Ethos, Pathos, & Logos

OBJECTIVES

-Understand and define ethos, pathos, & logos

-Recognize characteristics of E,P,L in a given text

-Employ E,P,L in your own writing

Letter Home

You will write a letter to your parents asking for something. The “something” should be a serious request. Maybe a curfew extension, raise in allowance, a car… In your letter you will use ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade your parents to honor your request. Your letter will be mailed home, and your parents will provide me with feedback on the effectiveness of your argument.

ETHOS

Greek word—related to ethics/ethical Moral; showing moral character Image—how does a writer/speaker

come across?

ALLUSION

reference to, a place, event, literary work, or work of art, either directly or by implication.

Not to be confused with illusion

Speaker’s Ethos

Does he speak with confidence? Appropriate word choice? How does he carry himself? Is he nervous? Eye contact? Is tone appropriate for audience? Is he speaking with purpose?

Writer’s Ethos

Appropriate word choice? Correct spelling & punctuation? Is tone appropriate for audience? Organization—Writing with purpose?

Letter from Birmingham Jail

by Martin Luther King The Letter from Birmingham Jail is an

open letter written on April 19,1963 by Martin Luther King Jr., an American civil rights leader. King wrote the letter from the city jail in Birmingham, Alabama, where he was confined after being arrested for his part in a planned non-violent protest conducted by the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights and King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference against racial segregation by Birmingham's city government and downtown retailers.

RHETORIC

Using language as a tool for persuasion

Rhetorical Devices

Techniques that writers/speakers use to persuade

PATHOS

An appeal to the emotion of the audience

Contrast (antithesis)

Use of words or phrases that are opposites to create effect

ANAPHORA

Repetition of a phrase for rhetorical effect or emphasis

ALLITERATION

repeating the same consonant sound at the beginning of several words in close succession.

Ex: tongue twisters

LOGOS

Loosely translates to logic Depends on reasoning and evidence

COUNTERARGUMENT— 2 PARTS

Concession– Anticipating the opposition’s major argument

Refutation—An argument against your opposition’s major argument

Deductive Reasoning

Stated in a three part statement called a syllogism.

A is true(general statement), and B is true(particular example); therefore C(conclusion) is true.

Syllogism Example

A. All books from that store are new.

B. These books are from that store.

C. Therefore, these books are new.

If A is true, and B is true, then C must be true.