Evaluating Ethos through Technology
Logical and emotional appeals are two elements that Aristotle believed to be important in persuading an audience. Ethos also known as credibility is another important element in the attempt to persuade an audience. If the speaker is able to communicate the culture, language, and information to his or her audience, the audience will be more likely to perceive the speaker’s character, goodwill, and intelligence. But, these attributes can only be evaluated if the speaker personally delivers the messages and provides the proper researched information (Rottenberg &Winchell, 2012, p. 4) In fact, in the 1950’s, individuals would use dictionaries, encyclopedias, and books to research information. The information
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For instance, pointing and making fists can denote negative feelings toward the communicator. However, if the speaker shows the palm of his or her hands it can denote trust and put the audience at ease (Thompson, 2012). But without hand gestures and the actual presence of the speaker, the audience will have a difficult time evaluating the speaker’s credibility.
In ancient Greece, persuading an audience was easily done because most of the people shared the same world view. Moreover, the government had very strong regulations over the city. All speeches and stories were dictated and regulated by the government (Rottenberg & Winchell, 2012, p. 7). So most of people were able evaluate the information, understand its contents, and gain trustworthiness from the speaker. Today, people can communicate to people throughout the world and they may share many diverse views. For instance, an Arab from Iraq will most likely believe in the Quran whereas a person from China will most likely be Buddhist. These distinct cultures are important for the speaker to know in order for him or her to target the audience. If a writer does not include the correct vocabulary and information according to the audience’s culture and age, the audience will not connect to the speaker. Without those specifications, it becomes very difficult for the audience to connect to a literary work that is unknown
Rhetoric is an act of persuasion. Aristotle believes that the most persuasive technique is the truth. He taught others that rhetoric is to be used for persuasion and not manipulation and that it is to be done ethically. When using rhetoric for persuasion, it is important to recognize the rhetorical triangle. The rhetorical triangle includes the speaker, the subject, and the person being addressed. This triangle also demonstrates the three modes of persuasion, logos, ethos, and pathos. The author must embody all parts of the triangle. The speaker must exhibit ethos through their credibility. The subject must encompass logos by making logical sense. The appeal to the audience must use pathos to be persuasive. When these three parts come together, a persuasive speech can be delivered. Of the three sections of the rhetorical triangle, the audience is the most important. I will demonstrate my argument of the role of audience in the rhetorical triangle throughout the essay.
Aristotle came up with a useful set of principals used in persuading. Those principals, ethos, pathos, and logos are most commonly seen in the media. When being used in the media two of Aristotle’s principals become more useful, while one falls behind. Ethos, being the one that falls behind by not appealing to a wide variety of the public. While, in the media, pathos, the emotional appeal, and logos, the logical appeal, are the most effective.
Aristotle, Greek philosopher and scientist, argued that there were three ingredients needed to effectively persuade those around you; ethos, pathos, and logos.
There are many ways to convey a message to readers. Often times authors, speech writers, etc., refer to Aristotle’s three main concepts of rhetoric, Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. Ethos is considered to be the, “credibility,” of the author. Pathos is the idea of, “emotional appeal,” to the audience. Finally, Logos is the translated as the, “logic,” involved when making a point. All forms of rhetoric have at least one of these concepts, while good arguments incorporate a well balanced mixture of the three.
Whether it is by using the written word, a speech, or any other medium, in order to convey a message to an audience, one must have an effective way of communicating one's ideas. The Greek philosopher Aristotle believed that effective speakers use three kinds of appeals to make their arguments convincing; ethos, the credibility of the speaker, logos, the speaker's actual message, and pathos, or the emotional appeal the speaker arises in its audience. These rhetorical appeals are present in many aspects of everyday life, including in websites. Websites such as the El Paso Zoological Society use these three appeals to effectively communicate with those who visit their page.
Every piece of writing has a purpose, whether it be to entertain, inform, or persuade. Many pieces that successfully achieve their purpose use audience appeals to gain the readers confidence. One well-known example is the United States Declaration of Independence. In Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence, ethos, pathos, and logos are all used to create a persuasive document.
