Rhetorical question
Figures of speechA question used to make a point or express a reaction rather than request an answer.
Example
After three sleepless nights, who could still think clearly?
A rhetorical question uses the form of a question to assert, challenge or provoke reflection. The speaker is not primarily seeking information, and the expected answer may be implied.
In dialogue it can reveal confidence, impatience or a wish to persuade. Repeated use may make a passage sound argumentative. Context distinguishes it from an ordinary question that genuinely asks for an answer.
In the workshop
Identify the statement the question is asking readers to accept.
Put this term to work
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