Good Readers and Good Writers Rhetorical Device

A rhetorical device is a technique that an author or speaker uses to convey to the listener or reader a meaning with the goal of persuading him or her towards considering a topic from a different perspective. An example of a rhetorical device in Good Readers and Good Writers is the point of view. This essay is told in first person which means the story is told by the author’s point of view. We only know what the narrator knows. This can be an advantage to the reader because we know exactly what the author wants us to know. On page 3 the author tells us a personal quiz he made up to see is a person knew what a good reader was. He tells us a reader must have a good memory, imagination, a dictionary, and some artistic sense. (Nabokov 2) In addition Nabokov gives us his personal opinion about artistic sense. He says, “Which sense I propose to develop in myself and in others whenever I have the chance” (Nabokov 2) Nabokov is telling the reader he wants to develop in artistic sense more. The reader can see points of view throughout the essay many times.

Rhetorical Questions are also asked throughout the essay. A rhetorical question is when the speaker asks a question but it does not necessarily ask a yes or no question. These questions are usually used to provoke or emphasize the readers mind. The author asks, “Can we expect to glean information about places and times from a novel?” (Nabokov 1) Nabokov was not asking the reader to answer the question by saying yes or no but by asking the question to provoke ides and to prove a point. On the third page of the essay Nabokov asks “So what is the authentic instrument to be used by the reader” (Nabokov 3) He goes on to answer the question himself. Rhetorical devices create literal effects and help the author prove his or her essay and topic.

Nabokov, Vladimir. "Good Readers and Good Writers." Lectures on Literature. New York: Plurabelle Books, 1946