3 Types of Persuasive Appeal

• • •

Ethos (ethics):

convince your readers that you are fair, honest, and well informed. They will then trust your values and intentions. Avoid over-use of negatively charged loaded words.

Pathos (emotion):

a carefully reasoned argument will be strengthened by an emotional appeal

Logos (Reason):

support your general claims with concrete, specific data

Rhetorical Devices

• Appeal to Emotion • Appeal to Reason

Each uses different Rhetorical Devices

Emotion (pathos) Reason/Logic (logos)

Logic Based Language Rhetorical Question Hyperbole/ Understatement Parallelism Figurative Language Facts/ Statistics Expert Opinion 1 st hand Experience

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Allusion- a brief reference to a famous person, event or to a work of art.

• The reference may be real or fictitious person

or event…the important thing is it is well known!

• An allusion may be drawn from history,

geography, literature, or religion. Example:

 "And I can pledge our nation to a goal: When we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Repetition- the repetition of the same word or words at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, or sentences • It is a great way to emphasize and/or clarify a

point.

• Writers also use repetition for emotional effect

on readers.

Example:



"What we need in the United States is not division. What we need in the United States is not hatred. What we

Persuasive Devices

paragraphs Appeals to emotion • Parallelism- deliberate repetition of similar words and phrases in neighboring lines, sentences, or • To put equal emphasis on a point.

Examples:

 I love hiking, biking, singing.

 I love to hike, to bike, to sing.

 "...and that government

of the people

,

by the people

,

for the people

, shall not perish from the earth.“ \\fhc-fs1\userdocs$\tlmoore\My Documents\My

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Analogy- expression showing similarities between two things. • Analogies show relationships.

• Analogy is also the umbrella term for all

comparisons (simile, metaphor, personification) Examples:

 "I don't think there's anything certainly more unseemly than the sight of a rock star in academic robes. It's a bit like when people put their King Charles spaniels in little tartan sweats and hats. It's not natural, and it doesn't make the dog any smarter.”

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Anecdote- a very brief short and interesting story taken from your past experience • told to illustrate a point or serve as an example of

something. Example:

 The clock finally read 3:30, and I rushed to gather all of my things for the trip home. There was traffic, and it took me even longer than normal to get down the highway. By the time I walked through the door, it was 4:25, and my dog was crying to be let out. I hurried to let her outside, to feed her, and to start water boiling on the stove. I looked around the house at the bills that needed to be paid, the dishes that needed to be washed, and the laundry that needed to be done before the next morning. It would be a

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Rhetorical question – a question that • Includes an emotional element, expressing • The answer is obvious or implied.

Example:

 peaks the reader’s interest.

wonder, indignation, sarcasm, etc.

Can anyone look at the record of this Administration and say, "Well done"?   Can anyone compare the state of our economy when the Carter Administration took office with where we are today and say, "Keep up the good work"? Can anyone look at our reduced standing in the world today and say, "Let's have

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Understatement- deliberately expresses an idea as less important than it actually is. • Either for ironic emphasis or for

politeness and tact.

Examples:

 You know I would be a little disappointed if you were to be hit by a drunk driver at two a.m., so I hope you will come home early.

 It is no big deal if I fail high school. It will only effect my plans a little bit.

Examples:

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion • Hyperbole (Overstatement) to convey meaning.

• Used for emphasis or effect – figurative language in which an exaggeration is used   I have asked you a million times, and you still haven’t answered my question. "Why you got scars and knots on your head from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet. And every one of those scars is evidence against the American white man." –Malcolm X http://www.americanrhetoric.com/mp3clips/figures/malcolmxhyperbole .mp3

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion  Simile- figurative language that makes a direct comparison between 2 unlike things using like or as.



a comparison

using the

words "like" or "as".

connective Example:

 "But His strong love stands like a granite rock unmoved by the hurricanes of our inequity.” http://www.americanrhetoric.com/mp3clips/figures/chspurgeonsimile.mp3

Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion     Metaphor- figurative language that makes a direct comparison between 2 unlike things

a comparison does not use the connective



words "like" or "as".

Example:

"With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood." -- Martin Luther King Note here there are two metaphors which serve as a comparison for two different but related ideas: 1) racial problems = "jangling discords" and 2) racial problems solved through faith = "beautiful symphony of brotherhood" \\fhc-fs1\userdocs$\tlmoore\My Documents\My Music\martin luther king metaphor.mp3



Persuasive Devices

Appeals to emotion Personification- giving human characteristics to objects, ideas, animals.

Example:

 The alarm screamed at 5:00 am this morning!

 "In Torquemada's time, there was at least a system that could, to some extent, make

righteousness and peace kiss each

other. Now, they do not even bow."  \\fhc-fs1\userdocs$\tlmoore\My Documents\My Music\gkchestertonpersonification.mp3

Rhetorical Devices: Different appeals to logic/reason

• Expert testimony- the opinion of a person who has become an expert on the subject • Logic based language- if/then statements and comparing and contrasting • 1

st

hand experience- an anecdote taken from someone who has experienced the event firsthand. • Facts and statistics

Persuasion Activity

•

Write a letter using one of the three prompts & include in your letter at least 5 of the persuasive devices to underline and label your examples of persuasive devices!

discussed in class. Make sure

Prompt 1:

Persuade your best friend to loan you money.

•

Prompt 2:

Persuade a teacher to take your late homework.

•

Prompt 3:

Persuade a potential boyfriend/girlfriend to go out with you