Grab your journals ELEMENTS OF PERSUASION What is

Grab your journals!!!

ELEMENTS OF PERSUASION

What is rhetoric? � Rhetoric uses rhetorical appeals to create a persuasive argument. �speeches, debates, persuasive essays, and articles all are examples of rhetoric �rhetoric is seen in conversations, advertisements, or any other medium in which the creator is trying to persuade or convince someone to do something or think in a specific way � This six weeks, we will be analyzing the way rhetoric is used to persuade in print/articles.

REVIEW: The Rhetorical Triangle � Aristotle taught that there were three types of rhetorical appeals (or strategies) �Ethos �Pathos �Logos ETHOS (credibility) Aristotle’s Rhetorical Triangle LOGOS (logic) PATHOS (emotion)

ETHOS � An appeal to the speaker’s credibility �Convinces you that the writer/speaker is trustworthy, knowledgeable and dependable Example: After receiving my master’s degree in English literature, and having taught high school English at the freshman level for twenty years, I can confidently state that reading improves writing.

Ethos can be created by… � Referring to experts or professionals, celebrities, or popular individuals, or “the common citizen” testimonials or witnesses Presenting an argument while being informed and aware of all sides � A speaker’s use of details create trust or credibility �

PATHOS � An appeal to the emotions of the audience �Plays on your emotions to convince you to believe something, or take a certain action Example: Please give me an extra day to this essay. You should feel bad for me as last night my dog got sick, my girlfriend broke up with me, and my cell phone died, so I didn’t go to turnitin. com to submit my work.

Pathos is VERY effective. It is created in writing by… Using comedy and humor � Creating pity/sympathy � Appealing to man’s desire to be morally sound � Creating disgust/dislike �

Pathos can also be created using… � � � � Imagery Diction Figurative Language Details Repetition (epistrophe, anaphora) Sentence structure (syntax) Fallacies… (ad hominem, bandwagon)

Epistrophe and Anaphora � Epistrophe � is the repetition of the same word or words at the end of successive phrases, clauses or sentences ○. . . this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. – Abraham Lincoln � Anaphora � is the repetition of the same word or words at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses or sentences ○ We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender. – Winston Churchill

LOGOS � An appeal to logic �Uses statistics, logic, and facts to appeal to you as a rational person. Example: It is impractical to develop skills that will not benefit you in the workplace. If you plan to turn in your work assignments on time and be an effective employee, you should practice those skills by turning homework in on time being an effective student.

Logos is created by using… � � � Statistics Facts Accounts and specific examples Counterarguments and concessions Organization of explanations Reasoning � anything that forces the reader to think and reflect (even rhetorical questions)

Avoid them! BASIC LOGICAL FALLACIES

Ad hominem � Latin for “to the man” � An argument that attacks the speaker, rather than their argument �Name calling �Offensive remarks or anger �I don’t know why we should even consider your argument since you never graduated from high school.

Bandwagon/Appeal to Popularity � An argument that claims that because an idea is popular, or because everyone else is doing it, it must be the correct one � Texas is the only state that hasn’t legalized _______ so it’s time we passed this law.

Red Herring � Introducing an irrelevant issue to avoid or divert attention from the actual argument �I think there is great merit in making the requirements stricter for the graduate students. I recommend that you support it, too. After all, we are in a budget crisis and we do not want our salaries affected.

Either/Or � An argument that gives only two options, when more than two actually exist � I’m not a doctor, but your runny nose tells me that you either have the cold or you have the flu. � We must either legalize ______ or admit that our country will eventually fail.

Faulty Cause � An argument that assumes that because something happened after something else, the first thing must have caused it It rained this morning, so Jim was late to work. � A black cat crossed Mr. Smith‘s path yesterday, sure enough, he was involved in an automobile accident later that afternoon. �

Appeal to Ignorance � An argument that claims that because something cannot actually be proven false, it must be true. �You can't prove I'm wrong, so I must be right. “ � We cannot prove that there are no Martians on Mars, so there must be Martians,

Appeal to Authority � An argument that is justified by giving an important or famous person who supports the argument � If legalizing _______ is good enough for Morgan Freeman, than it should be good enough for the rest of us.

COUNTERARGUMENT S

Slippery Slope � An argument that states that if one things happen, a series of others will inevitably occur � If we don’t legalize ______, our government will fall, and World War III will occur, leading to the downfall of mankind.

Effective Counterarguments � In order to maintain your credibility (ethos) and to appear logical (logos), you must include effective counterarguments � A counterargument… � Acknowledges a point made by the opposing side of your issue, and uses logical evidence to refute, or disprove it. � Including a counterargument proves that you have thoroughly researched and are knowledgeable about all sides of your issue.

Example… � Let’s pretend that you are arguing for standardized testing to be eliminated from schools. � In your counterargument, you would address a reason why people might want to have standardized testing in schools, and use evidence or logic to prove that their reason is flawed or simply incorrect.

Cont. � Although supporters of standardized testing feel that it is necessary to gather data that allows districts to compare their schools to others both within their own districts, and statewide, in order to address areas of weakness, the negative effects of these tests often outweigh this benefit. Data that is gathered from standardized testing is often used to determine funding, and schools that show weaknesses are not given additional resources—in fact, they are often denied them on the basis of their testing performance. Standardized testing, then, actually widens the gap between successful schools and those that need further support, rather than addressing the issues that cause it.

It is important that you do not contradict yourself within your counterargument… � Never bring up an argument from the opposing side and fail to address it. This simply weakens your argument. � Never simply attack your opponent— avoid logical fallacies—we will discuss these on the next slide.