Casa ESL · C2 Mastery · Unit 12 of 20 · Step 2
Rhetorical devices: tricolon, antithesis, anaphora, chiasmus
Name
Date
Vocabulary
tricolon
nounA rhetorical device using three parallel words, phrases, or clauses for emphasis and rhythm.
""Veni, vidi, vici" — I came, I saw, I conquered — is the most famous tricolon in history."
antithesis
nounA rhetorical device that juxtaposes contrasting ideas in balanced structures.
""It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" employs antithesis to dramatic effect."
anaphora
nounThe repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses for emphasis.
"Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech uses anaphora throughout to build emotional intensity."
chiasmus
nounA rhetorical device in which the order of terms in the first clause is reversed in the second (ABBA structure).
""Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country" is chiasmus."
ethos
nounThe persuasive appeal to the character or credibility of the speaker.
"She established ethos by citing her twenty years of clinical experience."
pathos
nounThe persuasive appeal to the audience's emotions.
"The advertisement relied on pathos — images of suffering children — rather than rational argument."
logos
nounThe persuasive appeal to logic and reason.
"The lawyer's closing argument was a masterclass in logos: methodical, evidence-based, and devastating."
epistrophe
nounThe repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses.
""...of the people, by the people, for the people" uses both tricolon and epistrophe."
Grammar Focus
Rhetorical devices: tricolon, antithesis, anaphora, chiasmus
Classical rhetoric provides structures that remain powerfully effective in contemporary English. Tricolon (groups of three) creates rhythm and completeness: "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Antithesis juxtaposes opposites in parallel structure: "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Anaphora (beginning repetition) builds momentum: "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields." Chiasmus reverses structure (ABBA): "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." These devices work because they exploit the brain's preference for pattern and surprise.
Tricolon: "Government of the people, by the people, for the people."
Antithesis: "To err is human; to forgive, divine."
Anaphora: "We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France."
Chiasmus: "You forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget."
Exercises
Exercise 1
Identify the rhetorical device used in each example.
1. "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
2. "I came, I saw, I conquered."
3. "Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country."
4. "We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail."
5. "The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here."
Exercise 2
Complete each sentence using the specified rhetorical device.
1. Tricolon: "This proposal is ."
2. Antithesis: "Where there was once , there is now ."
3. Anaphora: "We must act with . We must act with . We must act with ."
4. Chiasmus: "It is not the size of the dog in the fight, but ."
5. Epistrophe: "...of the people, the people, the people."
Reading
The Architecture of Great Speeches
What makes a speech memorable? Content matters, of course — but the history of oratory suggests that how something is said may be at least as important as what is said. Consider the most frequently quoted lines in the English-speaking world. "I have a dream" — Martin Luther King's use of anaphora, repeating the phrase eight times in succession, builds from a statement of personal aspiration to a vision of collective redemption. The repetition is not redundant; each iteration expands the scope of the dream. Churchill's "We shall fight on the beaches" employs the same device to opposite emotional effect: where King builds hope, Churchill builds defiance. The tricolon — "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" — has embedded itself so deeply in American consciousness that the three-part structure feels inevitable, as though no other number of values could suffice. Kennedy's chiasmus — "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country" — derives its force from the structural reversal: the mirrored syntax creates the illusion of logical inevitability, as though the second clause follows necessarily from the first. What these devices share is a common mechanism: they exploit the human brain's preference for pattern — and then, within that pattern, they deliver surprise. The ear anticipates the rhythm; the mind is moved by the meaning. It is this combination of structural predictability and semantic force that elevates rhetoric from mere ornament to genuine persuasion.
1. How does the passage distinguish between King's and Churchill's use of anaphora?
2. What "common mechanism" does the passage identify across all the rhetorical devices discussed?
Speaking
Discuss these questions with a partner or your teacher.
Writing
Write a short persuasive paragraph (100-130 words) on any topic. Incorporate at least three different rhetorical devices from this unit. Label each device in brackets after you use it.
Example: We stand at a crossroads. The path we choose will shape not just our economy, not just our environment, but the very future of civilisation itself [tricolon]. Where previous generations saw unlimited resources, we see depletion; where they saw endless growth, we see consequence [antithesis]. We must invest in renewable energy. We must rewild our landscapes. We must reimagine our relationship with the natural world [anaphora]. It is not nature that must adapt to humanity, but humanity that must adapt to nature [chiasmus]. The question is not whether we can afford to act — the question is whether we can afford not to.
Answer Key — For Teacher Use
Exercise 1
1. Antithesis · 2. Tricolon · 3. Chiasmus · 4. Anaphora (with tricolon) · 5. Antithesis
Exercise 2
1. impractical, unaffordable, and unnecessary · 2. despair ... hope (or similar balanced contrast) · 3. courage ... conviction ... compassion (or similar anaphoric pattern) · 4. the size of the fight in the dog · 5. by ... for
Reading Comprehension
1. Both use repetition, but to opposite emotional effects: King builds hope by expanding the scope of his dream with each iteration, while Churchill builds defiance through relentless repetition of resolve. · 2. They exploit the brain's preference for pattern and then deliver surprise within that pattern — combining structural predictability (rhythm the ear anticipates) with semantic force (meaning that moves the mind).