Dear :

From time to time, I send updates about trends in media, technology, and culture — with a focus on the unusual, the newsworthy, and the practical.

Today I offer Part 1 of my tips on rhetoric — the art of speaking and writing persuasively — with a focus on creative repetition for your marketing playbook. 

Shakespeare Made Rhetoric Clear

Though the world's most famous writer never went to college, he certainly would have learned rhetoric in grade school in the 1500s because it was part of the standard curriculum at that time. Even if the Bard had not been taught how to speak and write, he still would have been a very smart man — though he probably wouldn't have become, well, Shakespeare.

Artful Turnabout

JFK once said, "Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind." This statement is a form of verbal judo, with the second phrase reversing the first.

Note the repetition of key words and the parallel structure.

Business example: "We care about user interface and we interface with care with the user." 

Technique known as chiasmus, pronounced "ky-AZ-mus." 

When 007 Speaks, We Listen

"Bond, James Bond" is a memorable example of a sort of verbal sandwich — repeating a key word with other words in between.

Technique known as diacope, pronounced "dy-AK-uh-pee." 

Then there's extended diacope, as in "A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse" or "Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty we're free at last."

Related: Repeating a word in a way that changes its meaning, as in the Beatles song "Please, Please Me."

Business example: "We make the traveler's lot a lot easier." 

Technique known as polyptoton, pronounced "puh-LIP-toe-tahn.'

Mentors from Star Wars

In Episode One, Yoda said, "Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering."

As you see, the final word in each sentence becomes the first word in the next one.

Business example: "We serve our clients. Our clients become our friends. Our friends recommend us to other clients."

Technique known as anadiplosis, pronounced "and-dip-LOS-is."

Say it Again, Sam

In Casablanca, Captain Renault tells Rick, "I am shocked, shocked to see that gambling is going on here."

By repeating the key word for emphasis, the screenwriters crafted a memorable phrase.

Business example: "Our strategy has three pillars: innovation, innovation, innovation."

Technique known as epizeuxis, pronounced "ep-ih-ZOOK-sis,'

Say it Again and Again

In his "Finest Hour" speech at the dawn of World War II, Winston Churchill repeatedly hammered his message with simple words: 

"We shall fight on the seas and the oceans ... We shall fight on the beaches ... We shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight on the hills."

No wonder JFK said that Churchill mobilized the English language and sent it into battle. Note the repetition of key phrases at the beginning of the sentences.

Business example: “A loan for your first car. For your first home. For your first everything.” 

Technique known as anaphora, pronounced "uh-NAF-uh-ruh."

More and More and More

Instead of repeating words at the beginning of clauses, try reiterating them at the end, as in "government of the people, by the people, for the people."

Business example: "Keeps going. And going. And going." (Duracell). 

Technique known as epistrophe, pronounced "uh-PIS-tro-fee."

A variation: Restate words in reverse order, as in "Don't live to work, work to live."

Business example: "We shape our culture, and our culture shapes us."

Technique known as antimetabole, pronounced "antee-meh-TAB-oh-lee."

I adapted this newsletter from my book Branding with Powerful Stories: The Villains, Victims, and Heroes Model. And speaking of books, my third mystery novel, To Have and to Share, will be published in April.

In the meantime, please contact me if you need help with your rhetoric — tailoring presentations, developing messages, or preparing for media interviews. 

Happy holidays to all.

Warm regards,

Greg

Greg Stone, President                                                                                           Stone Communications                                                                 www.gregstone.com                                                                                            LInkedIn: stonegreg                                                                                          Instagram: @gregstoneauthor                                                                                    617-489-5400                                                                                                

Author of mystery novels Deadline on Arrival
and Dangerous Inspiration,
and three business books:
Branding with Powerful Stories:
The Villains, Victims, and Heroes Model,
Artful Business: 50 Lessons 
From Creative Geniuses, 
and Defining Hybrid Heroes:
The Leadership Spectrum from Scoundrel to Saint (co-author)