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Aristotle
• Born in 384.
• From the
northwestern
edge of the
Greek Empire in
Stagira.
• Father was
physician to
King Amyntas of
Macedonia.
A Student of Plato
• Aristotle came to Athens
to study under Plato from
the age of 18 to 37.
• Eventually he classified
the branches of
knowledge into
categories, including:
physics, psychology,
poetics, logic, and
rhetoric.
Tutor of Alexander the Great
• Around 340 B.C., when he was over 40, Aristotle
returned to his home, Stagira, and he became tutor to
the king’s son, soon to become Alexander the Great.
Alexander, through military campaigns, would later
expand the empire of Greece to cover all of the Mideast
reaching all the way to India.
Not Forgotten over the
Ages
• Through the ages Aristotle has
remained established as one of
the greatest philosophers ever,
which is why the famous
seventeenth century Dutch
artist Rembrandt represented
him gazing at a bust of the
Greek poet Homer, author of
The Odyssey.
• Four hundred years later, he
isn’t forgotten, though we have
a less sober way of
appreciating historical leaders.
Here we see him gazing at a
more contemporary Homer.
A Definition for Rhetoric
• Rhetoric is, in essence,
the art of persuasion, and
Aristotle defined this art
as "the faculty of
observing in any given
case the available means
of persuasion." In other
words, it is the art of
finding the best way to
persuade a particular
audience in a particular
situation.
Aristotle’s Classical Appeals
Aristotle identified three appeals that can be used to
convince the audience. An appeal to ethos (to establish the
speaker’s character and values). An appeal to pathos (to
stir emotions). And an appeal to logos (to show the
audience the logic and truth of the argument).
The Rhetorical Triangle
Logos
Possible Distortion:
Abstraction
Subject
Speaker
Ethos
Possible Distortion:
Egotism
Audience
Pathos
Possible Distortion:
Propaganda
• When you engage in rhetoric,
you are related to the audience
and your subject. A well-balanced
argument gives attention to all
three points of the triangle,
establishing your authority
(ethos), drawing the audience
emotionally (pathos), and doing
justice to the facts (logos).
• However, if you give too much
emphasis to facts, you can fall
into a kind of distortion: making
the subject seem cold and
abstract. If you lean too much
toward the audience, you can
start to create propaganda. And if
you put to much emphasis on
your own character and values,
you will seem egotistical.
Links Activity
A. Decide as a group a favorite place, hometown,
major city, or recognizable location
B. Student 1 make two statements that describe the
place and support moving to or visiting the place and
all students note.
C. Student 2 will add two sentences that connect
Student 1’s statements in some way to further support
the thesis
D. Student 3 will repeat the information and add two
more sentences.
E. Student 4 repeat the information and add two more
sentences to support the argument
Share, Reflect
Subject
Logos
1. Share your argument
with the class
2. Complete the Links
Response Sheet
3. Draw a small model of
the rhetorical triangle at
the bottom of your sheet
and label your group’s
argument
Speaker
Ethos
AudiencePatho
s
The Writer The Reader
• Uses multiple pieces
of information as
evidence or support to
communicate an
original position, a
thesis
• Each item of evidence
is like a link to a chain
• If evidence is clear, it
builds on previous
evidence
• Reads information
• Makes connections
with all or parts of
writing
• Uses prior knowledge
to fill any spaces left
out by writer
• Having made
connections, makes
meaning
Final Notes Reflection
1. Quick Write to reflect
• ALL writing seeks to
communicate specific
information to specific
audience – the reader
• Effective writing
mirrors the stages of
the links game
• A reader should be
able to follow a clear
line of thinking from
initial idea to
conclusion
Audience Analysis Part I
Audience Analysis Part I
• Write three short letters to report the news and seek
assistance in regards to the ancient tree that fell to
its death on the Georgetown College campus. Use
your knowledge of the rhetorical triangle to plan
each letter.
•
•
•
•
1: To Acme Tree Services (Clean-up)
2: To Mrs. Sims’ fourth grade class
(Memory Service)
3: To the President of the Harbor Tree Foundation
(Historical Nature Report)
Reflect:
1.How did your pathos change
towards different audiences in the
letters?
2.How did your logos change
towards different subjects in the
letters?
3. How did your ethos change as a
different speaker in each of the
letters?
Subject:
Occasion:
Audience:
Purpose:
Speaker:
Tone: