Rhetoric is, in my understanding, the art of persuading an audience by adapting your argument and the way you present it to an audience, time, place, and any given situation. There a few components in a presentation which, when understood and taken advantage of, can increase the impact of the argument, or so I think. In this post, I'll attempt to discuss what those components are, and how they work in giving a powerful speech using the art of rhetoric.
According to Aristotle, there are three ways of persuading your audience, and he referred to these three ways as "Ethos", "Logos", and "Pathos". While the origin of this Greek philosophy is quite ancient, it is important to learn about them because it is
…show more content…
Pathos is often referred to as "Emotions" because it refers to the emotions of the audience. Being able to connect to the audience on an emotional level, and being able to move them emotionally is a key part of persuading the audience. In order to invoke an emotional response from the audience to help with persuasion, there a few things the author could take advantage of. If the author is presenting to an audience that shares common beliefs or values, it could be a powerful tool to move the audience emotionally. Aside from the audience and their values and emotions, the author must consider what kind of emotional response they want to get from the audience and build their argument and presentation in a manner that fits their goals. Being able to connect with the audience by the means of Pathos will give the author a lot of support from their audience, which makes Pathos a really strong tool in the hands of someone …show more content…
Being able to consider and use all three of these components to their advantage would greatly improve the chances of the author being able to persuade their audience with their argument. When Kairos, the situational awareness factor is being considered, and the Rhetorical Triangle's components, Ethos, Logos, and Pathos is applied to it in order to build an argument, it is very likely that the author will have a strong, impactful argument and will win over their audience. This can be observed a lot in political speeches. All politicians use rhetoric tools in order to persuade their audience and win over their votes and support. When discussing rhetoric and giving speeches, it would be a shame not to mention Martin Luther King Jr., so I'll go ahead and do that. His speech, "I have a dream" is a perfect example of rhetoric tools in use, because, in his speech, he keeps his words simple and shows enough emotion to be seen as sincere by his audience, and when politics are involved, sincerity is almost nonexistent so it helps winning over the audience. On top of that, he uses more abstract concepts like having dreams to describe his visions for the future of the society, which adds an emotional layer to his speech, demonstrating a great use of
For some, an argument may be a discussion that leads people to become mad and feel hate towards someone. This also might bring tension, between friends and family, but there’re times when people just want to discuss a topic that they feel would make the conflict better or resolved. When an argument happens, it’s recommended to use Aristotle’s Rhetorical Triangle. It is here that Aristotle set’s up three ways to appeal to the audience, which are ethos, pathos, and logos. These three appeals help the writer to persuade, inform, or convince the audience that what he/she is doing the right thing. Without Aristotle’s Rhetorical Triangle and Aims of Arguments, the writer would unsuccessfully perform an argument correctly. If creditability of the
Effectively communicating an idea or opinion requires several language techniques. In his study of rhetoric, Aristotle found that persuasion was established through three fundamental tools. One is logos, which is used to support an argument through hard data and statistics. Another is ethos, which is the credibility of an author or speaker that allows an audience to conclude from background information and language selection a sense of knowledge and expertise of the person presenting the argument. The impact of pathos, however, is the most effective tool in persuasion due to the link between emotions and decisions. Although each of these tools can be effective individually, a combination of rhetorical devices when used appropriately has the ability to sway an audience toward the writer’s point of view.
Through the accompaniment of rhetorical devices and pathos, one can strengthen his or her argument to the point where others see no other option. When spoken at the right occasions and with enough of supporting evidence, an argument will enrapture the audience and make people find your argument logical and appealing. Patrick Henry made his speech less than a month before the American Revolution took place. Thomas Paine began a series of articles when the call for men to fight against the British was urgent. When someone makes and argument, even the smallest detail counts.
Rhetoric in the article by William Covino and David Jolliffe is explained as an art of persuasion that uses communication with a purpose or goal. To add, it is an ongoing conversation between the rhetor and the auditors. In addition to using persuasion, the observance of the audience is used as well. In the article by William Covino and David Jolliffe they talk about the four major elements of rhetoric: the rhetorical situation, the audience, the methods of persuasion, and the 5 canons. As explained in the reading the purpose of rhetorical communication is to teach, to please, and to move.
Aristotle’s rhetorical triangle links three elements of arguing together: the speaker, the story, and the audience. The relationship between the elements determines the speaker’s argument and whether it will be successful in oratory or literature. Ethos, Logos and Pathos are each different aspects of the argument that must be balanced in order to succeed in persuading or convincing an audience. Ethos, or character, relates to the speaker’s credibility that the audience appeals to: it is useful when persuading a group of people to trust what you are saying or doing. Logos, or logic, is a way of convincing and appealing by reason, truth, and facts. Pathos relates to the audience’s emotions and their response to what the speaker is saying.
