Punctuation, Rhetorical questions

Punctuation also specifies the communicative type of the sentence. So, as you well know a point of interrogation marks a question and a full stop signals a statement. There are cases though when a statement is crowned with a question mark. Often this punctuation – change is combined with the change of word – order, the latter following the pattern of question. This peculiar interrogative construction which semantically remains a statements is called a rhetorical question.

e.g.

“Who is here so vile that will not love his country?” (Shakespeare)

Unlike an ordinary question the rhetorical question does not demand any information but serves to express the emotions of the speaker and also to call the attention of listeners.

Rhetorical questions make an indispensable part of oratoric speech for they very successfully emphasize the orator’s ideas.

e.g.

What is the good of sitting on the throne when other following give all the orders? (B. Shaw)

In fact the speaker knows the answer himself and very often gives it immediately after the question is asked. The interrogative intonation and / or punctuation draw the attention of listeners (or readers) to the focus of the utterance:

… but who would scorn the month of June Because December, with his breath so hoary Must come? (Byron)

from the examples given above, we can see that rhetorical questions are generally structurally embodied in complex sentences.

There is another structural pattern of rhetorical question, which is based on negation. In this case the question may be a simple one, as in: “Have I not had to wrestle my lot?” “Have I not suffered things to be forgiven?” (Byron)

Negative – interrogative sentence generally have a peculiar nature. There is always an additional shade of meaning implied in them: sometimes doubt, sometimes assertion, sometimes suggestion. In other words, they are full of emotive meaning and modality.

Rhetorical questions are also often asked in “unanswerable” cases, as when in distress or anger we resort to phrases like “What have I done to deserve …” or “What shall I do when …”

The artificiality of question – form of such constructions is further stressed by exclamation marks which, alongside points of interrogation, end rhetorical questions.

“Rhetorical question is a general term for a SD embodied in different types of sentences – most often in quasi-affirmative and quasi-negative sentences”

Quasi-affirmative sentences is a provisional term denoting a certain variety of rhetorical questions, namely those with a negative predicate. The implication of such a negative question is an a affirmative statement:

‘Isn’t that too bad?’ = ‘That is too bad’ Thus one character of O. Henry exclaims: “Don’t I remember!” (mark the punctuation)

the implication is “I do remember!”. The interrogative form makes the affirmative statement, that is implied, mush stronger than it would be if expressed directly.

Quasi – negative sentences. Most of them are rhetorical question with affirmative predicates: “Did I say a word about the money?” (Shaw)

The implication is: “I did not say …”. Negative implication is typical not only of general questions, but of special questions as well: “What’s the good of a man behind a bit of glass?” … “What use is he there and what’s the good of their banks?” (Jerome)

Affective negative is also expressed in colloquial speech by a clause of under comparison beginning with as if and containing a predicate in the affirmative form: “As if I ever stop thinking about the girl and her confounded vowels and consonants. I’m worn out thinking about her, and watching her lips and her teeth and her tongue …” (Shaw)

Compare Russian sentence beginning with как будто бы

A very effective way (often resorted to in colloquicial speech) of expressing negation without using any negative particles or negative pronouns is ironical repetition of the interlocutor’s utterance (or of its part): “Shall you be back to dinner, sir?” – ‘Diner!’ muttered Soames and was gone.” (Galsworhy)

A more detailed analysis of the semantic aspect of different questions – sentences leads to the conclusion that these structural models have various functions. Not only ordinary questions, not only categorical pronouncements are expressed in question form. In fact there are various nuances of emotive meaning embodied in question – sentences. In the above given example from Shakespeare “Why is here so vile that will not love his country there is a meaning of challenge openly and unequal-vocally declared. It is impossible to regard it as a rhetorical question making a categorical pronouncement. In the rhetorical question from Byron

“Is there not blood enough upon your penal code, that more must be poured forth to ascend to Heawen and testify against you?”

There is a clear implication of scorn and contempt for Parliament and the laws it passes.

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