Ethos, Pathos, and Logos | Rhetoric | The Nature of Writing

Summary

This script introduces Aristotle's key rhetorical concepts of ethos, logos, and pathos, which are essential in persuasion. Ethos refers to the speaker's credibility, logos involves the logic of the argument, and pathos appeals to emotions. The speaker discusses how these elements influence audiences in various contexts, such as writing, advertisements, and public debates. Examples include letters to the editor and ads, illustrating how ethos, logos, and pathos shape the persuasive impact of communication. The script encourages analyzing these methods in writing and advertising to enhance understanding and persuasion.

Takeaways

• 🧠 Aristotle introduced ethos, logos, and pathos as key modes of persuasion in rhetoric, which are still relevant today.
• 📝 Ethos relates to the credibility or authority of the speaker, impacting how trustworthy their argument is.
• 🔍 Logos refers to the logical structure of the argument, focusing on reasoning and evidence to support conclusions.
• ❤️ Pathos appeals to the audience's emotions, aiming to evoke feelings like sympathy, anger, or compassion.
• 🎤 Rhetorical situations involve a speaker or writer presenting a text to an audience with the goal of persuading them.
• 📚 Ethos isn't just about credentials but also about how the speaker presents themselves—calm, fair-minded, and knowledgeable.
• 🧩 Logos involves cause-and-effect reasoning, using facts, evidence, and logical arguments to persuade.
• 😢 Pathos is often seen in emotionally charged situations, such as debates on sensitive issues like abortion, where imagery and emotional appeals play a major role.
• 🔄 Ethos, logos, and pathos can be combined in writing, and the choice of which to emphasize depends on the audience and purpose.
• 📺 In advertisements, different methods of persuasion are often used, such as ethos to convey credibility, or pathos to appeal to emotions.

Q & A

What are the three main terms of persuasion introduced by Aristotle?

The three main terms of persuasion introduced by Aristotle are ethos, logos, and pathos.

How does Aristotle define rhetoric?

Aristotle defines rhetoric as 'an ability in each particular case to see the available means of persuasion.'

What is ethos, and how is it used in persuasion?

Ethos refers to the credibility or authority of the speaker. It is used in persuasion by establishing trustworthiness and expertise in the subject.

What does logos focus on in an argument?

Logos focuses on the logic of the argument. It evaluates whether the argument is reasonable, coherent, and supported by evidence.

How does pathos influence the audience?

Pathos appeals to the audience's emotions, aiming to evoke feelings such as pity, anger, or compassion to persuade them.

Why is it important to adapt your argument to your audience?

Adapting your argument to the audience is essential because persuasion depends on addressing the specific concerns, values, and emotional state of the audience in a given situation.

What role does ethos play in the writing style of an author?

Ethos in writing style reflects the author's fair-mindedness, expertise, and careful consideration of other viewpoints, contributing to their overall credibility.

How is ethos demonstrated in the example of the editorial letter about fighter jets?

Ethos is demonstrated through the author's credentials, such as being a retired pilot and a colonel, as well as their moderate and rational tone, which suggests reliability and authority.

What is the significance of pathos in the second example of the editorial letter about punctured tires?

Pathos is significant in the second example as it uses emotional appeal to evoke sympathy and outrage by describing how the punctured tires prevented a senior citizen from attending a chemotherapy appointment.

How can ethos, logos, and pathos be observed in advertisements?

In advertisements, ethos can be seen in the credibility of the person endorsing a product, logos in logical arguments about the product's benefits, and pathos in emotional appeals, such as heartwarming or shocking imagery.

Outlines

00:00

🧠 Understanding Aristotle’s Concepts of Persuasion

This paragraph introduces the classical terms of rhetoric—ethos, logos, and pathos—derived from Aristotle. It explains that these concepts are used to discuss the means of persuasion and how they relate to the rhetorical situation involving a writer, text, and audience. Ethos refers to the credibility of the speaker, logos to the logic of the argument, and pathos to the emotional appeal. The speaker emphasizes the importance of tailoring arguments to the audience and situational context.

