The Only Use of
rhetoric
in
For Whom the Bell Tolls
- Pablo said to him seriously and Robert Jordan saw how unrhetorical was the question.†
Chpt 4unrhetorical = not relating to the use of words to make a point; or unskillful in the use of words to make a pointstandard prefix: The prefix "un-" in unrhetorical means not and reverses the meaning of rhetorical. This is the same pattern you see in words like unhappy, unknown, and unlucky.
Definition:
the use of (or study of using) words to make a point -- typically implying skillful use
Rhetoric is used with many connotations. "Effective rhetoric" has a positive connotation, If someone says something is "just rhetoric," they're implying that the words may make a good surface impression, but they are lacking in substance.