Rhetorical Stance Analysis

With what is currently happening in the U.S. Presidential race, it is, perhaps now more important than ever before, to understand what it means to take a rhetorical stance. If one has been watching the previous three presidential debates, one should surely notice some ways of speaking and getting points across, often poorly and to zero effect on the intelligent viewer, designed not only to convey information, but inject emotion and opinion, and even attempt to subtly manipulate. Repetitions of words and phrases, especially keywords, the insertion of slogans, or encapsulating turns of phrase for effect, appeals to pathos, ethos, and logos to try and sway the audience; the debates have not been masterclasses on rhetoric, but they have most certainly …show more content…
Taking a rhetorical stance involves tasks such as deciding which language and jargon are appropriate for one 's audience, including the use of casual or formal addresses to the audience, effective transitions, the use of profanity, adjectives, and references to oneself in the first or third person. The central argument is a rhetorical stance cannot be taught with mere theory; it needs to be observed and picked up naturally (Booth 140). Booth claims a writer usually takes the rhetorical stance to communicate an idea or an argument to their intended audience and to keep the tone, language, and rhetorical devices that emphasize the theme consistently throughout their writing (Booth 141). The best writers are those whose rhetorical stances are able to convince the reader that he or she is being personally addressed by a great mind. Readers should feel like they are being guided through what they are reading by the author. Booth concludes by stating that he believes certain people are born with the ability to write and an instinctive capacity for knowing what will resonate with their audience while acknowledging that it is also something which requires experiences and a certain amount of