05:01

📜 Ethos: Credibility in Writing

Here, ethos is explored in depth. The paragraph explains that ethos is more than just credentials; it is about how a writer presents themselves, showing fairness, authority, and writing skill. An example of a letter to the editor is used to illustrate how ethos can be built through modest language and careful writing style, while avoiding excessive emotional displays or speculation, which might undermine credibility.

10:02

🤔 The Complexities of Ethos and Logos

This section continues with an example of a letter discussing fighter jets, emphasizing how ethos can manifest in writing. It also covers logos by analyzing the logical argument presented in the letter, where technological adaptation is defended as a natural process. The writer’s ethos is questioned in moments of speculation, and the importance of ethos being demonstrated through the writing style is reiterated, stressing that it must be constructed from scratch in each piece of writing.

💔 Pathos in Writing: Stirring Emotions

The focus shifts to pathos, exemplified through an emotional letter where a senior citizen expresses anger after missing a chemotherapy appointment due to vandalism. The paragraph explains how pathos aims to evoke strong emotional reactions, using empathy or anger to persuade. This method is common in debates like abortion, where emotional appeals through graphic imagery are prominent. The paragraph reflects on the ethical considerations of being swayed by emotions versus logic and credibility.

🎭 The Role of Ethos in Writing Style

This paragraph returns to ethos by examining how the author’s choice of words and style reflects their character. The odd use of third-person reference in the example letter raises questions about the author’s attempt to distance themselves from their argument. The tone and manner in which people are described—such as labeling a group as ‘Goths’—also reveal biases and affect ethos. Writing choices shape how an audience perceives the speaker's credibility and personality.

🛍️ Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in Advertising

The final paragraph applies ethos, logos, and pathos to advertising. It uses various examples, such as a Camel cigarette ad, which relies on ethos by associating the product with a rugged, adventurous image. An anti-abortion ad uses logos by focusing on terminology, and a charity ad appeals to pathos by evoking emotional responses. The audience is encouraged to discern these rhetorical methods in advertisements and apply them in their own writing.

Keywords

💡Ethos

Ethos refers to the credibility or authority of the speaker or writer. In the video, ethos is discussed in relation to how a person presents themselves to the audience, often emphasizing their experience, character, or reliability. For example, a retired pilot writing an editorial about fighter jets might use ethos by mentioning their career background, which lends credibility to their argument.

💡Logos

Logos is the appeal to logic and reason. It involves constructing an argument that is rational and makes sense to the audience, often supported by evidence or logical progression. In the video, logos is seen when the author provides logical reasoning, such as explaining how new technology requires a process of adaptation and implementation.

💡Pathos

Pathos is the appeal to emotions, seeking to persuade by evoking feelings such as sympathy, anger, or compassion. An example in the video is the letter to the editor from a senior citizen who missed a chemotherapy appointment due to vandalism, which evokes pity and anger in the reader, making it a clear example of pathos.

💡Rhetorical Situation

The rhetorical situation refers to the context in which rhetoric occurs, involving the writer or speaker, the text or speech, and the audience. The video explains how ethos, logos, and pathos are tied to this situation, emphasizing that rhetoric is about fitting the argument to the audience and the circumstances.

💡Syllogism

A syllogism is a form of logical reasoning where a conclusion is drawn from two premises. It is a classic example of logos, where an argument is structured with clear logical progression. Aristotle’s reference to syllogisms highlights the importance of logical structure in persuasive rhetoric.

💡Catharsis

Catharsis refers to the emotional release experienced by an audience, especially in artistic or dramatic contexts. Aristotle used this term in relation to pathos, discussing how rhetoric can evoke and then release strong emotions such as pity or fear. This concept is important in understanding the emotional impact of certain arguments.

💡Credibility

Credibility is a key element of ethos and refers to the trustworthiness and reliability of the speaker or writer. In the video, credibility is built by showing expertise, such as when an author mentions their professional background or adopts a fair-minded and balanced tone.

