Rhetorical question

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A rhetorical question is a question asked for a purpose other than to obtain information.[1] In many cases it may be intended to start a discourse, as a means of displaying or emphasizing the speaker's or author's opinion on a topic.

A simple example is the question "Can't you do anything right?" This question is not intended to ask about the listener's competence but rather to insinuate their lack of it.

Forms

Negative assertions

A rhetorical question may be intended as a challenge. The question is often difficult or impossible to answer. In the example, "What have the Romans ever done for us?" (

Shakespeare's Mark Antony exclaims, "Here was a Caesar! When comes such another?" it functions as an assertion that Caesar possesses such rare qualities they may never be seen again. (Julius Caesar
, Act 3, scene 2, 257)

Rhetorical questions are often used as a metaphor for a question already asked. Examples may be found in the song "Maria" from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, The Sound of Music, in which "How do you solve a problem like Maria?" is repeatedly answered with other questions: "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?", "How do you keep a wave upon the sand?" and "How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?" These responses assert that a problem like Maria cannot be solved.

Vernacular

In the vernacular, this form of rhetorical question is called "rhetorical affirmation". The certainty or obviousness of the answer to a question is expressed by asking another, often humorous, question for which the answer is equally obvious. Popular examples include "Do bears shit in the woods?", "Is the sky blue?" and "Is the Pope Catholic?"[2][3][4]

A rhetorical question may be used in sarcastic contexts. For example, in response to being informed that smoking can increase the possibility of developing lung cancer, someone could respond with the question, "Who knew?" The question functions as an assertion that the truth of the statement should have been utterly obvious.

Hypophora

The hypophora is a hyponym of a rhetorical question, characterized by the speaker posing a question which is immediately answered by the speaker. Examples: “Do you always watch for the longest day of the year and then miss it? I always watch for the longest day in the year and then miss it." - The Great Gatsby. This can moreover be a manifestation of an epiphrase, as Daisy had personally asserted her own opinion on her question.

Punctuation

Depending on the context, a rhetorical question may be punctuated by a question mark (?), full stop (.), or exclamation mark (!),[5] but some sources argue that it is required to use a question mark for any question, rhetorical or not.[6]

In the 1580s, English printer

rhetorical question mark" (⸮) for use at the end of a rhetorical question; however, it fell out of use in the 17th century. It was the reverse of an ordinary question mark, so that instead of the main opening pointing back into the sentence, it opened away from it.[7]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Gideon O. Burton, Brigham Young University. "Rhetorical questions!". specialized language definitions. Archived from the original on 2007-10-26. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
  2. ISBN 0-333-44070-6
    .
  3. ISBN 0-19-823614-X
    .
  4. ISBN 0-415-10051-8
    .
  5. ^ http://www.whitesmoke.com/punctuation-question-mark.html#rhe Whitesmoke
  6. ^ "The Question Mark". grammar.ccc.commnet.edu. Archived from the original on 8 September 2006. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  7. ISBN 1-59240-087-6
    .
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