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A '''rhetorical question''' is a ] in the form of a question posed for ]al effect rather than for the purpose of getting an answer. ("How many times do I have to tell you to stop walking into the house with mud on your shoes?"). {{Short description|Figure of speech in the form of a question, asked to make a point rather than to elicit an answer}}
A '''rhetorical question''' is a ] asked for a purpose other than to obtain ].<ref name="rhetorical question definition">{{cite web
|url = http://rhetoric.byu.edu/figures/R/rhetorical%20questions.htm
|title = Rhetorical questions!
|access-date = 2007-10-19
|author = Gideon O. Burton, Brigham Young University
|work = specialized language definitions
|url-status = dead
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071026092912/http://rhetoric.byu.edu/figures/R/rhetorical%20questions.htm
|archive-date = 2007-10-26
}}</ref> In many cases it may be intended to start a discourse, as a means of displaying or emphasizing the speaker's or author's opinion on a topic.


A simple example is the question "Can't you do anything right?" This question is intended not to ask about the listener's ability but rather to insinuate the listener's lack of ability.
A rhetorical question seeks to encourage reflection within the listener as to what the answer to the question (at least, the answer implied by the questioner) must be. When a speaker declaims, "How much longer must our people endure this injustice?" or "Will our company grow or shrink?", no formal answer is expected. Rather, it is a device used by the speaker to assert or deny something.


==Examples== ==Forms==
===Negative assertions===
*"How can people have hope when we tell them that they have no recourse, if they run afoul of the state justice system?" ] ''Senate debate on the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act'' 1968
A rhetorical question may be intended as a challenge. The question is often difficult or impossible to answer. In the example, "What have the Romans ever done for us?" ('']'') the question functions as a negative assertion. It is intended to mean "The Romans have never done anything for us!" When ] ] exclaims, "Here was a Caesar! When comes such another?" it functions as an assertion that Caesar possesses such rare qualities they may never be seen again. ('']'', Act 3, scene 2, 257)
*"Did this in Caesar seem ambitious? / When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept: / Ambition should be made of sterner stuff: / Yet Brutus says he was ambitious; / And Brutus is an honourable man. / You all did see that on the Lupercal / I thrice presented him a kingly crown, / Which he did thrice refuse: was this ambition?" ] Julius Caesar, Act 3, scene 2.


Negative assertions may function as positives in ]s. For example, in response to being informed that smoking can increase the possibility of developing lung cancer, someone could respond with the question, "Who knew?" The question functions as an assertion that the truth of the statement should have been utterly obvious.
Some rhetorical questions become idiomatic English expressions:


===Metaphors===
:"What's the matter with you?"
Rhetorical questions are often used as a ] for a question already asked. Examples may be found in the song "]" from the 1959 ] musical, '']'', in which "How do you solve a problem like Maria?" is repeatedly answered with other questions: "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?", "How do you keep a wave upon the sand?" and "How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?" These responses assert that a problem like Maria cannot be solved.
:"Don't you know any better?"
:"Have you no shame?"
:"Is the Pope Catholic?"
:"Do fish swim?"
:"Does a bear shit in the woods?"
:"Are you crazy?"
:"Who cares?"
:"How should I know?"
:"Are you kidding me?"


===Vernacular===
Some TV shows have had rhetorical questions as titles, such as '']'' and '']''
In the vernacular, this form of rhetorical question is called "rhetorical affirmation". The certainty or obviousness of the answer to a question is expressed by asking another, often humorous, question for which the answer is equally obvious. Popular examples include "Do bears shit in the woods?", "Is the sky blue?" and "Is the Pope Catholic?"<ref name="Powell 1998">{{cite book |author1=Powell, Chris |author2=Paton, George E. C. | year = 1988 | title = Humour in society: resistance and control | publisher = Macmillan | isbn = 0-333-44070-6 | page = 67}}</ref><ref name="Moon 1998">{{cite book | author = Moon, Rosamund | year = 1998 | title = Fixed expressions and idioms in English: a corpus-based approach (Oxford studies in lexicography and lexicology) | publisher = Oxford University Press | isbn = 0-19-823614-X | page = 158}}</ref><ref name="Fergusson 1994">{{cite book |author1=Fergusson, Rosalind |author2=Partridge, Eric | year = 1994 | title = Shorter dictionary of catch phrases |url=https://archive.org/details/shorterdictionar00ferg |url-access=limited | publisher = Routledge | isbn = 0-415-10051-8 | page = }}</ref>

===Hypophora===
The ] is a hyponym of a rhetorical question, characterized by the speaker posing a question for which is immediately answered by the speaker themself.
Examples:
''“Do you always watch for the longest day of the year and then miss it? I always watch for the longest day in the year and then miss it."'' - The Great Gatsby. This can moreover be a manifestation of an ], as Daisy had personally asserted her own opinion on her question.

==Punctuation==
Depending on the context, a rhetorical question may be punctuated by a question mark (?), full stop (.), or exclamation mark (!),<ref>http://www.whitesmoke.com/punctuation-question-mark.html#rhe Whitesmoke</ref> but some sources argue that it is required to use a question mark for any question, rhetorical or not.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/marks/question.htm|title=The Question Mark|website=grammar.ccc.commnet.edu|access-date=18 March 2018|archive-date=8 September 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060908101340/http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/marks/question.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In the 1580s, English printer ] invented a "]" (⸮) for use at the end of a rhetorical question; however, it fell out of use in the 17th century. It was the reverse of an ordinary question mark, so that instead of the main opening pointing back into the sentence, it opened away from it.<ref>Truss, Lynne. ''Eats, Shoots & Leaves'', 2003. p. 142. {{ISBN|1-59240-087-6}}.</ref>

