I've used both sarcasm and
hyperbole this week. Sarcasm uses ridicule, insults, taunts, and or caustic
irony in order to create a sense of disapproval towards an intended target. I
was being sarcastic when I told my friend, who had kept me waiting for twenty
minutes, that "it was cool how he was always on time". My tone of
voice told him I did not actually think this and, as is the way with sarcasm,
it was intended to make him feel bad. I used hyperbole, which is the use of
exaggeration in describing something, when I explained the football game I had watched.
I told my friend it was "the best game we had played this season"
when it was actually a pretty disappointing game for my team. I guess making it
seem better for us was easier than admitting how let down I was.
No comments:
Post a Comment