Assignment:
Forum Objective: Analyze ethos, logos and pathos in an article from your field.
A persuasive argument is most convincing when it appeals to readers in the ways they would be most moved. Since readers are moved by different elements, it is important we appeal to as many readers as possible:
- Ethos-credibility of author, credibility of sources, morality, values
- Pathos-emotions, sympathy, empathy, relevance, personal connection
- Logos-logic, research, data, reasoning, irrefutable proof, sound explanations
Note: the purpose of having these is to appeal to readers logically, emotionally, and ethically so they connect to the argument and understand the argument. Having all three of these appeals will strengthen your connection to the reader, but your argument could still be fallacious, poorly structured, or poorly supported. It is recommended that you Google fallacies related to ethos, fallacies related to pathos, and fallacies related to logos to ensure you don't inadvertently have a fallacious argument.
Initial post:
Step 1: In your chosen discipline, find an article, ideally one that is persuasive to make the task easier, but even a scholarly, informative article can still have evidence of the appeals.
- Go to the APUS Library.
- Navigate to the Articles & Databases tab of the large search box at the center of the library homepage.
- Search for topics in your field.
- Find an article related to your Week 5 Position Paper, something you might use as a source for the project.
- Read it for the 3 rhetorical appeals.
Step 2: In your initial post in the forum, provide the link to the piece you evaluated and discuss the effectiveness of the piece based on your "grading" of it.
- Identify the rhetorical appeals (logos, ethos, pathos) used in the piece and discuss their effectiveness.
- Does this article have ethos? How is the author an expert in the field?
- Does this article have logos? Is there a thesis statement in the article?
- Does the article have pathos? How does the writer appeal to the reader's emotions or connect to the reader?
- After analyzing this article, do you believe it would be a good source for your Position Paper? Why or why not?
Additional questions to help initiate discussion in your thread (optional):
- Does the article you chose have any fallacies? If so, what kind of fallacy?
- Has anybody ever wrongly stereotyped you? Have you faced discrimination or prejudice based on statements that lack ethos and logos?
- Give examples of TV commercials that demonstrate fallacies. What fallacy has been committed? What is fallacious about it? Why might people fall for it? Why is it erroneous?
Student Reply Questions:
- Do you agree with the evaluation of the article? Do you see additional appeals in the argument?
- Based on the evaluation, would you use this article in a research project or find it trustworthy?
- Do you see any ways the article could be strengthened based on the weaknesses mentioned in the evaluation?
- Based on the evaluation, is the article a good example of the use of appeals?
- Questions, comments, or feedback for the peer?