==Quotes==
"The effectiveness of rhetorical questions in argument comes from their dramatic quality. They suggest dialogue, especially when the speaker both asks and answers them himself, as if he were playing two parts on the stage. They are not always impassioned; they may be mildly ironical or merely argumentative: but they are always to some extent dramatic, and, if used to excess, they tend to give one’s style a theatrical air." -- J.H. Gardiner<ref>{{cite book|last=Gardiner|first=J|title=Manual of Composition and Rhetoric|url=https://archive.org/details/manualcompositi01arnogoog|publisher=Ginn & Company|year=1907|oclc=1926080}}</ref>

"Rhetorical questioning is…a fairly conscious technique adopted by a speaker for deliberate ends, and it is used infrequently, proportional to the length of the dialogue, oration, or conversation." -- Boyd H. Davis<ref>{{cite book |last=Davis |first=Boyd |title=Electronic Discourse: Linguistics Individuals in Virtual Space |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1997 |location=Albany |oclc=42636887}}</ref>


==See also== ==See also==
*] *]
*] <!--Another type of question-->
⚫ *]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]


==Notes==
⚫ ]
{{reflist}}
⚫ ]


==External links== ==External links==
* *
* *
*

⚫ {{Figures of speech}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhetorical Question}}
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poop

Latest revision as of 23:00, 20 December 2024

Figure of speech in the form of a question, asked to make a point rather than to elicit an answer

A rhetorical question is a question asked for a purpose other than to obtain information. In many cases it may be intended to start a discourse, as a means of displaying or emphasizing the speaker's or author's opinion on a topic.

A simple example is the question "Can't you do anything right?" This question is intended not to ask about the listener's ability but rather to insinuate the listener's lack of ability.

Forms

Negative assertions

A rhetorical question may be intended as a challenge. The question is often difficult or impossible to answer. In the example, "What have the Romans ever done for us?" (Monty Python's Life of Brian) the question functions as a negative assertion. It is intended to mean "The Romans have never done anything for us!" When Shakespeare's Mark Antony exclaims, "Here was a Caesar! When comes such another?" it functions as an assertion that Caesar possesses such rare qualities they may never be seen again. (Julius Caesar, Act 3, scene 2, 257)

Negative assertions may function as positives in sarcastic contexts. For example, in response to being informed that smoking can increase the possibility of developing lung cancer, someone could respond with the question, "Who knew?" The question functions as an assertion that the truth of the statement should have been utterly obvious.

Metaphors

Rhetorical questions are often used as a metaphor for a question already asked. Examples may be found in the song "Maria" from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, The Sound of Music, in which "How do you solve a problem like Maria?" is repeatedly answered with other questions: "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?", "How do you keep a wave upon the sand?" and "How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?" These responses assert that a problem like Maria cannot be solved.

Vernacular

In the vernacular, this form of rhetorical question is called "rhetorical affirmation". The certainty or obviousness of the answer to a question is expressed by asking another, often humorous, question for which the answer is equally obvious. Popular examples include "Do bears shit in the woods?", "Is the sky blue?" and "Is the Pope Catholic?"

Hypophora

The hypophora is a hyponym of a rhetorical question, characterized by the speaker posing a question for which is immediately answered by the speaker themself. Examples: “Do you always watch for the longest day of the year and then miss it? I always watch for the longest day in the year and then miss it." - The Great Gatsby. This can moreover be a manifestation of an epiphrase, as Daisy had personally asserted her own opinion on her question.

Punctuation

Depending on the context, a rhetorical question may be punctuated by a question mark (?), full stop (.), or exclamation mark (!), but some sources argue that it is required to use a question mark for any question, rhetorical or not.

In the 1580s, English printer Henry Denham invented a "rhetorical question mark" (⸮) for use at the end of a rhetorical question; however, it fell out of use in the 17th century. It was the reverse of an ordinary question mark, so that instead of the main opening pointing back into the sentence, it opened away from it.

Quotes

"The effectiveness of rhetorical questions in argument comes from their dramatic quality. They suggest dialogue, especially when the speaker both asks and answers them himself, as if he were playing two parts on the stage. They are not always impassioned; they may be mildly ironical or merely argumentative: but they are always to some extent dramatic, and, if used to excess, they tend to give one’s style a theatrical air." -- J.H. Gardiner

"Rhetorical questioning is…a fairly conscious technique adopted by a speaker for deliberate ends, and it is used infrequently, proportional to the length of the dialogue, oration, or conversation." -- Boyd H. Davis

See also

Notes

  1. Gideon O. Burton, Brigham Young University. "Rhetorical questions!". specialized language definitions. Archived from the original on 2007-10-26. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
  2. Powell, Chris; Paton, George E. C. (1988). Humour in society: resistance and control. Macmillan. p. 67. ISBN 0-333-44070-6.
  3. Moon, Rosamund (1998). Fixed expressions and idioms in English: a corpus-based approach (Oxford studies in lexicography and lexicology). Oxford University Press. p. 158. ISBN 0-19-823614-X.
  4. Fergusson, Rosalind; Partridge, Eric (1994). Shorter dictionary of catch phrases. Routledge. p. 25. ISBN 0-415-10051-8.
  5. http://www.whitesmoke.com/punctuation-question-mark.html#rhe Whitesmoke
  6. "The Question Mark". grammar.ccc.commnet.edu. Archived from the original on 8 September 2006. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  7. Truss, Lynne. Eats, Shoots & Leaves, 2003. p. 142. ISBN 1-59240-087-6.
  8. Gardiner, J (1907). Manual of Composition and Rhetoric. Ginn & Company. OCLC 1926080.
  9. Davis, Boyd (1997). Electronic Discourse: Linguistics Individuals in Virtual Space. Albany: State University of New York Press. OCLC 42636887.

External links

Figures of speech
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