October Blog

Samantha Sadler

Christina Ivey

Comm 160-001

27 October 2018

Rhetoric is one of the most important concepts in both communication and culture. Rhetoric has been defined many different ways throughout history but the one that is most commonly used today states that rhetoric is “the use of symbolic action by a human being to share ideas, concern, and to construct social reality”. The symbolic action being the rhetorical mobilization of symbols to act in the world. In its most common sense, rhetoric is the way in which we speak or write in persuasion. Aristotle, the founder of rhetoric, discovered the three proofs that are important when learning about rhetoric. Ethos, pathos, and logos are the different appeals that can be used when trying to be persuasive. We see these proofs throughout our daily lives. Ethos deals with ethics or credibility. When we see this type of rhetorical proof, we must ask ourselves is the person who is speaking on this topic credible to speak about it? For instance, we would not want to listen to middle school teacher give a presentation on real estate because the teacher has no credibility on that topic. Pathos, on the other hand, is the appeal to emotion and passion. One common example is the commercials created by the ASPCA with the slideshow of photographs and videos of sad animals. The creators of this commercial are using pathos to appeal to our emotions showing us abandoned cats and dogs, therefore hopefully convincing us to donate money to support the organization. When we see imagery that makes us feel strongly about something, rhetorical motives are behind those images in hopes we will then be persuaded to act on those emotions. Another example that is more driven towards information is logos. This proof is very common in the media as well. This can be used when a company is trying to sell a product like toothpaste stating that nine of ten dentists recommend this specific type of toothpaste. When we hear that ninety percent of dentists say that this toothpaste is the best on the market, we are again persuaded through this rhetorical proof that logically speaking, this product is the best compared to all the other ones on the market. Rhetoric is an important concept to understand because it is constantly around us whether we choose to notice it or not. Knowing when we are being persuaded about something allows us to take a step back and formulate our own decision on the topic. We want to have a better understanding of the rhetorical proofs as well because using them effectively can greatly benefit our lives when is it our turn to be the rhetor. Although the idea of rhetoric dates back to the days of Aristotle, these concepts are commonly applied to life today.