EKIA4200 Rhetoric and Persuasive Language Use (5 cr)

In this course you will be trained in the 4000-year-old art of rhetoric. You will learn how to persuade people using linguistic structures specifically designed to influence, stimulate, and motivate. You will compare the use of persuasive language in a range of contemporary and historical settings, and consider exactly what makes language persuasive. You will use this knowledge to create a persuasive text on a topic of your choice.

After completing the course, the students will be able to:

• Know about types of rhetorical devices and terms used for them;

• Comprehend their use in various genres of persuasive language (e.g. advertising, politics);

• Apply this knowledge to writing and delivering a piece of persuasive writing;

• Analyse the rhetorical structures in your speech, comparing this to research on rhetoric;

• Evaluate your work constructively, with clear ideas for potential future improvement

Students may be absent from no more than two classes.

The study materials will be available in Moodle. Further readings will be announced in the course. A useful background source is the free online book ‘Rhetoric and Composition’, https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Rhetoric_and_Composition.