Throughout learning about all writing, the main achievement of any work or essay is to capture the audience and let them see any subject through the lens of what the author desires. To achieve this goal, one may use tools known as ethos, credibility of the author to the reader, logos, appeal to reasoning, and pathos, appeal to the audience 's emotions. A combination of all three of these elements creates an argument-like format which conveys a very convincing point, or thesis to the reader. Over practicing my writing my entire life I have always used these elements in my work, although, I was not aware completely of their proper usage. Throughout this year I have grown vastly as a writer through more precise control of and thesis with a linked analysis as well as consciously using the elements of pathos, logos, and ethos to most efficiently convey my thesis.
Rhetoric by definition is the art of persuasion by speaking and writing; being able to sway someone else’s opinion to match or appear similar to your own. Aristotle has given further definition to rhetoric. He created the rhetoric triangle. The rhetorical triangle uses the three basic credentials that people use to make decisions. They are ethos, or credibility of the author or speaker; pathos, or ability to draw emotion out of your audience; and finally the logos, or the logic of the message being sent out and determined valid by the audience. I feel that one of the best example that I could find of the rhetoric triangle is the character Ellsworth Toohey, in the novel The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. This character uses every part of the rhetoric
Throughout our lives, we carry and value our own beliefs. As we face different challenges, we may be persuaded into making certain choices. However, no matter how convincing a person may be, in the end we always have the last word. Nobody likes being told what to do but we do like to hear other opinions for a different perspective. The proper way of using rhetoric is through a confident tone that is knowledgeable of their topic. The speaker should have integrity and be selfless in the sense that they are understanding towards their audience.
The question of what is rhetoric and what does it do has been a question since stories were even being recorded. However, now there are multiply different scholars who believe that they understand what rhetoric is and how to use it. For someone to use rhetoric correctly they must first have a definition of rhetoric that either they have made to fit themselves or they find a previous definition that suits them. In order for me to become an improved rhetor and be able to rhetorical discuss and evaluate pieces of literature or speeches like General Douglas MacArthur’s Farewell address, I must first define rhetoric in how I understand it. Rhetoric is the art of persuasive speaking aimed to sway your audience in a direction that has been chosen by the rhetor. The way in which a citizen uses rhetoric can change over time. The need to argue the same problem is invalid so the need to use the same rhetorical situations is invalid. You can use rhetoric in a multitude of different areas within our life however; we must choose to use it for good or for evil. In order for rhetoric to still be used in speech today one of two things must be true. There must either be a Truth in life and rhetoric or the more likely choice, that rhetoric changes throughout time and situations. You are not trying to change someone’s mind about something however; you are trying to convince them that you are also correct. I will be using multiple pieces of works that are defining rhetoric to support my definition and finish by evaluating General Douglas MacArthur’s Farewell Address using my definition of rhetoric.
Aristotle’s mode of persuasion Logos, Pathos and Ethos are all components often used to persuade an audience. Logos appeals to logic or stating the facts, Pathos taps into your emotions and Ethos demonstrates the presenter’s credibility. Determining which appeal was used will assist you on having a clear understanding if you should buy into the idea, product etc.
Churchill effectively used rhetoric in his speech. Rhetoric is the art of effective persuasive writing and speaking. Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher, created rhetoric. There are three types of rhetoric, logos, pathos, and ethos. Each type differs from the other types. Logos is a logical argument built from relevant and sufficient evidence. Logos is based on facts, statistics, and claims based off of logic. Pathos is arguments which evoke emotions in an audience. Some forms of pathos are celebrity testimonials, bandwagon, and fear mongering. All of these evoke emotions in an
In his essay entitled “The Rhetorical Stance,” Wayne Booth describes how rhetorical stance is imperative for good writing. I agree with Booth that by using rhetoric stance in our writing we can produce and powerful and well-written argument. How then do we know if we are using the art of rhetoric in our writing? According to Booth, “Rhetoric is the art of finding and employing the most effective means of persuasion on any subject, considered independently of intellectual mastery of that subject" (199). In making this comment Booth urges us to be knowledgeable on the subject we are writing about and use passion and emotional appeals to strengthen our argument. Booth gives his readers a good explanation of what the word means and how it is portrayed in essays.
Rhetoric is the art of persuasion, in which there are three forms. Ethos the credibility of the author, Pathos the emotion you create, and logos the logical side of an argument. Many articles and papers use these terms of persuasion to see their side one such document is The Declaration of Independence. The purpose for said document was for the 13 original colonies to declare freedom from the oppressive rule of England.
Rhetoric is the art of effective speaking or writing, and persuasion. Most people use rhetoric numerous of times in their everyday life without their concern or knowing.
Rhetoric, the art of speaking, is vital in everyday life. Whether it is to convince others of one’s worth as Sojourner Truth does in, “Ain’t I a Woman” or to pledge to a larger audience like Martin Luther King Junior in his “I Have a Dream” speech, rhetoric plays a significant role because it is the key that unlocks the door to self-expression. Without it, nobody would be able to convey his/her message or to get any thoughts across. A silent world, lacking communication, would therefore emerge. Trust would not be present as there would not be any words for someone to convince their beloved ones of his/her sincerity. Proper diction and syntax must be employed in order for one to effectively get others to share his/her beliefs, or at least to respect them.