What Is Hypophora?

Hypophora is a rhetorical device in which the writer — or more often, the speaker — poses a question and immediately provides an answer. The title of this post together with the sentence you just read is an example of a hypophora. The accent is on the second syllable; the plural is hypophoras. Hypophora is a powerful rhetorical device, best suited to communicating deeply emotional messages in soaring oratory. Today, it's widely overused, with potentially unpleasant consequences for speakers, writers, and their audiences, but I'll get to that in a minute.

Here's a famous example from a speech of Winston Churchill, delivered on 13 May 1940, about eight months after Britain entered the war, in the House of Commons:

"You ask, what is our policy? I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. This is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory, there is no survival."

Two examples of common uses of hypophora in the modern workplace:

• Am I satisfied with our progress on this project? I am not.
• Would I do it this way if I had to do it all over again? Absolutely.

Using this device to express such mundane ideas as these can convey an image of the user as a self-important blowhard.

But for important observations, especially those with emotional impact, hypophora can be a powerful tool. When presenting to groups large or small, a well-constructed hypophora can create a sense of dialog with each individual audience member. By posing a question that's already in the minds of the audience members, or a question that they readily recognize as relevant and important, the speaker deepens the connection with the audience. To enhance this effect, skilled speakers pause ever so briefly between the question and the answer. The pause gives audience members time to absorb the question, and whets their appetites for the answer. They are then more likely to agree with the speaker's answer and support its validity.

Using hypophora Using hypophora to express
mundane ideas can convey
an image of the user as a
self-important blowhardcan also create or strengthen an impression that the speaker is several steps ahead of the audience, especially if the question is one that hadn't occurred to the audience. That impression places the speaker more firmly in charge of the topic, and confirms the speaker in a position of thought leadership. Speakers who are skilled at projecting a confident demeanor can therefore gain even more control.

And hypophora has a dark side. All these techniques are available to advertisers, who use them to move their audiences to make the decisions the advertisers prefer. Try searching the Web for the phrase, "Are you ready for a" (with the quotes). At this writing, Google reports 54 million hits, which is respectable. Advertisers, including politicians, use questions in their leads to induce the audience to seek an answer to the question, which they're happy to provide.

Following the lead of advertisers, those who seek to influence others at work also use hypophora. To some extent it gives them an unfair advantage, because the power of their presentations interferes with the audience's ability to objectively assess the merits of the content of those presentations.

Not everyone who uses hypophora at work intends to gain unfair advantage. Most people who have adopted the technique, I believe, have done so because it has become fashionable, and because it feels powerful. While some do intend to achieve an unfair advantage for their views, many do not. Whatever the speaker's intentions might be, when you notice the use of hypophora, be alert. Your ability to judge objectively might be about to be challenged.  Top    Next Issue

Is every other day a tense, anxious, angry misery as you watch people around you, who couldn't even think their way through a game of Jacks, win at workplace politics and steal the credit and glory for just about everyone's best work including yours? Read 303 Secrets of Workplace Politics, filled with tips and techniques for succeeding in workplace politics. More info

Your comments are welcome

About Point Lookout

Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed it and found it useful, and that you'll consider recommending it to a friend.

This article in its entirety was written by a human being. No machine intelligence was involved in any way.

Point Lookout is a free weekly email newsletter. Browse the archive of past issues. Subscribe for free.

Support Point Lookout by joining the Friends of Point Lookout, as an individual or as an organization.

Do you face a complex interpersonal situation? Send it in, anonymously if you like, and I'll give you my two cents.

Related articles

More articles on Effective Communication at Work:

When You Aren't Supposed to Say: I

Most of us have information that's "company confidential," or possibly even more sensitive than that. When we encounter individuals who try to extract that information, we're better able to protect it if we know their techniques.

Changing the Subject: II

Sometimes, in conversation, we must change the subject, but we also do it to dominate, manipulate, or assert power. Subject changing — and controlling its use — can be important political skills.

Communication Templates: II

Communication templates are patterns that are so widely used that once identified, nearly everyone recognizes them. In this Part II we consider some of the more toxic — less innocuous — communication templates.

Recognizing Hurtful Dismissiveness

"Never mind" can mean anything from "Excuse me, I'm sorry," to, "You lame idiot, it's beyond you," and more. The former is apologetic and courteous. The latter is dismissive and hurtful. We have dozens of verbal tactics for hurting each other dismissively. How can we recognize them?

Conversation Despots

Some people insist that conversations reach their personally favored conclusions, no matter what others want. Here are some of their tactics.

See also Effective Communication at Work and Effective Communication at Work for more related articles.

Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout

Coming December 11: White Water Rafting as a Metaphor for Group Development

Tuckman's model of small group development, best known as "Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing," applies better to development of some groups than to others. We can use a metaphor to explore how the model applies to Storming in task-oriented work groups. Available here and by RSS on December 11.

And on December 18: Subgrouping and Conway's Law

When task-oriented work groups address complex tasks, they might form subgroups to address subtasks. The structure of the subgroups and the order in which they form depend on the structure of the group's task and the sequencing of the subtasks. Available here and by RSS on December 18.

Coaching services

I offer email and telephone coaching at both corporate and individual rates. Contact Rick for details at rbrenyrWpTxHuyCrjZbUpner@ChacnoFNuSyWlVzCaGfooCanyon.com or (650) 787-6475, or toll-free in the continental US at (866) 378-5470.

Get the ebook!

Past issues of Point Lookout are available in six ebooks:

• Get 2001-2 in Geese Don't Land on Twigs (PDF, )
• Get 2003-4 in Why Dogs Wag (PDF, )
• Get 2005-6 in Loopy Things We Do (PDF, )
• Get 2007-8 in Things We Believe That Maybe Aren't So True (PDF, )
• Get 2009-10 in The Questions Not Asked (PDF, )
• Get all of the first twelve years (2001-2012) in The Collected Issues of Point Lookout (PDF, )

Are you a writer, editor or publisher on deadline? Are you looking for an article that will get people talking and get compliments flying your way? You can have 500-1000 words in your inbox in one hour. License any article from this Web site. More info