Modes of persuasion

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The modes of persuasion, modes of appeal or rhetorical appeals (Greek: pisteis) are strategies of rhetoric that classify a speaker's or writer's appeal to their audience. These include ethos, pathos, and logos, all three of which appear in Aristotle's Rhetoric.^[1] Together with those three modes of persuasion, there is also a fourth term called Kairos (Ancient Greek: καιρός), which is related to the “moment” that the speech is going to be held.^[2] This can greatly affect the speaker’s emotions, severely impacting his delivery.^[3] Another aspect defended by Aristotle is that a speaker must have wisdom, virtue, and goodwill so he can better persuade his audience, also known as Ethos, Pathos, and Logos.^[4]

Ethos ^[5](plural: ethea) is an appeal to the authority or credibility of the presenter.^[6]: 41 It is how well the presenter convinces the audience that the presenter is qualified to speak on the subject.

Aristotle acknowledged that the union between the speaker’s appearance, his reputation, and his ability to give the speech all add up to the meaning of Ethos.^[7]

This can be done by:

• Being a notable figure in the field in question, such as a college professor or an executive of a company whose business is related to the presenter's topic
• Demonstrating mastery of the terminology of the field (jargon)
• Being introduced by or producing bona fides from other established authorities

Pathos (plural: pathea) is an appeal to the audience's emotions.^[6]: 42 The terms sympathy, pathetic, and empathy are derived from it. It can be in the form of metaphor, simile, a passionate delivery, or even a simple claim that a matter is unjust. Pathos can be particularly powerful if used well, but most speeches do not solely rely on pathos. Pathos is most effective when the author or speaker demonstrates agreement with an underlying value of the reader or listener.

In addition, the speaker may use pathos and fear to sway the audience. Pathos may also include appeals to audience imagination and hopes, done when the speaker paints a scenario of positive future results of following the course of action proposed. It is also related to the mood or the tone of a speech and the skill that the speaker possesses in harnessing the emotional side of the audience. Aristotle connected this skill with virtues like courage, wisdom, and generosity as ways that the speaker or any other person can use to appeal to his/her or their audience's emotions.^[7]

In some cases, downplaying the ethos can be done while emphasizing pathos, for example as William Jennings Bryan did in his Cross of Gold speech:

I would be presumptuous, indeed, to present myself against the distinguished gentlemen to whom you have listened if this were but a measuring of ability; but this is not a contest among persons. The humblest citizen in all the land when clad in the armor of a righteous cause is stronger than all the whole hosts of error that they can bring. I come to speak to you in defense of a cause as holy as the cause of liberty—the cause of humanity.

— William Jennings Bryan^[8]

Logos (plural: logoi) is logical appeal or the simulation of it,^[6]: 38 and the term logic is derived from it. It is normally used to describe facts and figures that support the speaker's claims or thesis. There are also more traditional forms of logical reasoning, such as syllogisms and enthymemes.^{[6]: 38–39} Logos is also related to the rational appeal that the speaker uses to persuade his/her or their audience through the usage of patterns, such as facts, statistics, and data, also known as informational processing. Aristotle believed that those who used persuasion should use those forms of logical reasoning.^[7]

Having a logos appeal also enhances ethos because information makes the speaker look knowledgeable and prepared to their audience. However, the data can be confusing and thus confuse the audience. Logos can also be misleading or inaccurate, however meaningful it may seem to the subject at hand. In some cases, inaccurate, falsified, or misconstrued data can even be used to enact a pathos effect.^{[clarification needed]} Such is the case with casualty numbers, which, while not necessarily falsified, may include minor casualties (injuries) that are equated with deaths in the mind of an audience and therefore can evoke the same effect as a death toll.

Kairos (plural: kairoi) is an arguable fourth mode of persuasion which means the "right time", "season" or "opportunity".^[2] Kairos is an appeal to the timeliness or context in which a presentation is publicized, which includes contextual factors external to the presentation itself but still capable of affecting the audience's reception to its arguments or messaging, such as the time in which a presentation is taking place, the place in which an argument or message is being made, the background information and demographics of an audience such as age, culture, faith, creed, etc., the appropriateness of the speaker's tone given the nature of the occasion, and the relationship between the speaker, the audience and the topic.

It is also important for speakers to be aware of events that might happen during the moment of a speech, like outside noise, the technology that can be used during the event, as well as the weather conditions on the day, so it can be easier for him/her to connect with the audience and not be disturbed during the speech.^[3]

An example would be an outdated advertisement that would have been effective 40 years ago but hasn't aged well by today's standards. If both the advertisement made 40 years ago and the exact same advertisement made today contain the same speaker with the same credentials (ethos), and the same arguments with the same logic (logos), and they both appeal to the same emotions and the same values (pathos), but the reception is completely different, then what has changed is the context in which the presentation was made (kairos).

The four modes of persuasion are present in many more ways than most might think. They can be seen in advertisements on social media, on television, in flyers, and even on billboards on the side of the road.^[9] This type of persuasion can be seen in a simple conversation with family members or friends. Those might present at least one of the aspects of persuasion: logos, with numbers, pathos, emotional appeal, ethos, with the authority of an entity, and Kairos, in the right time or with some relation with them.^[3][9] Another important application of persuasion can be seen in public speeches. Those can be through a process called framing and reframing.^[10] This process gets its name because speakers need to use the correct words during a speech so their audience correctly understands their message. If a speaker wants to use a specific word, slang, or metaphor, he/she needs to do a lot of research on his/her audience's background to understand the values and knowledge of their audience to persuade effectively.^[10]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Persuasion techniques.

• "Aristotle's Rhetoric" entry by Christof Rapp in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy