RHETORICAL MODES

RHETORICAL MODES

Rhetorical modes (also known as modes of discourse) describe the variety, conventions, and purposes of the major kinds of writing. Four of the most common rhetorical modes and their purpose are exposition, argumentation, description, and narration.

Rhetorical Modes	Purpose	Audience	Content	Style	Voice	Organization
Descriptive	To express to the reader our perception or idea of the world which is, what a thing looks like, sounds like or smells like by using our five senses which are sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch.	The audience depends on the purpose of the descriptive piece and therefore, the audience can be children, adults or layperson.  The person who will be able to visualize the thing after it has been read.	Descriptive prose provides sensuous details about people, places, times of day, feelings and so on. It therefore allows you to perceive the world through your five senses.	Can be either of the Artistic type or the technical/scientific type though the artistic type is more typical and characteristic of this type of discourse. In the artistic type, all of the affective factors which are associated with the senses will be exploited.	The voice used must appeal to your senses as at the end of the piece, you should be able to visualize the image of the thing that is described. Eg. Use of words such as big, yellow, sad.	Organization principle is Spatial: presented as they are (or were) located in space--such as, from left to right or from top to bottom. Therefore when an object is attempted to be described then, we are forced to freeze the moment in time in order to describe it.
Narrative	To express an event to the reader on how we experience the world whether it is temporal sequence which is events are happening at present; or chronological order, natural sequence in which events occur in time. Time is very important in narration.	The audience depends on the purpose of the narrative piece and therefore, the audience can be children, adults or layperson.  The person who will experience the story based on what has been read, reader will have a sense of witnessing the action.	The meaning narration covers any type of discourse that relates events in time. Narration is concerned with actions in a temporal sequence with life in motion. Primary purpose is to appeal to our intellect and not our imagination.	Artistic narrative types are the types of narration with which we are more familiar, but in the writing of history, technical/scientific narration, since the primary purpose is to inform or explain.	Should use descriptive language as it needs to be able to describe the story or convey a meaning.	Time controls the structure of narration. Events take place in a temporal sequence. Events can take place in the chronological order, relate events at the most dramatic point of the action and the use of flash back in time to go to the high point of the story.
Argument	This is an attempt to persuade or convince the audience or reader to change their beliefs or opinions on a topic of idea and to have the audience/reader take action by appealing to the readers’ reason or emotion. It is based on beliefs, attitudes, ideas and conceptions.	The audience depends on the purpose of the argumentative piece and therefore, the audience can be children, adults or layperson. The person who will change their conception or belief about a topic or issue and take action.	Evidence is used and cited in order to justify the writers claim or position. Requires the reader to analyze and evaluate.	Technical scientific argument is the equivalent of logical argument and persuasion is the equivalent of artistic argument. Logical argument appeals to the intellect (reason) and persuasive argument appeals to the emotions.	Nature is to appeal to the audience’s rational thought rather than to their emotions. Argues the point to make reader aware of the conflict or issue or disagreement, and states their point of view from the beginning of essay to the end.	There are various types of arguments which have their own structural characteristics. There are Inductive arguments (generalisations, analogy and cause and effect) and deductive arguments, which have fairly complex patterns and means of testing. Argument may have two or three claims which are : one is the conclusion, the first sentence, and the other two sentences which constitute grounds that justify the conclusion.
Exposition	The primary function of exposition is to inform the audience/reader and explain an idea, belief or feeling. Exposition typically deals with ideas, which are essentially abstract and have no time dimensions.	The audience depends on the purpose of the expositive piece and therefore, the audience can be children, adults or layperson.  The audience is who will be have an understanding of the explanation and information after reading the piece of writing.	Used to convey an understanding, therefore this discourse is concerned with making an idea clear, analyzing a situation, defining a term, giving instructions and the like. It is most often used in the academic world, in the world of work and in everyday life.	There may be both technical/scientific and artistic exposition. However, technical/scientific is more typical of this mode, since its main purpose is to inform or explain, which usually implies an appeal to the intellect or understanding.	Writing is used to engage the audience in the idea or belief and also to explain, so it relates to the dimension of reality. The audience is therefore asked to believe the view of the writer.	There in no one single method of organizing exposition, but a variety of methods, most of them based on logic. This is because exposition typically deals with ideas, which are abstract and have no space/time continuum. Structural devices used in Exposition are: classification, analysis, definition, comparison and contrast, illustration, cause and effect and analogy.