English 124-Advanced Composition: Critical Reasoning & Writing

Instructor: Sydney Brown

ARISTOTLES PERSUASIVE APPEALS / RHETORICAL STRATEGIES:
LOGOS, ETHOS, AND PATHOS
Whenever you read an argument, you should begin by asking yourself, Is this persuasive? And if so, to whom? There are several ways a writer can appeal to an
audience. Among them are appealing to logos, ethos, and pathos. These appeals are prevalent in almost all arguments.


To Appeal to Logic (logos)
The author attempts to persuade by using
reasoning.
To Appeal with Credibility (ethos)
The author attempts to persuade
with his/her character.
To Appeal to Emotions (pathos)
The author attempts to persuade by appealing to
emotions.
Focuses attention on the quality of the
messagethat is, on the internal consistency
and clarity of the argument itself and on the logic
of its reasons and support
Focuses attention on the writers character, or credibility,
as it is projected in the messagein other words, how
the author comes across in his or her argument
Focuses attention on the emotions, values, beliefs,
and imaginations of audience
Writer Employs: Writer Employs: Writer Employs:
Clear major and minor claims
Cohesive and coherent reasoning
Theoretical, abstract language
Denotative meanings / reasons
Literal and historical analogies
Factual data and statistics
Quotations
Citations from experts and authorities
Informed opinions

Language appropriate to audience and subject
Restrained, sincere, fair minded tone
Informed, intelligent tone
Appropriate level of vocabulary
Awareness of complexity of issue
Acknowledgment of other opinions
Flawless proofreading
Care with regards to appearance of argument
Correct grammar and punctuation

Tangible, concrete language
Emotionally loaded language
Connotative meanings
Emotional examples
Vivid descriptions
Narratives of emotional events
Emotional tone
Figurative language (metaphors and similes)

Effect on Audience: Effect on Audience: Effect on Audience:
Evokes cognitive and rational response Author is respected (even likeable), seen as trustworthy
and credible with a certain level of expertise
Appeals to imagination and feelingstheir capacity
to feel and see what the writer feels and sees and to
perhaps a deeper appreciation of the arguments
significance
Example: Example: Example:
One should not smoke, as the Surgeon General
reports that cigarette smoke contains over 4,800
chemicals, 69 of which are known to cause
cancer.
While smoking is a challenging addiction to overcome,
it is vital to do so.
Susan never had the opportunity to have that
mother-daughter talk, as when she was twelve, she
lost her mothera lifelong smokerto lung cancer.