Rhetoric and Persuasion1

Webster’s dictionary gives this definition for rhetoric: “Rhetoric is the art of speaking or
writing effectively”. But we find this too general for our purposes here. One Classical
Greek formulation, from Aristotle, that does seem suitable, refers to rhetoric as “the
faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion”. This definition
refers to the importance of understanding the context in which we find ourselves, in
order to be able to know just how best to deal with its communication requirements. And
it refers to a very, very important quality in powerful communicators in business:
persuasiveness.

Effective informative messages, (i.e., messages the main point of which is to present
clear, concise information) will, in a sense, persuade our audience to engage with and
accept the information we want them to receive, and to act on it appropriately. Effective
bad-news messages end up persuading our audience to accept the bad news,
maintaining the necessary goodwill for a continued relationship (if that is what we want).
As effective communicators in this way, we persuade people of our credibility and our
general suitability to be conducting relationships with them. Our overall business
effectiveness is enhanced.

A large part of rhetorical effectiveness comes from understanding our situations and
contexts so well that we can find the most effective means of being persuasive in our
communication (or of sending informative messages that people can accept and will act
on, or bad-news messages that they will accept with goodwill). We will now discuss the
three main factors of any situation or context that we need to address rhetorically. They
are what Aristotle called the three rhetorical “appeals”, or “proofs”.

The three rhetorical appeals

In any situation or context within which we must communicate, there are three main
elements that we can focus on, as we try to find the best means of fulfilling our
objectives. They are the logic of the situation (logos), any emotion that may be present
within it (pathos), and our own place or role in it, our character and credibility (ethos).

Logos, or logic: In any situation there is always something about which we must be
“rational”; there are reasons for things, about which we can be “reasonable”. To
some degree, in any message, we must be logical, make good sense. But in some
situations, rigour, precision and comprehensiveness are essential. Appeals to
logos are necessary where facts or processes are of utmost importance. Scholarly
documents, reports of all kinds, and textbooks, are heavy on logos.

Pathos, or emotion: In any situation, there is an emotional dimension; there is always at

least some kind of subjective involvement. Some situations are relatively neutral,
while some are highly charged. Appeals to pathos work well where strong
emotions can be harnessed. They are vital in times of crisis, where emotions tend
to run high, and people are not thinking straight. Advertising works more on
people’s sense and subjectivity than on their logic and objectivity. Branding also
works like this.

Adapted from Wong, I., Connor, M. & Murfett, U. (2007). Business communication: Asian
1

Perspectives, Global Focus. Singapore: Pearson, Prentice Hall. 54-56.

Ethos, or character and credibility: In any situation we might be communicating in
different capacities; as a friend, a boss, a colleague, a professor, a student, a
client, an expert. Just how we represent ourselves in each of these capacities
reflects our character, and also our credibility. Aristotle maintained that ethos
depended on a person’s common sense (or intelligence), moral character, and
goodwill. An ethos driven message relies on the reputation or authority of the
sender. Leadership communication of all kinds is high in ethos, and politicians
rely on it a lot.

Sometimes, our contexts will demand that we Logos

approach our communicative task with one of
these dimensions as clearly the main one
(advertising soft drinks or perfume needs very
little logic, and the citing of support data in a
report needs no emotion quotient at all). But
usually, we are able to find some element of
each in every situation, and manage our actual
communication for the optimal mix of appeals.
Ethos Pathos
We can consider the appeals as existing in a
triangular relationship, each connected to the
other, to some extent.

Take this opening to an address, the general nature of which should be self-evident,
which engages all three, in equal measure, at the outset:

Friends, Staff and Management of this great company,

I know you must be very anxious, and some of you possibly angry, at the recent
developments in our merger with XXX. As your CEO, and as a veteran of 35 years
in this industry, I am here to address these matters, and hopefully put you more
at ease. Today, I shall outline the history of events, examine the current situation
in detail, and tell you what will happen in the future.

The first sentence after the salutation takes account of the audience’s possible emotional
state (appeal to pathos). The second refers to the speaker’s authority for speaking at all
on this matter and draws on what the audience knows of his or her character, in this way
establishing his or her credibility; thus it is a statement of ethos. (The salutation,
“friends” is also a statement of ethos, because it helps define a relationship between
speaker and audience.) The third sentence indicates to the audience just how the
elements of the situation will be related logically, in a reasonable manner, and is thus an
appeal to logos.

In this example, we can see all three dimensions reinforcing one another. That the
speaker addresses the audience’s emotions first tends to enhance his or her credibility,
and indicates a reasonable assessment of the situation (mergers and acquisitions usually
involve lots of emotion). Reminding the audience of his or her seniority and long
experience in the industry not only re-establishes his or her credibility, but makes him or
her the logical person to be making this address, and provides a sense of reassurance
and trust.
Logic, emotion, and character: three very important things that we need to be aware of
as we approach any communicative situation.