logos, pathos, ethos
Ethos, Logos, Pathos: Three Ways to Persuade by Dr. John R. Edlund, Cal Poly Pomona
Over 2,000 years ago the Greek philosopher Aristotle argued that there were three basic ways to persuade an audience of your position: ethos, logos, and pathos.
Ethos: The Writer’s Character or Image
The Greek word ethos is related(связанные) to our word ethics or ethical, but a more accurate(точный) modern translation might be “image.” Aristotle uses ethos to refer to the speaker’s character as it appears to the audience. Aristotle says that if we believe that a speaker has good sense, good moral character, and goodwill, we are inclined(склонный) to believe what that speaker says. Today we might add that a speaker should also appear to have the appropriate(соответствующий) expertise or authority to speak knowledgeably about the subject matter. Ethos is often the first thing we notice, so it creates the first impression that influences(впечатление, что влияет) how we perceive(воспринимать) the rest. Ethos is an important factor in advertising (рекламе), both for commercial products and in politics. For example, when an actor in a pain reliever(обезболивающее) commercial puts on a doctor’s white coat, the advertisers are hoping that wearing this coat will give the actor the authority to talk persuasively about medicines. Of course, in this particular instance the actor’s ethos is a deceptive illusion, but the character, background, and authority of the speaker or writer can be a legitimate(законный) factor in determining whether we find him or her credible.
A writer’s ethos is created largely by word choice and style. Student writers often have a problem with ethos because they are asked to write research papers, reports, and other types of texts as if they have authority to speak persuasively, when in fact they are newcomers to the subject matter and the discourse community. Sometimes students try to create an academic image for themselves by using a thesaurus to find
Over 2,000 years ago the Greek philosopher Aristotle argued that there were three basic ways to persuade an audience of your position: ethos, logos, and pathos.
Ethos: The Writer’s Character or Image
The Greek word ethos is related(связанные) to our word ethics or ethical, but a more accurate(точный) modern translation might be “image.” Aristotle uses ethos to refer to the speaker’s character as it appears to the audience. Aristotle says that if we believe that a speaker has good sense, good moral character, and goodwill, we are inclined(склонный) to believe what that speaker says. Today we might add that a speaker should also appear to have the appropriate(соответствующий) expertise or authority to speak knowledgeably about the subject matter. Ethos is often the first thing we notice, so it creates the first impression that influences(впечатление, что влияет) how we perceive(воспринимать) the rest. Ethos is an important factor in advertising (рекламе), both for commercial products and in politics. For example, when an actor in a pain reliever(обезболивающее) commercial puts on a doctor’s white coat, the advertisers are hoping that wearing this coat will give the actor the authority to talk persuasively about medicines. Of course, in this particular instance the actor’s ethos is a deceptive illusion, but the character, background, and authority of the speaker or writer can be a legitimate(законный) factor in determining whether we find him or her credible.
A writer’s ethos is created largely by word choice and style. Student writers often have a problem with ethos because they are asked to write research papers, reports, and other types of texts as if they have authority to speak persuasively, when in fact they are newcomers to the subject matter and the discourse community. Sometimes students try to create an academic image for themselves by using a thesaurus to find