Exigence — English definition
The pressing problem, gap, or occasion that calls a text into being and demands a response.
Where it is taught
- Advanced Rhetorical Analysis — Argument & Rhetoric, English 12: Complex Texts, Independent Inquiry & Public Voice, Grade 12
In use
Start not with the devices but with the rhetorical situation, and in particular with its exigence — the pressing problem or gap that called the text into being in the first place.
Advanced Rhetorical Analysis
Questions using exigence
Problem 1
In advanced rhetorical analysis, the 'exigence' of a text is…
- the pressing problem or occasion that calls the text into being and demands a response
- the number of rhetorical devices the text contains
- the emotional intensity of the text's language
- the credibility a speaker brings from a title or position
Answer and explanation
the pressing problem or occasion that calls the text into being and demands a response
Exigence is the gap, problem, or occasion that a text is written to address; reconstructing it explains why the writer's choices were made.