INTRODUCTION WHAT IS A PERSUASIVE ARGUMENT Anticipation Guide

INTRODUCTION WHAT IS A PERSUASIVE ARGUMENT?

Anticipation Guide • When making a decision about what to buy or how to behave, it’s most important to follow one’s instincts.

Anticipation Guide • People are strong enough to resist influences from television, video games, magazines.

Anticipation Guide • Children are mostly affected by what their parents tell them and not by what they see.

Anticipation Guide • I am not influenced by the persuasive techniques of others.

A persuasive argument is a communication/message that appeals to a listener’s or reader’s— • • Reason Values Beliefs Emotions

WHY ARE PERSUASIVE ARGUMENTS USED?

Why are persuasive arguments used? • To convince you to accept the writer’s or speaker’s position • To change your mind or point of view • To challenge you to act (buy a product, contribute to a campaign)

THE GOAL The goal of argumentative writing is to persuade your audience that your ideas are valid, or more valid than someone else’s.

What kind of persuasive messages do you encounter?

What kind of persuasive messages do you encounter? • Media: advertising, commercials, radio ads, TV shows, internet ads, infomercials, editorials • Oral communications: Political messages, speeches • Images: TV shows, magazines, billboards, print ads

PERSUASION AND ARGUMENT ARE DIFFERENT STRATEGIES • Persuasion influences someone to do something by making promises and/or appealing to emotions, beliefs, and values. • Argument is a form of persuasion that relies on logical thought and reasoning.

COMBINE BOTH TO CREATE A WINNING MESSAGE Most persuasive messages and communications combine both reason and emotion.

WHO PERSUADES YOU? WHY DOES IT MATTER?

WHO PERSUADES YOU? • Politicians, advertisers, organizations WHY DOES IT MATTER? To make an informed decision or to make choices that are in your own best interest, you must know how to read between the lines.

HOW MANY TV ADS/COMMERICIALS DO YOU ENCOUNTER IN ONE YEAR?

LET’S CONSIDER THESE NUMBERS! • Average American watches 9 hours of television per week • Average child watches 1, 480 minutes (one day and some) of television per week • Number of 30 second TV commercials seen in a year by an average child is 16, 000

IF YOU BREAK IT DOWN AND COMPARE IT— • The average American youth watches 1, 200 hours of television per year • The average American youth spends 900 hours per year in school

HOW ARE WE PERSUADED? THREE PILLARS OF PERSUASION The Greek philosopher Aristotle divided persuasive appeals into three categories • Ethos—body • Logos—brain • Pathos—heart

ETHOS/CREDIBLE ETHOS relates to the character of the writer/speaker. WE ASK— • Who is speaking? • Is the speaker credible? • Is the speaker believable? Trustworthy?

LOGOS/LOGIC • Appeals to logic and reasoning • Facts, statistics, authorities

LOGOS/LOGIC

PATHOS/EMOTIONS Appeals to emotions, such as – • Sympathy • Pity • Fear • Regret • Vanity

THE FOUR PERSUASIVE TECHNIQUES How would you influence people? Create a message that — • Appeals to emotions • Appeals to values • Appeals by association • Appeals through word choice or rhetoric (the art of speaking or writing effectively and persuasively)

1. Emotional Appeal Using strong emotions

2. THE VALUES APPEAL Draws on people’s moral standards

2. THE VALUES APPEAL Draws on people’s moral standards

3. WORD CHOICE/RHETORIC repetition, parallelism

3. RHETORICAL QUESTION A FIGURE OF SPEECH IN WHICH THE PERSON ASKING THE QUESTION IS TRYING TO MAKE A POINT AND IS NOT INTERESTED IN THE ACTUAL ANSWER TO THE QUESTION

3. RHETORICAL QUESTION

4. ASSOCIATION APPEAL Persuading you to do what others do • • A. Bandwagon Appeal B. Plain Folks Appeal C. Testimonial D. Transfer

A. BANDWAGON APPEAL Taps into people’s desire to belong or be a part of a group

A. BANDWAGON APPEAL Taps into people’s desire to belong or be a part of a group

B. PLAIN FOLKS APPEAL The speaker is an Average Joe, a regular person, who can understand the concerns of ordinary people

C. TESTIMONIALS Endorsements from the famous or satisfied customers

D. TRANSFER Connects a product, candidate, or a cause with a positive image or idea