The "Rhetorical Strategies" AP Exam Question

(updated) April 19, 2017:

I'm going to guess that, even though the AP exam is upon us, you might still be unclear about what exactly a rhetorical strategy is. There's actually a good reason for that. "Rhetorical strategy" is one of those umbrella terms that encompasses many different ideas. One source will tell you that Logos, Ethos, and Pathos are the key strategies. Another source will tell you that words like "anaphora" and "euphony" are the way to go.

And, of course, they're both right.

Because the study of rhetoric has been around since ancient Greece, it's a given that there will be an overwhelming mass of different information that different authors think is important. The best thing you can do for the AP exam is to not over-think it.

Stick with this.You know what rhetorical strategies are. At their simplest, they are the techniques that an author uses to improve the delivery of his/her message. Things like word choice, comparison, contrast, word order, imagery, repetition, irony, humor, rhetorical questions, hyperbole, etc. are all potential "rhetorical strategies." If you can explain the author's argument and explain how s/he uses these techniques to develop his/her argument, then you are well on your way to writing a great essay.

If you'd like to delver further into examples in an actual AP exam question, click past the break and go for it. 

Below is the second essay question from the 2013 AP Lang exam:

I won't go over the whole essay, but let's focus on the items numbered in red. The author, Richard Louv (Ever heard of him? Me neither), is arguing that modern people--in particular children--are too separated from nature. He starts this argument by (1) referring to scientists' ability to genetically modify the colors of butterfly wings. He then combines that with references to another writer, Matt Richtel, to suggest, with imagery and some shock value, that butterflies could one day be used as little, flapping vehicles for advertising. The larger point behind that shocking image is that he fears our continued tampering with what he calls "synthetic" nature will lead to our developing an indifference to "true" nature. 

Louv then examines the automobile (2) as the way that most children first develop a concept of the world. He uses the example of another author, Elaine Brooks, refusing to buy a new car with a rear-seat entertainment console for the children. Louv juxtaposes Brooks' experience desire NOT to have a rear seat TV with the salesman's other clients (the salesman is amazed she doesn't want one) to make the point that more and more car owners are enabling, even encouraging, their children's separation from the visual, nature-experience that is a car ride.

The author then moves to a personal anecdote (3) about his own childhood experiences, contrasting them with the experiences of many modern children. He makes a metaphorical comparison between riding in a car and a "drive-by" movie, which is a pun based on the idea of the "drive-in" movie theaters that were once so popular in this country.

In the last paragraph, Louv makes the conscious word choice (4) of pairing the words "useful" and "boredom," to counter the idea that boredom is something negative to be avoided. He again uses vivid imagery and his word choice and sentence structure becomes more lyrical and poetic to illustrate his perception of the near magical quality of long car rides. 

The five marked areas and the 'bolded' words above are not the only examples of "rhetorical strategies" in Louv's essay, but they are examples that, if explained well, would cover several key ideas and go a long way to fully answering the prompt. 

In the end, though, remember what I said earlier. Don't over-complicate it. Just analyze and explain what the author has to say (accurately) and explain how s/he uses language to deliver the main arguments of the excerpt.