Editing Rhetorical question (section)

{{Short description|Figure of speech in the form of a question, asked to make a point rather than to elicit an answer}}
A '''rhetorical question''' is a [[question]] asked for a purpose other than to obtain [[information]].<ref name="rhetorical question definition">{{cite web
 |url         = http://rhetoric.byu.edu/figures/R/rhetorical%20questions.htm
 |title       = Rhetorical questions!
 |access-date  = 2007-10-19
 |author      = Gideon O. Burton, Brigham Young University
 |work        = specialized language definitions
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20071026092912/http://rhetoric.byu.edu/figures/R/rhetorical%20questions.htm
 |archive-date = 2007-10-26
}}</ref> In many cases it may be intended to start a discourse, as a means of displaying or emphasizing the speaker's or author's opinion on a topic.

A simple example is the question "Can't you do anything right?" This question is intended not to ask about the listener's ability but rather to insinuate the listener's lack of ability.