When you sit down to read anything that is trying to persuade you, you are being subjected to the three modes of persuasion that have been outlined by Aristotle in his book “rhetoric” (Meyer). Ethos; the mode of persuasion that attempts to change your opinion by using the author 's credibility, Pathos; appeals to your feelings and finally logos; that uses logic to try and sway your opinion. “On Teenagers and Tattoos”, an article written by Andres Martin, is an example of a persuasive work that can affect an audience very well and it does this by effectively using these three modes of persuasion. Andres Martin takes full advantage of the three modes of persuasion outlined by Aristotle and in the following few paragraphs, I will outline each …show more content…
in his article “The earth’s ethos, logos and pathos: an ecological reading of relation”. Andres Martin, an assistant professor at Yale university, bolsters what he says in his article because his position in the school naturally lends itself to the credibility of this article. In Martins use of ethos we can see that, although not the most powerful mode of persuasion used in his article, it is still used tremendously. In the article, Martin writes about the interviews he did with some people he met who were proud owners of tattoos. While Martin himself does not mention himself having tattoos, his interviews with people who do help to build up the credibility in his writing. In Michel Meyer’s writing “Aristotle’s rhetoric”, Michel talks about how the use of other people 's stories can become a basis for credibility (Meyer 2012). Martins use of these interviews do just …show more content…
To summarize the words of Aristotle pathos is putting the audience into a certain frame of mind (Meyer 2012). According to Martin, for some teens getting a tattoo is effectively hanging a metaphorical DO NOT ENTER sign on their body (Martin 2000), this plays into the emotionally charged opinion that some parents have about their teens being part of a fringe group that hate their parents and just wish to express themselves. Using the two interviews Martin did at the tattoo convention as an example again it 's easy to see how Martin can make his audience feel for the people who so passionately speak about their tattoos. The thirteen-year-old who was interviewed spoke about how he got his tattoo, a pair of dice with the day and month of his father 's birth, to pay respect to his father who passed away in a motorcycle accident (Martin 2000). He goes on to speak with a seventeen-year-old father who had a tattoo covering his chest of his four-month-old daughter. The father went on to say he will “always know how beautiful she is today” (Martin, 2000, p.2) and all he would have to do is look down. Pathos is a very powerful persuasive tool and Martin used it masterfully in this
...an is capable of persuading his audience into accepting his simplistic views of the world. He makes it easier to rationalize with his stance by his strategic use of sentence structure and word choice. When analyzing a past speech or interpreting a speech as it is given, upmost priority should be given to analytical tools for analyzing persuasive symbols and language. Whether the topic at hand is motivated by great emotions as it is here or not, the audience can easily be swayed in one direction surprisingly based only on universal comprehension.
Authors and speakers alike use some type of persuasion on their intended audience. They often try to make you agree with their argument before considering other factors. Persuasive writing often has a copious amount of logical fallacies, defined by the Perdue Online Writing Lab as “errors in reasoning that will undermine the logic”, despite that they tend to have success with sympathetic audiences. Wendell Berry’s essay “The Whole Horse” is an example. Berry is likely to persuade his conservationist audience because of his use of emotive language.
Effectively communicating an idea or opinion requires several language techniques. In his study of rhetoric, Aristotle found that persuasion was established through three fundamental tools. One is logos, which is used to support an argument through hard data and statistics. Another is ethos, which is the credibility of an author or speaker that allows an audience to conclude from background information and language selection a sense of knowledge and expertise of the person presenting the argument. The impact of pathos, however, is the most effective tool in persuasion due to the link between emotions and decisions. Although each of these tools can be effective individually, a combination of rhetorical devices when used appropriately has the ability to sway an audience toward the writer’s point of view.
Persuasion is a very powerful weapon even against the most stoic of people. In the Tragedy, Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare Cassius, a high class politician with bad intentions persuades Brutus, an honorable, stoic high class politician and Casca to kill Caesar for the good of Rome, however, Cassius’ real goal is to get rid of Caesar because Caesar doesn’t like him. After killing Caesar, Brutus and Antony, Caesar closest friend, make speeches at his funeral in order to persuade the public. Cassius, Brutus and Antony’s use of Ethos, Logos, and Pathos in order to persuade the public, Casca, and Brutus shows that anyone can be persuaded by appealing to their emotions, motivations, and personalities.
