Examples Of Ethos

Raising the minimum wage has been one of the biggest debates during the 21st century. One side of the spectrum argues that raising it will make it so they have a living wage, while the other argues that raising it will hurt the economy. Whichever the case is, people are clearly divided on this issue. Before Oregon passed the 15 dollar minimum wage law, people wrote arguments to try to either prevent or pass this law. The article, “How a $15 minimum wage would affect a real business: Guest opinion” by Lee Spector argues that raising the minimum wage would hurt small businesses like the one he earns. “People don’t go to college to earn a $9.10 minimum wage: Guest opinion” by Justin Norton-Kertson is an article that argues against Lee Spector’s article. Although both

Blink written by Malcom is an argumentative based research book about how our adaptive subconscious plays a huge part in every day life. It also tells of the pros and cons of our adaptive subconscious. In Gladwell’s Blink he used different forms of rhetoric to persuade us, the readers, of his point successfully. Gladwell uses multiple counts ethos and logos in his writing to get his point across along with pathos, analogies, rhetorical questions, and irony. He also uses his tone and diction to assist his writing.

Ethos is “the character and credibility of the writer in the eyes of the reader.” An example of this is, “We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions..”. The author shows their credibility by stating they are representatives of the United States of America. The authors also portrayed this by, “In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms.” By saying this, the authors show they have tried to set agreed terms with

Amidst the intense Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and put in solitary confinement for peacefully protesting racial discrimination and injustice in Birmingham, Alabama. It was during this time that Dr. King, refusing to sit idly by, wrote his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” one of the most inspiring documents in history. With his respectful nature, humility, compassion, optimism, and determination, King responded to a group of white Alabama clergymen who had condemned the civil rights protests as extreme in their open letter, “A Call for Unity.” Although his letter was directed towards a small group of eight men, his words eventually reached the minds and hearts of the entire country. Throughout the letter, Dr. King does a tremendous job of supporting his argument with the three elements of Aristotle’s rhetorical appeal. He ended up creating a very persuasive letter, one that effectively uses ethos in establishing his character, logos in providing reason and logic, and pathos in reaching human emotions.

Spurlock uses ethos, or ethical appeal, in his film. The definition of ethos is the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society. A way he uses the customs or practices is by following four rules he was given. He can only supersize if he is asked. He can only eat food that is from McDonald’s.

Ethos is the creditability of an author. He uses ethos by showing the audience all of the books he has written. Klosterman states, “A prolific author, essayist, and pop culture critic, Chuck Klosterman has written for Esquire, the New York Times Magazine, Spin, The Washington Post, and many other publications.” He uses this quote to effectively show the books and publishers he has wrote for. This quote also enhances his creditability because every magazine and publisher he has written for has a great reputation and great source to reference from. This quote tells the reader that he is reliable person and whatever he writes is a reliable reference as well.

Ethos is when one gives credibility. President Johnson has credibility in his speech when he claims, “Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, Members of the congress…” Mr. President also uses ethos when he states “...at the request of your beloved speaker, and the senator from Montana, the majority leader, the Senator from Illinois, the minority leader, Mr. McCulloch, and other members of both parties, I came here tonight…” These are example of ethos by giving credibility to everyone he mentioned. Aside from ethos there is pathos.

In 1741, Jonathan Edwards delivered a sermon called “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” to a congregation in Enfield, Connecticut. This sermon was so influential and poignant that today it has transformed into a piece of literature that many study in classes. This bit of literature is so utterly jam-packed with the use of rhetorical appeals, often referred to as ethos, pathos, and logos. These three appeals are derived from ancient Greece, or more precisely, the Greek philosopher Aristotle. Ethos appeals to the audience’s sense of trust, pathos, to their sense of emotion, and logos, to their sense of logic. The use of ethos, pathos, and logos in any type of writing or speaking can create a commanding and arresting effect on the reader/listener.

From pages 495 to 497 author Eve Tushnet wrote an essay titled “You Can Go Home Again.” This essay was about how it is okay to go home and live with one’s parents again if someone is older. First the essay brought up the opposition and what people think about when someone lives with their parents. The essay also brought forth different data and studies about older people that live at home. After that, the essay brought up good points about what living with one’s parents can do for them. The author used different elements of ethos, logos, pathos, and kairos to effectively communicate with the reader.

Coach Valvano was an American college basketball player, coach, and broadcaster—highly regarded for his excellent coaching career, most notably at North Carolina State University. Unfortunately, like many great individuals, Valvano fell victim to cancer; specifically, metastatic adenocarcinoma, a glandular cancer that spreads to the bones. In Valvano’s final speech, a speech made nearing his time of death, Valvano calls his the audience to appreciate the importance of living an inspired life and being charitable. Coach Valvano helps persuade his audience to his message by the implication of rhetorical appeals such as ethos, logos, and pathos.

In school, there are always those who do not understand the content in class, but get by with passing grades. In Mary Sherry’s essay, “In Praise of the F Word”, she writes about how in the American school system students get passed along without any consideration for their pace or skill level (Sherry, 564-566). Sherry also discusses how unprepared the American public is after high school and college (Sherry, 564). In, “In Praise of the F word”, Sherry also discusses her own son and one of his experiences in his high school (Sherry, 565). The content of “In Praise of the F word” was very persuasive, as Sherry effectively utilizes the aristotelian appeals. She uses ethos effectively to build trust in her message. The ethos or trust built in Sherry was effective in persuading the audience about her credibility. The examples used in Sherry’s essay relate to her own experience with the topics on hand. The

In Act III, Scene 2 of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Marc Antony is able to change the mood of the crowd. The commoners transform from a confused, depressed group of people to an angry mob wanting to get back at the conspirators for their despicable action. Antony manages to do so by using ethos, pathos, and logos. These three persuasive techniques all appeal to the audience in a different way. Ethos are phrases that relate to ethics or morals and make oneself sound fair and unbiased. Pathos control the emotions of an audience and evoke a certain feeling to persuade the crowd in this case. Finally, logos convince an audience using reasoning and logic. Antony expresses a variety of persuasive techniques throughout his entire speech and change the mindset of the commoners using ethos, pathos, and logos.

Ethos refers to the author’s credibility and authority on the subject matter as perceived by

Ethos is the rhetorical strategy based in credibility. Ethos constructs persuasion based on character, credibility, and/or reliability of the author. (Weida and Stolley) Reich is the well-known former Secretary of Labor that served during President Bill Clinton’s administration. (Vidani) Secretary Reich was named by Time Magazine as “One of the Ten Most Effective Cabinet Secretaries of the Twentieth Century”.(Morris) He has written a plethora of best-selling books regarding economics. (Vidani) Reich places himself in this essay because he knows the value of his word with regard to economics. He writes, “I would like the government to offer wage insurance” and “I’d support labor standards that make trade agreements a bit more fair”.

Persuasion from ethos establishes the speaker 's or writer 's good character. As you saw in the opening of Plato 's Phaedrus, the Greeks established a sense of ethos by a family 's reputation in the community. Our current culture in many ways denies us the use of family ethos as sons and daughters must move out of the community to find jobs or parents feel they must sell the family home to join a retirement community apart from the community of their lives ' works. The appeal from a person 's acknowledged life contributions within a community has moved from the stability of the family hearth to the mobility of the shiny car. Without the ethos of the good name and handshake, current forms of cultural ethos often fall to puffed-up resumes and other papers. The use of ethos in the form of earned titles within the community-Coach Albert, Deacon Jones, Professor Miller-are diminishing as "truthful" signifiers while commercial-name signifiers or icons a