Ethos In Mahatma Gandhi Speech

The Character of the Speaker: Ethos As it is mentioned previously the political speaker’s character plays crucial role in establishing an unquestioned credibility for his benefit. The addressee will make a decision based on how much positively or negatively affected by the personality of the speaker. Orators usually look forward to establish closeness with audience; hence the speaker’s character is the key. It is necessary for politicians to preserve an untarnished moral image, although details of such factors are highly culture-specific. In different political context the necessity to avoid scandals is important to establish ethos (Ponton, 2007:22). Aristotle in his view to ethos believes that ethos is no doubt related to speaker’s

Ponton (2007: 23) explains that the Mahatma Gandhi’s speeches, which frequently explain the elegant message of no violence, the Indian leader gave rhetorical expression to the British from which his own ethos derived. The Mahatma attempted to use his own ethos as a persuasive device during the India conference of 1931 in London. Although considered as a saint by millions scattered over the great country, though he was received with less veneration by the British government, yet, the Mahatma was not without admirers: I got a note from another Englishman whom also you know and whom also you respect Among many things he writes: […] of all Indians you are the one that the real Englishman Likes and understands. (Cited in Ponton, 2007:23) In the previous excerpt we find that Ghandi attempts to establish his ethos as a man respected by his British opponents as well as by his own people. Another example from the American political rhetoric, consider the following excerpt from Obama