Rhetoric

An Introduction
Objectives

By the end of this lesson you will be able to

1. Define rhetoric
2. Explain the three appeals (logic,
emotion, credibility or ethos)
3. Identify some ways writers create the
three appeals
What is rhetoric?

• Traditional definition: art of persuasion

• Modern view:
• study of effective communication
• awareness of the language choices
we make when we communicate
Aristotle
 Appeal to logic:
Convince the
reader through
facts, sound
reasoning

Three ways Appeal to emotion:

Persuade by
of persuading evoking an
a reader emotional response
in the reader

Appeal to
credibility / ethos:
Convince the
reader that you are
a credible source
How to appeal to logic?

USE FACTS AND STATISTICS USE SOUND REASONING

Example: appeal to logic

“Tobacco kills around 6 million people each

year. More than 5 million of those deaths
are the result of direct tobacco use while
more than 600,000 are the result of non-
smokers being exposed to second-hand
smoke.”

Source: World Health Organization. (2015, July 6).

Tobacco. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs339/en/
A note on statistics

What is the source? Is the statistic put into context?

How to appeal to emotion?

USE A STORY, VIVID DETAILS OR IMAGES TO ADDRESS THE READER DIRECTLY

APPEAL TO READER’S EMOTIONS, SENSES OR
IMAGINATION (“YOU”)

USE TONE AND STYLE TO CREATE

EMOTIONAL EFFECTS
Using style to create an appeal to
emotion

• Compare the two paragraphs on the next

slide. They are both the first paragraphs of
longer pieces on the same topic.
• The first paragraph is from a report
released by the Riverside County Sherriff’s
Department.
• The second is from an article in The New
York Times.
• Notice the differences in style (word
choice, sentence structure).
Compare
Riverside County Sheriff’s Dept.
Early Sunday morning on January
14, 2018, a 17-year old juvenile
escaped from her residence
situated in the 100 Block of Muir
Woods Road, Perris and
managed to call 911 from a
cellular device she found inside
the house. The teenager claimed
her 12 brothers and sisters were
being held captive inside the
residence by her parents and
further claimed some of her
siblings were bound with chains
and padlocks.
The New York Times
They were starved and shacked to
their beds, sometimes for months.
They were beaten and choked. They
were given scant medical care, often
denied use of a toiled and allowed to
shower but once a year. They lived
mostly at night, out of sight of
neighbors, and knew virtually
nothing of the outside world.
And yet, some of the children of
David and Louise Turpin hatched an
escape plan.
Example: appeal to Source: Kathmandu Post (2014, July 08).

emotion
Retrieved from
http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/new
s/2014-07-08/where-theres-smoke.html
 REFER TO YOUR ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR
EXPERIENCE, EDUCATION LIMITATIONS OR YOUR
OR CREDENTIALS STAKE IN THE TOPIC

CREATE AN
APPROPRIATE PERSONA

How to
appeal to
credibility /
ethos?
Example: appeal to credibility / ethos
 LOGIC = RATIONAL EMOTION =
APPEAL EMOTIONAL APPEAL

ETHOS = THE WRITER’S

CREDIBILITY

Summary:
Three
Appeals
Source

• Crowley, S., & Hawhee, D. (2012). Ancient rhetorics for contemporary

students. 5th Ed. Boston: Pearson.
Identify the appeals

Practice
Appeal?
Most Scientists Agree: Humans Are Causing
Global Climate Change

Source: Donovan, Jennifer. (2015, Oct. 15). Most Scientists Agree: Humans
Are Causing Global Climate Change. Michigan Tech News Retrieved from
http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/may/most-scientists-agree-
humans-causing-global-climate-change.htm
Appeal?
Appeal?

Source: Asian Development Bank (2015, Oct. 6). Retrieved from

http://www.adb.org/news/infographics/climate-change-asia-and-pacific
 Appeal?

Source: Andrew, Danielle. (2015, Sept. 13). This Shocking Photograph Reveals The Reality Of Climate Change. IFLScience.
Retrieved from http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/one-image-captures-shocking-potential-future-polar-
bears
Appeal?

• A recent Canadian study found that 20% of post-secondary students

reported experiencing depression, anxiety or other mental health
issues (Chiose, 2017).