Speeches Are Used to Persuade. Discuss.
Speeches are used to persuade. Discuss.
The art of persuasive speaking, or rhetoric, has been practiced in the West since the fifth century BC. It traditionally deploys three key elements: ethos, being the speaker’s character, standing and credibility; logos, being the rational appeal of the speech; and pathos, being the emotional appeal. Devices typically used in effective rhetoric include: inclusive language, repetition, metaphor, imagery and historical references. Depending on the context, audience, and the speaker’s objectives, the elements and devices are deployed in different ways and have varying degrees of significance.
As public figures with longstanding reputations for political activism within their respective countries, all three speakers considered in this essay (Paul Keating, Noel Pearson and Aung San Suu Kyi) have a strong and positive ethos (although their political opponents may contest this). Each of them also exhibits a high degree of logos in their speeches, utilising various rhetorical devices to rationally convey their messages and persuade their audiences. However, the differing contexts for each speech has influenced the specific devices used, and also determined the degree and use of pathos.
Paul Keating’s speech was given on Remembrance Day. As a memorial speech it is contemplative and respectful. Rather than setting out to persuade an audience by making an overt political argument, Keating’s objective is to encourage a sense of Australian national identity through the values he embodies in the Unknown Soldier. Even as Keating honours the Unknown Soldier’s individual sacrifice, he also redeploys him as a representative figure. Not only does the Soldier represent the thousands that have gone to war for Australia, he also represents the values that are upheld in Australian society.
By listing a number of unknown details in the introductory paragraphs, Keating manages to humanise the Unknown Soldier in a particularly compelling
The art of persuasive speaking, or rhetoric, has been practiced in the West since the fifth century BC. It traditionally deploys three key elements: ethos, being the speaker’s character, standing and credibility; logos, being the rational appeal of the speech; and pathos, being the emotional appeal. Devices typically used in effective rhetoric include: inclusive language, repetition, metaphor, imagery and historical references. Depending on the context, audience, and the speaker’s objectives, the elements and devices are deployed in different ways and have varying degrees of significance.
As public figures with longstanding reputations for political activism within their respective countries, all three speakers considered in this essay (Paul Keating, Noel Pearson and Aung San Suu Kyi) have a strong and positive ethos (although their political opponents may contest this). Each of them also exhibits a high degree of logos in their speeches, utilising various rhetorical devices to rationally convey their messages and persuade their audiences. However, the differing contexts for each speech has influenced the specific devices used, and also determined the degree and use of pathos.
Paul Keating’s speech was given on Remembrance Day. As a memorial speech it is contemplative and respectful. Rather than setting out to persuade an audience by making an overt political argument, Keating’s objective is to encourage a sense of Australian national identity through the values he embodies in the Unknown Soldier. Even as Keating honours the Unknown Soldier’s individual sacrifice, he also redeploys him as a representative figure. Not only does the Soldier represent the thousands that have gone to war for Australia, he also represents the values that are upheld in Australian society.
By listing a number of unknown details in the introductory paragraphs, Keating manages to humanise the Unknown Soldier in a particularly compelling