Rhetoric can help speakers or writers to better inform, persuade, or motivate their audiences. Even since the times of ancient Greece, people studied ways to "move" audiences to action. Modern rhetoric examines how and why certain messages, images, or modes of communication influence audiences. This topic will teach you about rhetoric, how it was used in early American literature, how it is used today.

An example of rhetoric is called plain style. An early example of plain style rhetoric is "A Model of Christian Charity" by John Winthrop. Winthrop had faith, as did all Puritans, that the New World would offer them freedom to worship as they chose and to live a life in bounty. Portions of this sermon have been quoted repeatedly in political campaigns and speeches. The idea that America is great, powerful, and righteous is a belief that is still popular today.

You will also take a look at the parts of a sentence. In this topic you, will practice with two basic sentence patterns that involve a subject, verb, and direct object.

Essential Questions

• What are some characteristics of rhetoric?
• How can personal opinion, or bias, be identified in personal writings?
• What are the roles of subjects, verbs, and direct objects in sentence structure?