The modes of persuasion are devices in rhetoric that classify the speaker's appeal to the
audience.
They are: ethos, pathos, and logos.
Aristotle's On Rhetoric describes the modes of persuasion thus:
Persuasion is clearly a sort of demonstration, since we are most fully persuaded when we
consider a thing to have been demonstrated.
Of the modes of persuasion furnished by the spoken word there are three kinds.
[...] Persuasion is achieved by the speaker's personal character when the speech is so spoken
as to make us think him credible.
[...] Secondly, persuasion may come through the hearers, when the speech stirs their emotions.
[...] Thirdly, persuasion is effected through the speech itself when we have proved a truth
or an apparent truth by means of the persuasive arguments suitable to the case in question.
Ethos
Ethos is an appeal to the authority or credibility of the presenter.
It is how well the presenter convinces the audience that he or she is qualified to present
on the particular subject.
It can be done in many ways: By being a notable figure in the field in
question, such as a college professor or an executive of a company whose business is that
of the subject.
By having a vested interest in a matter, such as the person being related to the subject
in question.
By using impressive logos that shows to the audience that the speaker is knowledgeable
on the topic.
Also by the reputation of the speaker.
Pathos
Pathos is an appeal to the audience’s emotions, and the terms pathetic and empathy are derived
from it.
It can be in the form of metaphor, simile, a passionate delivery, or even a simple claim
that a matter is unjust.
Pathos can be particularly powerful if used well, but most speeches do not solely rely
on pathos.
Pathos is most effective when the author or speaker demonstrates agreement with an underlying
value of the reader or listener.
In addition, the speaker may use pathos to appeal to fear, in order to sway the audience.
Pathos may also include appeals to audience imagination and hopes; done when the speaker
paints a scenario of positive future results of following the course of action proposed.
In some cases, downplaying the ethos can be done while emphasizing pathos, for example
as William Jennings Bryant did in his Cross of Gold speech:
I would be presumptuous, indeed, to present myself against the distinguished gentlemen
to whom you have listened if this were but a measuring of ability; but this is not a
contest among persons.
The humblest citizen in all the land when clad in the armor of a righteous cause is
stronger than all the whole hosts of error that they can bring.
I come to speak to you in defense of a cause as holy as the cause of liberty—the cause
of humanity.
Logos
Logos is logical appeal or the simulation of it, and the term logic is derived from
it.
It is normally used to describe facts and figures that support the speaker's claims
or thesis.
Having a logos appeal also enhances ethos because information makes the speaker look
knowledgeable and prepared to his or her audience.
However, the data can be confusing and thus confuse the audience.
Logos can also be misleading or inaccurate, however meaningful it may seem to the subject
at hand.
In some cases, inaccurate, falsified, or miscontextualized data can even be used to enact a pathos effect.
Such as is the case with casualty numbers, which while not necessarily falsified, may
include minor casualties that are equated with deaths in the mind of an audience and
therefore can evoke the same effect as a death toll.
See also Category:Persuasion theorists
2004 Democratic National Convention keynote address by Barack Obama
References
External links Aristotle's Rhetoric
Silva Rhetoricae: Forest of Rhetoric European Rhetoric
Ethos, Logos and Pathos Examples