💡Fair-Mindedness

Fair-mindedness is an aspect of ethos that reflects the speaker or writer’s willingness to consider opposing views and arguments objectively. In the video, it is suggested that demonstrating fair-mindedness enhances a writer’s ethos, making them appear more credible and reasonable.

💡Advertisement

Advertisements are used in the video to illustrate how ethos, logos, and pathos function in real-world examples. The video breaks down specific ads, such as a cigarette ad appealing to ethos by portraying the smoker as rugged and adventurous, or an anti-abortion ad that uses both logos and pathos to convey its message.

💡Emotional Appeal

Emotional appeal is another way of describing pathos, where persuasion is achieved by triggering emotions in the audience. The video provides examples, such as the anti-abortion debate and the letter from a senior citizen, where emotional appeal is a powerful tool for persuasion.

Highlights

Ethos, logos, and pathos are key rhetorical terms used for persuasion, originating from Aristotle's work in the 4th century BC.

Aristotle defines rhetoric as 'an ability in each particular case to see the available means of persuasion.'

Ethos is about the credibility and authority of the speaker, influencing how much an audience trusts the speaker's argument.

Logos deals with the logical aspect of the argument, focusing on reason, cause-and-effect, and evidence-based conclusions.

Pathos appeals to emotions, seeking to persuade by affecting the audience's feelings, like sympathy or anger.

Persuasion should fit the argument to the audience and situation, a concept emphasized in Aristotle's rhetoric.

Ethos is not just about the author's credentials but also about how fair-minded and balanced they seem in their writing.

Effective use of ethos involves presenting oneself as rational, moderate, and open to considering other viewpoints.

Pathos-driven arguments are prevalent in emotionally charged debates, such as abortion, where both sides use graphic images and emotional appeals.

An example of logos is the argument that new technology always requires a process of adaptation, grounding the argument in logic.

In advertising, ethos is often used to create a strong brand image, like associating a rugged outdoorsman persona with Camel cigarettes.

Ethos can be constructed from the way a person writes and presents arguments, not just their external credentials or reputation.

Advertisements often mix persuasion techniques, but ethos dominates in ads like Camel cigarettes, emphasizing the credibility of the 'Camel man.'

Pathos can make audiences feel pity or anger, as seen in the letter where a senior citizen misses a chemotherapy appointment due to vandalism.

Logos-based ads may focus on clarifying terms, as seen in anti-abortion ads that argue the difference between 'tissue' and 'baby.'

Transcripts

When we talk about persuasion in rhetoric, there are three terms that

you'll often come across. These are ethos, logos, and pathos. Each of these is

familiar to us from the classical writer Aristotle, and Aristotle lived in the

fourth century BC ... so a long time ago, but these terms are still

used today. Ethos and logos and pathos then are

used by Aristotle to talk about persuasion. And he defines rhetoric, the

field of rhetoric, as "an ability in each particular case to see the available

means of persuasion." So you really want to make sure that you fit your argument

to your audience -- to the situation. And that's why when we think

about these terms we have to relate them to the rhetorical situation. So we have a

writer or a public speaker, we have a text or a speech, and we have an audience.

And we can see that the direction or the influence is sort of from left to

right here. The writer produces a text to influence or persuade the

audience of a particular point of view. Let's first quickly then talk about what

these terms refer to, and then we'll look at some examples, both from writing and

from the world of advertisement. So ethos then is all about the credibility of the

speaker. We might say the authority the authority of the speaker. Logos has

much more to do with logic. It's the logic of the argument. Does the

argument make sense? Can we see some kind of cause and effect? And Aristotle talked

about particular logical arguments -- the syllogism, for instance.

So we have a number of premises, and they lead to some kind of conclusion.

