✍️ Part 9: Emotional Appeal, Rhetorical Questions & Repetition in Persuasion
(For IGCSE, AS Level, and IB English Exams)
Persuasive writing is more than structure—it’s about resonance. And nothing sticks more than emotion, rhythm, and questions that spark reflection.
🎯 Why Use These Devices?
✔️ Emotional Appeal (Pathos): Creates empathy, urgency, or moral pressure
✔️ Rhetorical Questions: Invites the reader to think and subtly agree
✔️ Repetition: Reinforces ideas and adds rhythm and memorability
Used well, they humanise your argument, add persuasive power, and engage the reader deeply.
💓 Emotional Appeal (Pathos)
This targets the reader’s feelings—fear, hope, guilt, compassion, outrage, etc.
💡 Examples:
- Imagine watching your child drink dirty water every day.
- What would you do if your home vanished under the sea?
- Millions of animals die silently each year. Why aren’t we listening?
🔑 Tips:
- Use vivid imagery or scenarios
- Use anecdotes or real-life statistics with emotional impact
- Avoid over-dramatizing (it can feel manipulative)
✅ Great for IB’s Paper 1 commentaries and persuasive articles.
❓ Rhetorical Questions
These are questions that don’t need an answer—because the answer is obvious or implied. They:
- Pull the reader into your logic
- Emphasise key ideas
- Challenge assumptions
💡 Examples:
- How many more must die before we act?
- Do we really want a world where trees exist only in books?
- Is this the legacy we want to leave behind?
🧠 Use sparingly—one strong rhetorical question per paragraph is usually enough.
🔁 Repetition (and Rule of Three)
Repetition creates emphasis and rhythmic flow. It can be a word, phrase, or sentence structure.
💡 Examples:
- We need change. We demand change. We deserve change.
- No child should be hungry. No child should be homeless. No child should be forgotten.
- They ignored us. They mocked us. But we stood strong.
🧠 Rule of Three (triadic structure) is especially persuasive because it’s memorable and satisfying.
🔧 Combine the Three for Maximum Impact
What would you do if it were your sister? Your mother? Your daughter? How many more must be sacrificed for silence? Enough is enough. Enough pain. Enough denial. Enough death.
🔑 A masterful paragraph might start with a rhetorical question, develop with emotional appeal, and end with repetition.
⚠️ Cautions
| Mistake | Why It Hurts |
| Overusing emotion | Can feel manipulative or melodramatic |
| Asking too many questions | Confuses and frustrates the reader |
| Repetitive repetition (!) | Loses its impact and feels lazy |
| Emotion with no logic or facts | Makes argument weak or unbalanced |
📌 Examiner Perspective
- IGCSE/AS: Use of rhetorical devices shows flair, awareness of audience, and command of tone.
- IB: Analysis of these features in Paper 1 is crucial. In your own writing (e.g., Paper 2, HL essay), they demonstrate control and persuasion.
✨ “Writers who can make the reader feel and think are always rewarded.” — Examiner Report
🧪 Quick Practice Prompt
Task: Write a persuasive sentence that includes:
- 1 rhetorical question
- 1 emotional appeal
- 1 example of repetition (rule of three)