TEXT STRUCTURE & RHETORICAL APPEALS
R.2.1
R.2.1
An author explains how one event directly caused another event. What text structure is being used?
What is cause and effect?
What is the main argument or position an author is trying to prove?
What is a claim?
An author writes an article explaining how hurricanes form. What is the author's primary purpose?
What is to inform?
“The classroom was a zoo.”
What type of figurative language is this?
what is a metaphor?
A speaker asks:
“Do we really want to live in a world where children are afraid to go outside?”
The speaker does not actually expect an answer.
What rhetorical device is this?
What is a rhetorical question?
An article explains the similarities and differences between online school and traditional school. What text structure is most appropriate?
What is compare and contrast?
An author writes:
“Our school should add more shaded areas because students need comfortable places to sit outside.”
What is the author's claim?
The school should add more shaded areas.
An advertisement tells teenagers that they should buy a particular brand of shoes because “everyone is wearing them.”
What is the author's primary purpose?
What is to persuade?
“The wind whispered through the trees.”
What type of figurative language is used?
Answer: What is personification?
A speaker repeats the phrase:
“We deserve better. We deserve safer schools. We deserve stronger communities.”
What rhetorical device is being used?
What is repetition?
Read the passage:
Many students struggle to get enough sleep. One solution is to move high school start times later. Schools that have adopted later start times have reported that students get more sleep and arrive at school more alert.
Which text structure is primarily used?
What is problem and solution?
An author says:
“Last year, 68% of students reported that they felt more focused after eating breakfast.”
Which type of rhetorical appeal is primarily being used?
What is logos?
Read the passage:
Marcus failed his driver's test twice. Instead of giving up, he practiced every weekend. On his third attempt, he passed.
What is the most likely message?
Persistence can help people overcome failure.
“She was as quiet as a mouse during the presentation.”
What type of figurative language is being used?
What is a simile?
A speaker says:
“We must act today—not tomorrow, not next month, but today.”
What rhetorical device is emphasized?
What is repetition?
Read the passage:
Social media can provide students with opportunities to connect with others. However, excessive use can negatively affect concentration and sleep. Unlike occasional use, constant scrolling may interfere with a student's ability to focus on schoolwork.
Which structure does the author use to organize the ideas?
What is compare and contrast?
Read the argument:
“As a parent and teacher, I have seen how excessive homework affects students' stress levels. I believe schools should reconsider assigning hours of homework each night.”
Which rhetorical appeal is most evident?
What is ethos, because the speaker establishes credibility through personal experience as a parent and teacher?
An author describes a character who constantly compares herself to people online. By the end of the story, she realizes that social media does not show the complete reality of someone's life.
What message is the author most likely communicating?
People should not measure their self-worth by unrealistic images presented on social media.
Read the sentence:
“After receiving the scholarship, Marcus felt like he had finally opened the door to his future.”
What does the figurative language suggest?
The scholarship represents a new opportunity that could lead to future success.
Read the statement:
“If we allow students to use their phones during every class, soon students will stop paying attention altogether. Eventually, they will forget how to communicate face-to-face.”
What rhetorical technique is the author using to create concern about a possible future consequence?
What is appeal to fear?
Read the passage:
Every morning, Maya ignored the warning signs that her car needed repairs. Eventually, the engine stopped working on the highway. Because she had postponed maintenance, she had to pay hundreds of dollars for repairs and miss an important appointment.
Which combination BEST describes the author's organization and its effect?
Cause and effect; it emphasizes how Maya's earlier choices produced negative consequences.
Read the argument:
“Imagine coming home after a full day of school, working a part-time job, and then facing four hours of homework. Students should not have to sacrifice sleep just to complete an unreasonable workload. Research shows that excessive homework can increase student stress without necessarily improving academic performance.”
Which combination BEST describes the author's argument?
The claim is that students should not receive unreasonable amounts of homework; the author uses pathos through the scenario and logos through research-based evidence.
Read the passage:
Although Jordan desperately wanted to leave his hometown, every summer he returned to help his grandfather repair the family house. He complained about the work, but when his grandfather became ill, Jordan realized that those summers had given him memories and a connection to his family that he did not want to lose.
What is the deeper message?
People may not recognize the value of family traditions and relationships until they realize those experiences could be lost.
Read the passage:
“The city swallowed him whole. Towering buildings stared down at him while streams of strangers rushed past without noticing his existence.”
Identify two examples of figurative language and explain how they develop the meaning.
“The city swallowed him whole” is personification/metaphor, suggesting he feels overwhelmed and insignificant. “Buildings stared down at him” is personification, emphasizing how small and intimidated he feels.
Read the passage:
“We have waited long enough. We have watched our parks deteriorate. We have watched children lose safe places to play. We have watched our community become something we no longer recognize. How much longer will we wait?”
Identify at least ONE rhetorical device and explain how it strengthens the author's argument.
Repetition/anaphora through “We have watched” emphasizes the repeated problems, while the rhetorical questionchallenges the audience to recognize that immediate action is necessary. Together, they create urgency and encourage the audience to act.