And then pathos is the appeal to the emotions. It's really the appeal to the

heart. Classical writers of course debated to what extent the heart should

influence us. Should we be influenced by reason, as certainly Plato tried to

emphasize, or would it be okay to have some element of emotion? And if you read

more of Aristotle you'll come across other terms (like catharsis, for instance,

that talk[s] about a kind of release of emotion, especially in an artistic

context). So we have ethos, logos, and pathos, then, and you can see how each of

these is associated with one part of the rhetorical situation. Ethos has to do

with whether you believe the speaker just based on who that person is,

logos has to do with the actual contents, the logic of the argument, and then

pathos has to do with the way in which the text or the argument affects you

personally. Is it a tearjerker? Is it something that makes

you have pity, or charity, or anger even? And Aristotle talks about all

these different emotions. So that's the basic idea -- the basic distinction.

Let's now look at a few examples of how this plays out. What I have for you here

is just a couple of sample letters to the editor, and when you're trying to

persuade an audience of a point of view in an editorial, then you definitely do

want to think about where you want to put the emphasis. Do you want to be

emotional? Do you want to be really focused on the argument? Do you want to

make sure that your credentials are on display? These are all things to consider.

So our first one here then is a kind of editorial, a kind of reply to a particular

news story about the replacement of fighter jets. Now this is not really an

argument that's based on pathos. There's not much emotion in here. It's an

argument that's based really on the other two methods of persuasion, and we

see ethos in a number of different ways. We see ethos when the writer actually

specifically points out his his or her credentials. So this author says,

"I am a retired pilot, so you should believe me, because I I know about

these things. I have some credentials." And you can see that he's a colonel as well.

I suppose it could be a she with the letter J. as well. That's ethos, but

ethos is much more than that in writing. It's not just about who the person is

but it's also about the way in which the person comes across. That can include,

for instance, a sense of fair-mindedness. It can can include a sense that the

writer takes other people's arguments seriously.

All of these these aspects are part of ethos.

It also comes through in the writing style. Is this a person who can write

well? Then you might be able to trust that person to some extent, because

there's a skill set there. And if they have a writing skill set then perhaps

they also have a knowledge base to kind of found their arguments on. So those are

a few aspects of ethos here, and even when you start reading it says, "I was

surprised to read." This is still part of ethos, not just because there's an "I"

here, but also because the writer doesn't say "I was amazed to find out" and "I can't

believe what's happened and it's outrageous." That would

suggest to you (that kind of over-the-top expression) that this is a

person who is a bit more extreme in his or her views. But if you start

with "I was surprised to find out ..." -- that's a fairly mild expression. Then you

get the sense that this is not a person that's easily rocked by different

things. This is a person who's fairly mild-mannered, who will write a

letter to the editor but is careful not to go over the top. On the other

hand, if you look at the last bit of this letter ... It says, "The suggestion that the

new jets will have communications issues is likely just a fabrication made up by

Boeing, the airplane manufacturer that did not get the contract." Here we have

speculation. It's probably just the other company who's making up this kind of

rumor, or this kind of story. What does that say about the author?

Does this suggest that this is an author who is willing to entertain speculation,

and rumour, and potentially gossip as well? Is that what we want? So those are all

aspects of ethos, and one thing that Aristotle really points out is that you

can't just think of ethos as the context of the story -- what you know about

the author. So if you look at a book for instance

and you see the the picture of the author on the the dust jacket, you could

say well yeah this is J. K. Rowling -- this is the author of Harry Potter. I

should believe this person, or expect this person to write a great story. That

would be basing your whole sense of ethos on context. But ethos in a

rhetorical situation, according to Aristotle, is very much about how you

present yourself in the moment, in the act. So to build up ethos as a writer you

cannot assume that people know who you are. Especially in an essay kind of

context you have to create your sense of ethos entirely from scratch, and you have

to do that through the way in which you represent yourself. So do you represent

yourself as somebody fair minded, open, willing to think about other arguments?

Do you represent yourself as somebody who is open to gossip, easily angered?

