Figure of Speech
Rhetorical Question
From Greek erotesis: questioning. A classical oratorical device; ubiquitous in lyric poetry, apostrophe, and the ode. Blake: 'Tiger, tiger, burning bright / In the forests of the night…'
Definition
A question posed for effect, implying its own answer, without genuinely soliciting a reply from the listener.
Example
'Is this a dagger which I see before me?' (Macbeth, II.1) — Macbeth is not asking; he is expressing hallucination.