Download Persuasion, Oratory & Rhetoric, oh my!

On the BACK of note card from
yesterday

Explain what makes advertising slogans
powerful. Is it words? Elaborate. Use an
example from yesterday’s worksheet.
Persuasion
Putting Power into YOUR Words
Persuasion

Writing or speech meant to get readers or
listeners to think or act in a certain way.
– Appeals to emotions or reason
– Offers opinions
– Urges action
– Backed up with evidence and support
Persuasive Techniques
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The Greek philosopher Aristotle believed
that there were three basic ways to
persuade an audience: ethos, logos, and
pathos.
Ethos: The Writer’s Character
or Image
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Greek for “custom; habit”
Established by Aristotle as the knowledge or expertise a
person appears to have about the subject.
Writer’s ethos is created largely by word choice and
style.—This does not mean going through the thesaurus
to find difficult and unusual words. It means using what
you know to create an academic paper with a formal
wording and style.
– Things to think about—
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What kind of image do you want to project to the audience?
What can you do to help project this image?
What words or ideas do you want to avoid?
What effect do misspelled words and grammatical errors have on
your image?
Logos: Logical Arguments
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Greek for “logic, thought, word” etc.
If…then syllogisms (deductive reasoning)
– ex. All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is
mortal.
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Usually based on probabilities rather than certain truth.
Persuasion to a large extent involves convincing people
to accept our assumptions as probably true—preparing
the audience to accept your own contrary position
– ex. If students were required to spend two years in the military
after graduation then they would be more productive members
of society because they would learn discipline and responsibility
as well as appreciation for liberties often taken for granted.

**NOTICE: this is a “probability” but the writer never
questions themselves by saying “probably.” Half of
persuasion is convincing the audience that you are the
authority.**
Pathos: The Emotions of the
Audience

Emotional appeal can be accomplished in a multitude of
ways:
– by metaphor or story telling or imagery
– by a general passion in the delivery and an overall amount of
emotional items in the text of the speech, or in writing.
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The use of emotional appeals to alter the audience's
judgment. A common use of pathos in argument is creating
a sense of rejection if the audience doesn't agree.
Many refer to Pathos as the "band-wagon" appeal, or trying
to convince the audience to join in on the speaker's belief.
This is a major theme used in any form of propaganda
(everyone believes in this so you should too)
Warnings For Persuasion

logical fallacy:
– attacking the reader instead of the idea.
 Used often in politics: examples? This can be as dissuasive
as persuasive
– FAULTY logic

too much Writer’s pathos: it is often difficult to
separate your own emotions and write from
outside yourself. If you are too emotional you
lose the ethos/logos that are necessary for a
truly effective persuasive piece
Introduction
Hook-grab the reader
 Background-establish your ethos
(authority)
 Thesis-present your logical argument

– What is your EQ?
– How many reasons do you need?
Example
Example
Reason
1
Words
do/do not
have power
because…
Reason
2
Example
Example
Body Paragraphs
Maintain your ethos with good structure
by starting each paragraph with a TOPIC
SENTENCE and using good TRANSITIONS
 Present your logical arguments with
specific examples that appeal to both
REASON and EMOTION!
 Explain your examples to fully develop
your ethos/authority
 Conclude to maintain structure

Conclusion
Maintain ethos with restatement rhetorical
device—what are you restating? What is this
also appealing to?
 Maintain your audience interest and try to
persuade them by drawing conclusions
about why they should now be of your
opinion. Try to avoid phrases like “this paper
has proved” or “You should now see”.
 Bring the paper to a close—refer back to
hook for cyclical structure.

Questions?
Good luck!