Download Logos, Ethos and Pathos

Argument & Persuasion
Think of your favorite
commercial. What do you like
about it? What makes it your
favorite? Does it make you want
to buy that product?
Rhetoric = The Art of Persuasion
The history of rhetoric and the concepts of
ethos, pathos, and logos began in Greece.
Aristotle was a famous Greek philosopher.
Literally translated from Greek, the word
“philosopher” means one who loves wisdom.
phil
love
soph
wisdom
er
one
who
philosopher
philosopher
Who was Aristotle?
Aristotle was a famous Greek
philosopher who studied the
art of persuasion.
Plato, another
famous Greek
philosopher, was his
teacher.
Aristotle taught Alexander the
Great how to properly argue and
perform a public speech.
Ethos, Pathos, and Logos
In approximately 300 B.C.E. Aristotle, who was a famous Greek philosopher,
wrote a book entitled, “The Art of Rhetoric.” In his book, Aristotle identified the
three methods of persuasion. He called them ethos, pathos, and logos.
Plato
Aristotle
The Book
Ethos, Pathos, & Logos
There are several ways to appeal to an audience.
Among them are appealing to ethos, pathos, and logos.
These appeals are prevalent in almost all arguments.
1.
Ethos = an ethical or moral argument
2.
Pathos = an emotional argument
3.
Logos = a logical argument
Ethos
• Greek word ETHIKOS meaning moral or
showing moral character
• Speaker must establish moral credibility in
the minds of audience, must show he/she
has expertise in the subject matter
For example, when a trusted doctor gives
you advice, you may not understand all
of the medical reasoning behind the
advice, but you nonetheless follow the
directions because you believe that the
doctor knows what he/she is talking
about.
Ethos - cont’d
• Ethos = Ethics: refers to the trustworthiness of the
speaker/writer.
• Ethos is an effective persuasive strategy because when we
believe that the speaker does not intend to do us harm, we
are more willing to listen to what s/he has to say.
When a judge comments on legal
precedent audiences tend to listen
because it is the job of a judge to
know the nature of past legal cases.
Pathos
• Pathos: related to the words pathetic,
sympathy, and empathy.
• Accept a claim based on how it makes you
feel without fully analyzing the rationale
behind the claim
• May persuade you with fear, love,
patriotism, guilt, hate or joy.
• Society should not react to emotional
arguments without fully considering all of
the facts.
• The use of pathos can be manipulative
• It is the cornerstone of moving people to
action and it will continue to be used again
and again.
• Appeals to pathos touch a nerve and
compel people to not only listen, but to
also take the next step and act in the
world.
Pathos – cont’d
• Pathos is the use of emotional
appeal.
• Both words and pictures can
achieve this appeal.
These print advertisements are meant to
appeal to your emotions. Who can say no to
these faces?
Logos
• Logos = logical appeal
• Logos refers to any attempt to
appeal to the intellect.
• Logos appeals to the left side
of the audience's brain. The
audience finds certain
patterns, conventions and
modes of reasoning to be
convincing and persuasive.
• The audience relies on
reasoning and facts to make
its decision. Numbers, polls
and statistics are also
examples of the persuasive
use of logic.
Logos
• The Mac vs. PC ads use logos
because they give specific reasons
that people should own a Mac instead
of a PC.
• The type of logos that these ads use
is deductive reasoning. The deductive
reasoning use is: I am familiar with
and like using a PC. A Mac can
operate the same programs as a PC.
I am familiar with and like using a
Mac. Some added bonuses are the
fact that a Mac is more resistant to
viruses and it has more program
capabilities (such as graphics
programs) than a PC.
• These ads are very logical in the way
they approach their explanations of
why a Mac is better than a PC.
REVIEW
Ethos, Pathos, & Logos
1.
Ethos = an ethical or moral argument
2.
Pathos = an emotional argument
3.
Logos = a logical argument