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The Ethical Use Of Rhetoric In Volkswagen

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Is it ethical for a pastor to exaggerate? Will you really be in ‘good hands’ with Allstate? Is driving a Volkswagen going to make you happy? Everyone uses rhetoric whether you know it or not, especially when trying to persuade someone over a topic or to buy a product. First, the terms need to be defined. Rhetoric is the art or discipline that deals with the use of discourse, either spoken or written, to inform or persuade or motivate and audience. Rhetoric is used consciously and subconsciously and can be used as a great tool for furthering education and thought, but it can be completely unethical. (Anesis) In 2013, Volkswagen released a super bowl commercial portraying a man from Minnesota who works in an everyday office building. He overwhelms the people with his spirit and sense of positivity. Later in the commercial, the audience finds out his happiness stems from the Volkswagen Bug he had been driving lately. The man offers his colleagues a ride to “turn their frown upside down”. Instantly, everyone who rides in the car has a better attitude. Volkswagen is conveying the message that everyone who rides in …show more content…

Is this ethical? What if someone gets in the Volkswagen and does not feel happy, in fact they feel the exact opposite? That person was then just deceived into believing their life would be instantaneously better, so they spent their money, but they do not reap the rewards they were seeking. Is it okay to manipulate people, using rhetoric, to get earthly materials in return? “RHETORIC The art of making life less believable; the calculated use of language, not to alarm but to do full harm to our busy minds and properly dispose our listeners to a pain they have never dreamed of.” –Ben Marcus The well known author, Ben Marcus, sheds light on the concept of rhetoric. Here he states that the tools used in rhetoric are used to blind the

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