Arts at UIS. Alumni Resources. Visit UIS. Search Search. What is Rhetoric? What is Rhetoric: A Working Definition Rhetoric is the way in which you communicate in everyday life. The Rhetorical Situation Purpose Consider what the purpose of the writing is.
Audience When writing anything, consider who is being addressed. Topic What are you writing about? Writer Writers, just like their audience, are influenced by a number of things, like their age, location, perspective, bias, culture, experiences, and expectations. Context The context describes the circumstances surrounding the writing which include the time when the text is written , location where is the text placed , events surrounding the writing, and the culture. Why is Rhetoric Important?
Since everyone can use rhetoric, an awareness of its prevalence can be empowering and can help you become a more critical consumer and creator. In this example the author doesn't even name particular strategies Green Peace has suggested, much less evaluate those strategies on their merits. Instead, the author attacks the characters of the individuals in the group. Ad populum: This is an emotional appeal that speaks to positive such as patriotism, religion, democracy or negative such as terrorism or fascism concepts rather than the real issue at hand.
In this example the author equates being a "true American," a concept that people want to be associated with, particularly in a time of war, with allowing people to buy any vehicle they want even though there is no inherent connection between the two. Red Herring: This is a diversionary tactic that avoids the key issues, often by avoiding opposing arguments rather than addressing them. In this example the author switches the discussion away from the safety of the food and talks instead about an economic issue, the livelihood of those catching fish.
While one issue may effect the other, it does not mean we should ignore possible safety issues because of possible economic consequences to a few individuals. Ethos or the ethical appeal is based on the character, credibility, or reliability of the writer. There are many ways to establish good character and credibility as an author:. Pathos , or emotional appeal, appeals to an audience's needs, values, and emotional sensibilities.
Pathos can also be understood as an appeal to audience's disposition to a topic, evidence, or argument especially appropriate to academic discourse. Argument emphasizes reason, but used properly there is often a place for emotion as well.
Emotional appeals can use sources such as interviews and individual stories to paint a more legitimate and moving picture of reality or illuminate the truth. For example, telling the story of a single child who has been abused may make for a more persuasive argument than simply the number of children abused each year because it would give a human face to the numbers. Only use an emotional appeal if it truly supports the claim you are making, not as a way to distract from the real issues of debate.
The audience: These are the receivers of your message. The topic: The communication topic refers to what you are telling people about. The purpose: Your purpose describes why you are relaying this information or why you think others need said information. The context: This describes the environment and specific nuances surrounding the communication.
The last three factors will influence what method you use to persuade your audience. Rhetorical appeal refers to the methods you use to convince your audience. There are three types of appeals:. Ethos is a two-fold appeal. The speaker uses their credibility on the subject to appeal to the values and attitudes of listeners. Your credibility as a speaker is influenced by your competence and experience on the subject.
A rhetor making an ethical appeal must also be able to prove their character. While credibility is about experience, character is about personality traits.
When you show that you are of good character, you earn the trust of your audience. When forming ethical appeals, highlight the values that matter to your audience and include why they are important to you. This way, you can create a strong connection with your audience. Related: Character Traits: Definition and Examples.
Logos is an appeal to logic or reason. When you use logos to make your appeal, you support your message with objective evidence — statistics, facts and other verified data.
A logical argument is clear and consistent. To appeal to logos, you must consider the audience and the context of the rhetorical situation. Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode? Rhetoric has long been associated with political discourse since the ancient Greeks viewed public political participation as a valuable part of a civilized society.
Today, rhetoric is used by members of both parties to encourage voting for a particular candidate or to support specific issues.
Examples of political rhetoric include:. Rhetoric is used in product advertisements and promotions to convince consumers to purchase specific items or services. Advertisements can appeal to emotions or make comparisons with a competitor.
For example:. Although rhetorical devices serve a valuable purpose in making effective arguments, rhetoric can also be used as a tool of deception.
Knowing how to identify examples of rhetoric can help prevent you from being inadvertently deceived by the persuasive nature of language. All rights reserved.
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