Persuasion is a natural method many people use to influence a person's beliefs, attitudes, intentions, motivations, or behaviors in a situation. Many include, bribing parents to buy clothes to even lending someone money. Either way, people all over the world use words or phrases to convince or sway a person into believing them. Just as many people have used rhetorical appeals to persuade someone, Anthony also uses the rhetorical appeals; heartfelt pathos, questionable logos and evident ethos in William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar to convince his audience that Caesar was not ambitious and that Caesar was innocent
Rhetorical appeals apply to everyday life and the three sections of the rhetoric’s cover all elements of persuasion. Moore and Machiavelli do an outstanding job of explaining their points and why you should believe what they are saying. Both author’s did a great job of educating and informing their viewers although they were two significantly different pieces. Moore and Machiavelli’s work are each their own with respect to purpose and lessons but they also both come together in regards to using Aristotle’s three rhetorical appeals.
Heinrichs, Jay. Thank you for arguing: what Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson can.teach us about the art of persuasion. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2007. Print.
Kosut, M. (2006). An Ironic Fad: The Commodification And Consumption Of Tattoos. The Journal of Popular Culture, 39(6), 1035-1048. Retrieved November 29, 2013, from http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-5931.2006.00333.x
Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis”, she discusses the nature of rhetorical analysis, how it affects our everyday lives and explains the role context plays. Aristotle’s mode of persuasion: Logos, Pathos and Ethos are all components often used to persuade an audience. Logos appeal to logic or stating the facts, Pathos taps into your emotions and Ethos demonstrates the presenter’s credibility. Determining which appeal was used will assist you in having a clear understanding if you should buy into the idea, product etc. Every day we perform some type of analysis, whether we are aware of this or not.
Kerbel, Matthew R. (1993). An Empirical Test of the Role of Persuasion in the Exercise of
Every day we are victims to persuasion whether anyone can notice it or not. Logos, pathos and ethos are the types of persuasion. Logos persuades by reason, pathos by appealing to emotion and ethos by the credibility of the author. The characters in The Iliad employ the use of these techniques to sway another character into doing or feeling something else.
Persuasion is a difficult skill to master. One has to take into account the ideologies held by the audience and how those relate to one’s own intentions of changing minds. In order to encourage her troops to fight courageously in defense of England, Queen Elizabeth I utilizes Aristotle’s principles of effective communication that include logos, pathos and ethos in her Speech to the English Troops at Tilbury, Facing the Spanish Armada.
Many people have been getting tattoos lately. People of all ages have been getting them and from all different backgrounds. On a nice day in just about any public place one can spot a tattoo about every five minutes, from the business man who had a portrait of his daughter put on him to a young girl with a butterfly on her ankle and even people with extensive tattoo coverage. What is even more interesting is the rise in the number of people who are heavily tattooed and that they come from all different backgrounds. Not too long ago tattooing did not experience the popularity in mainstream culture that it does now. The question that must be asked in order to understand this fascination that popular culture has had with tattoos is why people get tattoos.
In closing, Persuasion is a powerful tool, both in trying to persuade others and being
Symbolism and meaning is by far one of the most important aspects of the tattoo industry. “The abstract emotions and human awareness of emotions show what really is going on in ones life (Johnson)”. For that reason tattooing is a form of self-expression, and can stand for literal interpretations. For the most part these interpretations are the conveying of spiritual meaning, or marking milestones such as life or death” (Johnson). For those who think tattooing is just for looks or put a bad judgment on it, should also realize that ones personal interest reflects upon their lives. “Many individuals get their first tattoos during adolescence or young adulthood.”(Bravermark) Due to the mainstream culture, these traditions traditionally associate with stereotypes. Stereotypes defiantly have a huge impact on life. Which leads to the next point? Whether flaunted or hidden, sought as art or brought out on a whim, the tattoo has left a huge impact on generation after generation.