Banning Assault Guns Ethos Pathos Logos

1021 Words5 Pages

The article "Banning Assault Rifles is Fine, but Handguns are the Problem" by The Toronto Star Editorial Board delves into the recurring issue of gun violence within the Greater Toronto Area. This article provides a riveting assertion that strictly banning assault guns is an inadequate method of tackling this issue, and argues for a need to restrict the use of handguns overall. This text presents its outlook by using methods of rhetorical persuasion such as pathos, logos and ethos in hopes of altering their readers’ perception after reading this article. Firstly, the author of this article implements the rhetorical persuasion style of pathos. This involves the use of appealing to the reader's emotions by fostering a sense of empathy through …show more content…

Lastly, the author implements the persuasion technique called ethos. Ethos is done by appealing to the readers' ethics or beliefs based on the speaker's credibility. The Toronto Star is Canada’s largest daily newspaper and seeing that this article is being published from their editorial office immediately provides this article with credibility. Additionally, through their use of direct quotes from both Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Public Safety Minister Bill Blair regarding their action on the matter, the author shows they have adept research and understanding of the situation. For example, the article delves into the government’s plan on gun violence, where Public Safety Minister Bill Blair discusses, “He made it clear the priority is a ban on the sale of “military-style assault rifles,” with a buy-back program to follow. Far back in the line is action to curb the availability of handguns”. By including details such as these within their article, the Toronto Star Editorial Board shows that they have analyzed the situation and aligned themselves with authoritative government