Review of Rhetorical Appeals

     Rhetorical appeals... do you know them? Let's review them: logos, ethos, and pathos, but not exactly in that order. There's really no order at all, actually. Let's start with logos. Logos is the rhetoric appeal that deals with our sense of logical reasoning. I'll try to put it in basic terms. Think about when you read something and say, "Oh, that makes sense." What you read was logical, and therefore, an example of logos. Ethos is a little different. This rhetoric appeal has to do with someone's character or merits. Here's an example. Bob has his doctorate degree in ice cream serving and currently works at YoLo's. Since we are talking about his assets and skills, this would be ethos. The last of these, but certainly not least, is pathos. Pathos deals with our emotions. It's that thing that- ... Guys, I'm sorry, I can't do this anymore. I've been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and I only have three months to live, and I feel like my life hasn't been fulfilling, like I've wasted my days here on earth... Did you feel sympathy for me? Did you actually believe me?! You probably didn't, but anyway, that was an example of pathos. So let's put this into practice. Here's a commercial using all three of these appeals.
     Do you want/need a VHS player? If you answered no to this question, clearly you don't fully understand the full capabilities of the VHS player. Do you have video tapes lying around that you would just love to watch again? If you buy this device, you don't have to go through the hassle of looking for the old movies on Netflix, Amazon, etc. (Logos) You think you would be the only one to use it? Dr. Phil uses it, too! He loves it and says it's amazing, and you should believe him because he has a Ph.D. in psychology. (Ethos) Now, I'm one of the last that is actually selling this product and I think- [*off air ("What? Really? Wow, okay..")] Folks, I am actually the only person still selling VHS players. I hate to say this on tv, but I really need you guys to buy these from me. This is all I have, and I have a family to support. A wife and three kids. And two dogs. And a gold fish. Rent was due last month, so hurry up and buy... please! (Pathos)

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