Premise

Writing and communication (other than to purely inform an audience) is inherently persuasive. Whether you’re trying to prove your point in an academic paper, sell a policy change through a business proposal at work, or convince your friend where to get dinner via text, we’re all trying to convince someone of something.

Of course, you might be familiar with the three main modes of “rhetorical appeal” from previous experiences like an AP Language or philosophy course—but if not, no problem! Essentially (at least for our purposes), “rhetorical appeals” are strategies used to persuade your audience. And the three main rhetorical appeals are “ethos,” “logos,” and “pathos.” These fancy-sounding terms actually stem back to the Greek philosopher, Aristotle, who, even thousands of years ago, knew that these were useful categories to think about in considering how to persuade audiences.

So why are these useful? Simply put: they can help you to identify not just how others make arguments, but how you yourself can do so in more effective ways.

Take a minute to read these brief definitions to get a sense of what aspects go into each rhetorical appeal category. Trust us; it will help you understand their more complex elements later (like the fact that they are not actually mutually exclusive strategies, but more on that in a bit).

“Ethos”

• Synonyms: “credibility,” “ethics,” “trust”
• Definition: trying to appeal through an author’s character. I.e., if we respect you, we’re more likely to believe you—or at least listen to what you have to say. Ethos is the concept of projecting an impression to audiences that you are someone worth listening to, as either an authority on a subject matter and or someone who is respected, trusted, and even likeable.

“Logos”

• Synonyms: “logic,” “sense,” “conclusions”
• Definition: trying to appeal through reasoning. I.e., if we can see the logic in what you’re saying, we’ll be much more likely to agree with your argument. Logos is the concept of “making sense” through giving reasons that appear clear and convincing to us.

“Pathos”

• Synonyms: “passion,” “feeling,” “motivation”
• Definition: trying to appeal through emotions. I.e., if we can feel the power, impact, or emotionality of what you’re saying, there’s a chance for us to become a much more captive audience. Pathos is the concept of using distinct examples, linguist choices, and references to make us almost experience the importance of what you’re trying to relate.

Examples

Ethos Examples

• “As a medical professional…”
• “Based on my two decades treating patients…”
• “Having seen first hand…”

Sometimes, you yourself may not have fancy credentials and experience—like that of a doctor. So whether or not your do, you can also improve your thesis by making sure the quality of your work is top-notch. For example…

• Is the work is well-written? 
• Is there a clear intent? Is it clear of grammar, punctuation, and phrasing errors?
• Is there other expertise and research? Is it accurate, appropriate, and unbiased? Maybe you can reference credible research?
• Do they also include effective usage and balance of logos and pathos?

Keep in mind that you can potentially misuse ethos appeal. I.e., it’s not enough just to claim credentials; sometimes, some audiences might perceive credentials and qualifications as irrelevant to a particular subject or genre. Just look at these examples, and consider why not all audiences might be convinced:

• A star athlete in a commercial for a national sandwich chain.
  • Premise: If these sandwiches are good enough for Nikola Jokic, then they should be good enough for the average Joe.
  • Problem: What are the odds that someone in such amazing physical shape is actually eating them regularly?
• A doctor of medicine giving you advice on how to fix your car.
  • Premise: If a doctor of medicine is one of the smartest people that society can produce, then there’s a chance they’re smart at other stuff too, like fixing cars.
  • Problem: Medical doctors might be smart, but it’s not the same expertise as something that is still immensely complex—like car mechanics. So how do we know that this person is in fact also good at fixing cars, and not just an egomaniac who thinks because they’re great at one hard thing, that they’re great at other stuff?

Keep in mind, some of these examples above might be much more believable than others—or at least effective. In the case of the athlete hawking awful chain sandwiches, for example, obviously enough people are willing to overlook the absurdity of this premise—which is why these companies continue to pay such stars boatloads of money.

Logos Examples

• “Because we can see A and B, then we can conclude C.”
• “If we assume this, then we can also assume that.”
• “This research result indicates that…”

Of course, the logic can’t just be presented as making sense; it has to be, well, actually “logical.” And so beware of logical fallacies, which are erroneous connections and assertions in reasoning—although often presented as true and meaningful ones. Note that logical fallacies might not be malicious. I.e., if I don’t take the time to explain my reasons clearly, readers may not see the connections that I think are obvious, thus leading them to view my unclear reasoning as logically fallacious.

E.g., I may make a general statement that “More homework makes students more stressed,” which, on its surface, might seem like a logical larger point. However, the context counts. What types of “homework” are we talking about here? How much “more”? Among whom? For second graders in America? International college students? Or for everyone like the current statement technically suggests?

Again, such claims may be fine—if their exact meaning is substantiated by these necessary clarifying metrics. But again, when just stated without clarification, such a bold statement may be “untrue” or a “logical fallacy” in certain contexts. E.g., there may be cases where more homework (if meaningfully curated and targeted for students’ clear learning objectives) could actually decrease student stress by prepping them to be better prepared for their course exams. Maybe, rather, it turns out that the problem simply needs further definition. Sometimes a simple word or two can make the difference between a logically sound claim and a fallacious one.

E.g., a clearer logical claim might look something like, “When students are given extraneous homework that does not seem to serve a clear purpose, they tend to experience increased stress.” You could then support this claim with logically connective evidence to corroborate and confirm your point: “In fact, a recent study at the University of Idaho demonstrated that when homework was assigned to college freshmen who lacked an understanding of the reason for this increased workload, they reported heightened levels of mental and emotional stress.”

Pathos Examples

• “Those of us who love our country, love each other, first and foremost.”
• “In the end, there is only one thing that truly matters: trust.”
• “The puppies weren’t just abused physically—many with missing ears or noses—they were tortured emotionally too.”

Emotional appeal can be a powerful tool, and thus, make your writing and communication much more effective in certain scenarios. Just think about the countless times you see ads online playing clips of sad puppies in black and white film, asking you to “donate now!”; or politicians screaming and pounding on a podium as they exalt you to “get out and vote for your life!”

And consider that these emotions can have positive or negative associations, yet both may be effective if employed within the proper context. A politician, for example, could use a speech to make you feel furious by highlighting examples of how his opponent has wasted your tax money. While a feeling of “rage” is not normally associated as a positive outcome, the reality of the situation may call for it—like if he makes you feel angry enough to campaign for him and or go out to vote for him.

Of course, there are plenty of other ways to emotionally engage your audience. Specific examples may make them feel pity or sad or happy or excited. Any and all of these effects can be inappropriate at times (think about how sometimes in “real life” people react poorly to how others are reacting). Like, it is good to laugh at a friend’s joke to show that you are happy—but not when he tells you that his grandma was in a car accident. Again, this is why we say that the situation matters.

Here are other common ways we see pathos appeal manifest. Again, some of these may or may not be appropriate given the context of a specific situation. But the idea is to ideally get the audience to feel as if they should think, believe, and or do something.

• Rhetorical questions: “Can you imagine the suffering that our soldiers have endured to ensure our freedom?”
  • Some possible emotional effects: pity, guilt, pride

• Declarative statements: “I won’t stand for it, and neither should you!”
  • Some possible emotional effects: anger, rage, justice

• Descriptive Language: “He couldn’t imagine how long the poor seal had suffered for—tangled as he was in the heap of rotting fishing nets like a discarded piece of ocean plastic litter himself.”
  • Some possible emotional effects: horror, sadness

• Impactful References: “Don’t cry because she’s gone; be happy because she was as here as long as she was.”
  • Some possible emotional effects: nostalgia, hope

Further Considerations

Overlap of Appeals

Keep in mind that these rhetorical appeals are not necessarily mutually exclusive. I.e., just because you feel as if one of these appeals stands out does not mean that it, again, has to stand on its own.

For example, consider the following paragraph from a school newspaper article:

“My first recognition of the ocean plastics problem occurred as an undergraduate in a marine science program aboard a tall ship, where I was eager to learn about both sailing and the mysterious marine environment. While several hundreds of miles offshore in the Atlantic Ocean, far from human populations, every few minutes we sailed past floating milk crates, gallon jugs, bags and other large, noticeable forms of plastic at the surface. Our plankton net tows not only collected a myriad of bizarre and fascinating tiny critters, but also small plastic pieces, sometimes more numerous than the plankton themselves.”

Now what type of rhetorical appeal is this? Ethos? Logos? Or pathos? In theory, you could argue any of them—and that is the point. Depending upon whichever details you deem worth focusing on, it is kind of all three.

• “Ethos” because the author is sharing his personal experiences having observed an issue firsthand.
• “Logos” because the author is making developing connections between how an issue exists not just at home, but also “hundreds” of miles away to support his point that this is a global issue.
• “Pathos” because he is descriptively narrating how “tiny critters” (i.e. weak and helpless ones) are being captured alongside ubiquitous plastic waste (the implication perhaps that we, as readers, use such plastic products ourselves and should thus feel somewhat responsible).

So which of these appeals would you talk about in an analysis of this work? Well, all of them! But the balance and reasons you point out are up to you depending upon your further specific assessments of what this author is doing here in conjunction with elsewhere in his piece. That’s the “fun” of analyzing rhetorical appeals!