Blog 1

Every day, every hour, every minute, we are unmercifully barraged by examples of rhetoric. Nearly every man-made design is intended to sway our opinions in one way or another. It has become so common to see rhetoric, that we hardly even realize that we are being persuaded. Advertisers have become so efficient and adept at what they do, that most of our desires are acquired subconsciously. To list rhetoric devices that I see every day would be excessive. I would be sitting here typing until next month. So I will list only a few things that I can examine as I sit at my desk. I see a Dr. Pepper can. The logo on the can is bright, easily recognizable, and easy to read. A printed "stamp" on the can reads "AUTHENTIC BLEND OF 23 FLAVORS" which creates the feeling that Dr. Pepper is a very authentic drink; a brand to be trusted. Under the logo appears "Est. 1885" which is popular among companies. Letting customers know that you've been around a long time can build a feeling of trust. Obviously, people would be less likely to buy a Dr. Pepper if the label said "Est. 2009". Dr. Pepper is not the only rhetoric device here, obviously. I have many others sitting all around me. I could explain them all in the same detail as my previous example, but that would simply be redundant. To name a few other things, however, I see my friend's ipod touch. With its sleek design and Apple logo, it is a forceful persuader. I would want to go buy one after seeing it once. It just looks...cool. I see an advertisement for some video games. Obviously with the purpose of arguing that E.B. Games is the smart place to buy games.

There are many examples of rhetoric. Most of the examples I covered here are visuals. Mostly advertisements. But rhetoric can come in a vast array of forms. From essays to simple pictures, rhetoric exists, and can be a powerful persuasive tool.