About This Site

Figaro rips the innards out of things people say and reveals the rhetorical tricks and pratfalls. For terms and definitions, click here.
(What are figures of speech?)
Ask Figaro a question!

Search

This form does not yet contain any fields.
    « Except You. You’re Wrong. | Main | Let’s Spin It as a Win-Win »
    Thursday
    15Dec2005

    Rhetoric of Mass Destruction

    DateThursday, December 15, 2005 at 09:09AM
    saddamsatan.jpgQuote:  "We removed Saddam Hussein from power because he was a threat to our security." President Bush.

    Figure of Speech:  pareuresis (pa ROOR eh sis), the overwhelming excuse.

    The White House is trying a bold new tactic—telling the truth.  "It is true that much of the [pre-war] intelligence turned out to be wrong," the president concedes.  In other words, Bush recognizes for the first time that there were no WMD's in Iraq.

    But then he throws in a pareuresis, a figure that has two meanings in ancient rhetoric:  It's either a great excuse, or a fake one.

    Snappy Answer:  "Why?"

    AuthorFigaro | CommentPost a Comment |
    Print ArticlePrint Article

    PrintView Printer Friendly Version

    EmailEmail Article to Friend

    Reader Comments

    There are no comments for this journal entry. To create a new comment, use the form below.

    PostPost a New Comment

    Enter your information below to add a new comment.

    My response is on my own website »
    Author Email (optional):
    Author URL (optional):
    Post:
     
    All HTML will be escaped. Hyperlinks will be created for URLs automatically.