Rhetoric: A Tale of Two Cultures

Writing is a complex process that transforms writers thought into texts. Proficiency in writing is alwaysone of essential purposes in language learning. However, mastering grammatical rules and sociolinguisticcompetence is not enough in language learning, particularly in an academic discourse. Foreignlanguage teaching tends to focus on grammatical aspects of writing. However it is very difficult for foreignlanguage learners to express their thought in completely unfamiliar rhetoric style. Therefore, contrastiverhetoric has an important role in applied linguistics. The paper initially discusses the two relatedconcepts rhetoric and contrastive rhetoric, and then analyzes the differences between Chineseand English in key rhetoric aspects such as structure of composition, individualism vs. collectivism,logical thinking vs. imagery thinking and the responsibility of writers and readers. Finally, it examinesthe implications of contrastive rhetoric in foreign language teaching and intercultural awareness