One of the most common uses of language is to manipulate. Over the course of English Language, we have learned the important ways in which people do this, including the three appeals, the use of pronouns, and tone. One way people use language to manipulate is by using the three appeals: ethos, pathos, and logos. Firstly, ethos is used to prove credibility of a writer, or commonly, a speaker. This therefore manipulates the audience into trusting the speaker, as they seem to be more knowledgeable about the topic. Speeches given by political figures often use some form of ethos in order to manipulate their audience into more readily believing them. Similarly, pathos is used to evoke pity, or sadness from a reader or listener. This is also often seen in …show more content…
By evoking sadness, the audience is more likely to do what the author wants them to do. It’s human nature to give in when feeling bad, and this is exactly what pathos does to a person. A common example of this is in animal shelter advertisements. These advertisements show the animals in cages looking sad, often to a heart wrenching soundtrack. The watcher feels bad for the animals, and is therefore more likely to donate money to the animal shelter. Lastly, logos is used when facts, reason, or statistics are given. In a word, it is logic. Logos is often used in politics, where candidates will cite statistics in order to argue for their point. Since it appeals so strongly to reason, an audience will be more inclined to believe what the author or speaker is saying. Logos, ethos, and pathos are all commonly used as part of a persuasive argument. By becoming more informed about them, a person can become better at arguing. They can win over an audience with credibility, pity,