“Voice” in the context of writing or speaking isn’t about the sound that comes out of one’s mouth. Instead, it’s a metaphorical term that refers to the unique way a writer or speaker presents their thoughts and feelings. Voice refers to the sense or measure of writer’s personality and distinctive ways of expressing themselves. Voice ...
What is Tone? Tone in writing and communication irefers to the mood or emotional character conveyed through a text. Specifically, e.g., tone refer to Examples on the Importance of Tone Have you ever gotten mad about something someone told you just because of the way they said it to you? Maybe it was criticism you ...
What Is Point of View? In writing, point of view refers to whether the writing takes on a singular or plural perspective in either 1st person, 2nd person, or 3rd person. First person is the perspective of the writer; 1st person uses words like “I,” “my,” “me,” or “we.” 2nd-person is the perspective of the ...
What is Style? Style can be challenging to concretely define. It’s a bit like like trying to catch a handful of sand—just when you think you’ve grasped it, it slips through your fingers. Defining style is elusive During deliberations on a legal matter, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart once remarked “I know it when ...
Colloquially, the terms Subject(s) as well as Topic(s) may be used interchangeably to mean what a message is about, the subject matter of a text a branch of knowledge; the categories dictionaries and encyclopedias use to sort information. However, in the discipline of Writing Studies and other academic settings, these terms may be differentiated from ...
What is the Rhetorical Situation? The rhetorical situation refers to Synonyms The Rhetorical Situation may also be called occasion; rhetorical situation; rhetorical occasion; situational constraints; the spin room; the no-spin room, the communication situation. Rhetorical Situations are sometimes described as formal, semi-formal, or informal. They may also be described as home-based, school-based, or work-based. Related ...
Rhetorical Appeals refer to Rhetors deploy a variety of rhetorical appeals depending on their rhetorical situation, thesis/research question, and mindset. Rhetorical Appeals Ethos character, ethics, Pathos appeals to empathy, compassion. Logos logic, substantive prose, deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning Kairos “the right place and the right time.” Ethos An appeal to ethos is an appeal ...
What is Audience Awareness? Audience Audience refers to What Does It Mean When Someone Says Your Communications Aren’t Audience Sensitive or Lack Audience Awareness? Audience Awareness refers to Synonyms Audience may refer to readers, listeners, users and other recipients of a message sent by a Sender (e.g., an author, writer, speaker, or knowledge worker) Audience ...
What is Description? Description is the use of prose—especially concrete, sensory language and figurative language—to describe events, people, ideas, concepts a dominant and powerful form of human expression Description plays a role in all genres. In fact, it’s commonplace for writers to describe the context that informs their text, including a discussion of ongoing scholarly ...
Definition refers to a rhetor’s efforts to define something. Definitions may be limited to a sentence or they may extend to whole paragraphs, passages, essays, or books. Definition is essential for communication to take place. Communities of Practitioners are able to understand one another because they share a common vocabulary, which is bounded by definitions. ...
