Julius Caesar Rhetorical Analysis

Rhetoric is the art for when the writer tries to inform, persuade, or motivate it’s readers. The goal is to change the others point of view or to make others take action. Plato once stated,” Rhetoric, it seems, is a producer of persuasion for belief, not for instruction in the matter of right and wrong.” Therefore, rhetoric could also be using direct language in a specific way for effective communication. Aristotle became the first person to use a form of rhetoric in his works and writing. Aristotle created the three known elements of rhetoric; logos, ethos, pathos. Logos means to use some form of logic, or the facts, based on evidence and reason. Ethos means to use a form of ethics, image, and being based on someone's character and credibility.

Pathos uses emotions, or passion, based on someones feelings in order to appeal to them specifically. Consequently, rhetoric continues to be important in writing because it challenges the speaker to convey to the listener or the reader a meaning with the goal of persuading them towards a topic from their different perspective.
Ethos is one of the three forms of Aristotle's elements of rhetoric.

Using ethos means the writer appeals to the audience's sense of ethical behavior. Additionally, ethos is based on someone's credibility or character. Using this means the writer is perceived as someone who can be trusted and is concerned with what the reader's best interest is. It is the distinguishing of character, moral nature, or guiding beliefs of a person, or a group. For example, in the play Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Mark Antony utilizes ethos in speaking at Caesar's funeral. Antony conveys this by saying,” He was my friend, faithful and just to me,” by stating this he builds up his credibility by implying he was a close companion with Caesar. Furthermore, Mark Antony utilized ethos, the art of ethical thinking, to establish his

credibility.
Logos is second of the three forms of Aristotle's elements of rhetoric. Logos means to appeal to the audience's sense of what logical, based on facts, evidence, and reason. It is the consistency and clarity of an argument as well as the logic of evidence and reasons. Clear, concise and logical arguments provide substance to what the speaker’s message includes. Additionally, using logos appeals to your readers intellect. An example of this in Antony's speech is when he states,”I thrice presented him a kingly crown, which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition?” By stating this Antony is giving the facts and reminding the people of what they encountered. In conclusion, Antony used logos, the sense of logic, to remind the people of what they witnessed, making it personal.
Pathos is the third and final of Aristotle's elements of rhetoric.

Pathos means to appeal to the audience's emotion and or feelings. Pathos elicits feeling and emotions that already reside in the audience. Therefore, the goal of pathos is to create a favorable emotional affection from the audience towards the objective of your speech. A different way to use pathos is when the speaker himself exemplifies the emotion he wants to elicit the audience to feel. It is evokes sympathy and sometimes empathy from your audience. Consequently, emotions are powerful motivators to get your audience to really listen to what you are saying. Antony uses pathos in his speech multiple times in order to genuinely persuade his audience. One time he states,"Bear with me. My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar, and I must pause till it come back to me." Here, Antony explains his love for his dear friend Caesar, and his deep sorrow for his death. He describes this to strike compassion and sympathy in the hearts of his audience. Antony wants them to feel saddened by his loss and convince the crowd to join his side against the conspirators. Therefore, by tugging at the emotions of his audience by using pathos, the art of appealing to the readers emotions. Antony was able to establish feelings of pity and distrust in the Roman citizens, making the put their trust in him. It It invokes sympathy, and sometimes even empathy, from the audience.invokes sympathy, and sometimes even empathy, from

the audience It invokes sympathy, and sometimes even empathy, from the audience.It invokes sympathy, and sometimes even empathy, from the audience.It invokes sympathy, and sometimes even empathy, from the audience.It invokes sympathy, and sometimes even empathy, from the audience.