The idea of rhetoric came from Aristotle. This includes three means of persuasion or rhetorical devices: ethos, logos and pathos. Ethos is how well the person is known for their qualities such as reliability, demonstrated skill, authority etc. People will spend their time listening to a well known community leader about important issues but they would not
Modes of persuasion are rhetorical appeals used in writing to persuade an audience (Worthington 58). The rhetoric appeals are divided into three categories; ethos, pathos and logos. Writers and speakers alike must have the ability to use the three appeals within a text to persuade a particular audience. Ethos refers to the author’s or writer’s credibility. The writer or the author has to establish his or her credibility for the audience to consider his or her views. Pathos is appealing through the audience’s emotions. As an author or speaker, it is important to create a certain sense of curiosity and imagination in the audience’s minds in order to have them identify with the speech’s or text sentiments. Logos is the most important of the three
Ethos: Appeal based on the reputation and character of the speaker. The source's credibility, the
Aristotle’s three forms of proof are ethos, pathos, and logos. Aristotle created these three forms of proof to strengthen persuasion and provide rhetorical principles that allow for stronger analyzation of arguments. Ethos focuses on the “personal character” of the speaker attempting to establishing the means of persuasion. This proof aims attempts to analyze the actual credibility of the speaker. The credibility of this speaker can be formed through previous experience or the messaging techniques that create the reasons as to why the audience should trust this person on a proposed topic.
In this chapter, Heinrichs talks about three major tools of rhetoric that could help with persuasion. Many tough arguments can be easily won with one or all of these tools. Logos is used when a person is using his intelligence to win an argument. This can be useful when persuading a child that too much television is bad. Pathos is used when someone is using his/her emotions to persuade someone. It can be helpful when trying to make someone happy by sympathizing with their sadness. Finally there is ethos, a useful tool to someone who are consider popular among the social group(s). Many famous actors convinced many people to donate to those who had their homes destroyed due to an earthquake. They accomplished this because of their reputation. They used ethos to convince many people to do what the actors wanted them to do. With these three tools, many arguments can be
Ethos, logos, and pathos are Aristotelian models of persuasion in writing. They are mainly used in writing in order to prove a point to an audience. These can be found in many forms of media: television, radio, and newspaper articles, for example. Ethos is used to establish moral character of the speaker, logos is used to present a sound argument to an audience with facts and figures, and pathos is used to persuade an audience with high emotions. Pathos helps reduce an audience’s ability to judge a situation by using figurative speech. It evokes the emotional side of a person, whether it be with pity or with fear or, in this case, sorrow.
For the completion of Journal One, the five key terms that I have implemented directly or indirectly from Chapter One and Chapter Two are Ethos, Pathos, Worldview, Facts, and Brainstorming. First, two of the three terms of Modes of Persuasion that I have used directly are Ethos and Pathos. The first time that I have learned to use the Modes of Persuasion terms of Ethos and Pathos in my writing and speaking skills was when I attended a Speech Communication course at Rock Valley College. During the Speech Communication course, not only did I completed multiple papers on the basis on how Ethos and Pathos helps writers and speakers address their point of views for their readers and audiences. Nonetheless, the Speech Communication course has also
It is unfair to distil the breadth and richness of Aristotle’s writings down to three concepts, but his identification of ethos, pathos and logos as keys to successful persuasion remain an enduring contribution to communication research in the 21st century.
In the early years of computers and computerized technology, computer engineers had to believe that their contribution to the development of computer technology would produce positive impacts on the people that would use it. During the infancy of computer technology, ethical issues concerning computer technology were almost nonexistent because computers back then were not as multifaceted as they are today. However, ethical issues relating to computer technology and cyber technology is undeniable in today’s society. Computer technology plays a crucial role in all aspects of our daily lives. Different forms of computer technology provide unique functionalities that allow people to perform daily activities effectively and efficiently. In