A Rhetorical Question 是甚麼意思?

Rhetorical questions 常用在以下情境:

Andy: Can you do me a favor?
Ben: I always do you favors. What have you ever done for me?
Andy: I have done..
Ben: Don't answer it. It is just a rhetorical question.

例句裡的 a rhetorical question 是甚麼意思? 為什麼 Ben 問了 Andy 一個問題後卻又說不需要回答?

答案就是 Ben 是以諷刺的態度問的，並不指望 Andy 回答，在此情況很明顯的，Ben 暗示 Andy 從不幫 Ben 忙，都是 Ben 幫 Andy 的忙。

所以 a rhetorical question 就是一個為了諷刺人或說明一件事實而問的問題，問的人並不打算聽到答案，以下有更多例子:

Son: Dad, I knocked over a vase and it broke.
Dad: You always break things. Can't you do anything right?

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