These are all different possibilities out there. Then we also

have logos in this particular example. One of the arguments here is that

the Americans are already working with this particular airplane

company. They're fixing the problem and there is a solution coming.

There's also this logical argument [that] with new technology there's "always a process

of adaptation and implementation." So logos is really the kind of content of

the argument. There may be multiple arguments and we can talk about whether

we find the argument convincing or not. Then the last one here is pathos, and

this second example shows a lot more pathos. In fact, that's almost entirely

what we have here. So this is somebody who's really angry because his tires

have been punctured by a bunch of Goths. And he says to the Goths "who punctured

my tires, you might like to know that your actions prevented a senior citizen

(me) from getting to his chemotherapy appointment on time." Now, that's pretty

sad, isn't? Wouldn't that make you angry, that somebody has been

inconvenienced in that way? That's all about pathos. It pulls at your

heartstrings. It makes you say how could somebody do such a thing? So pathos

then is a common method of persuasion, and you see it in some kind

of public arenas more than in others. Iif you think for instance about the

abortion debate. Both sides of the abortion debate really focus on this

with graphic images of babies being aborted (or "fetuses" as the other side

would say). And then also the pro-choice people are saying what

about the mother, and we should have a kind of emotional relationship with that

side of the story. So those arguments are entirely based on pathos

okay, and as a person, as a reader you have to

decide for yourself: what am I okay with? What is gonna work for me? Am I a person

who's persuaded more by pathos and logos? Am I persuaded by ethos? Do I believe

somebody before I even read what that person really says? Those are all really

important ethical questions. And so we can see that persuasion is not just

about getting a result, but from the point of view of the reader it's about

really making sense of the world around you in a way that's fair and that's

objective, and and that that helps us out as a society. Now this last passage also

has some examples of ethos. So you know this is somebody who writes in a sort of

awkward way: "your actions prevented a senior citizen (me) from getting to his

chemotherapy appointment." Why refer to yourself in the third

person? What does that say about you? Is that an attempt to be clever, an attempt

to sort of distance yourself from yourself? Why do that, and why refer

to these people as Goths? Are they really Goths or is this a kind of senior

citizen's perspective? Those are again aspects of ethos, the way in which you

present yourself through your writing style, through the different tics that

you might have. Okay, so those are a few examples of logos, ethos, and pathos in

terms of writing. Let's finish by just looking at some advertisements where we

see the same kinds of rhetorical methods of persuasion. The next time you're

traveling and you see billboards and advertisements, or you're reading a

magazine, let's say, with advertisements, play a little game and see if you can

spot which method of persuasion is most on display in each case. So if you

look at this classic kind of Camel ad for cigarettes, what do you

think is the method of persuasion here? Well, I would say that most of it has to

do with ethos. This is the camel man. This is the guy who wears khakis,

who's always out in in the wild, who is a little bit rough, and he smokes Camels.

And you should too if you want to have the same kind of image. That's ethos. It's

entirely based on a particular personality or a particular set of

personal credentials. Now of course we know that smoking is bad for you, so, you

know, there's a sort of problem of pathos perhaps in the background, but the

dominant focus is on ethos. [The] second one here. .. As I talked before about abortion

arguments, most of them -- well not most of them but many of them -- are based on

pathos. In this case the ad says, "Excuse me America, this is tissue ... This is not." So

this is an anti-abortion ad and this one is not so much based on pathos

(there's a bit of that because we see the picture of the baby

and there's an attempt to show that this is a picture that you should

have emotions about), but it's primarily about logos. It's a kind of argument

that says, let's define the terminology. Let's talk about what tissue --

what this word actually is, what a baby is, what a fetus is. We need to be clear

about terminology, and I would say then that this is more about logos than it is

about pathos, although that's certainly there

as well. And then we have one more here and I would say that this one is

definitely about pathos. Want to adopt [sponsor] a child? How could you not after

seeing this picture? Alright, so those are ethos, pathos, and logos. Try use them

in your own writing, and also try to discern them when you read other

people's texts.