“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. “ (Shakespeare, King Henry V )
It’s interesting to find in this sentence Shakespeare used a specific description “lend me your ears” instead of the general expression “listen to me” to convey the meaning. I find such way of writing conforming to Aristotle’s rhetorical theory. In comparison with “listen to me”, the sentence “lend me your ears” proves to be more vivid and unfamiliar. Thus it forms an effective deviation in the ordinary context and attracts the readers’ attention. Also, “lend me your ears” is essentially an indirect way of expression, often assuming the form of “expansiveness” (chapter 6) which makes the writing more effective than the general expression “listen to me.” Essentially an indirect way of expression, the sentence “lend me your ears” proves to be suggestive (suggest the meaning of “listen to me”), and in this way leaves much room for readers’ interpretation and imagination.