Examples Of Ethos Pathos Logos

Within the media, readers are constantly being persuaded to believe one side of a political debate. Everyone has their own side of a controversial topic, however articles all over the internet today are influencing people to think a certain way. Three persuasion techniques are ethos, pathos, logos. Whether they are aware of it or not, readers will read these writing techniques all throughout articles and news sites. Ethos pertains to the character or authority of a source, pathos refers to the emotional side of a writing piece, and logos is a form based on facts and logic. A current controversial topic these days is gun control. Sources can be found all over, influencing the reader’s opinions on whether gun laws should be made stricter or

It is the idea on whether the regulation of the manufacturing, sale, and possession of guns should be allowed. In the article Obama: 'Fewer gun safety laws don't mean more freedom' by Kelly Cohen, Obama mentions the issue of gun possession and how the community should act in compliance to eliminate this issue. The article focuses on the thoughts of Obama, showing use of ethos, as he is a figure that everyone would want to follow. Cohen states, “Obama said fewer than 100 Americans have been killed by terrorists on United States soil since 9/11, but roughly 400,000 Americans have been shot and killed by guns over the same period.” He states these statistics to stress the importance to readers that gun control is a serious issue. These statistics show a use of logos, using numbers and factual information to convince the public that preventing future use of guns will ensure their safety. Obama, along with others at the same conference, states things specifically to get the public to agree with his ideas. Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy, who too was present, was expressing the need for universal background checks on people. McCarthy states, “’This is not about legal guns. This is about guns falling into the wrong hands of criminals’" (Cohen 1). He is making his ideas known to the public. McCarthy is justifying background checks, and making them seem okay. Reader’s cannot help but agree with him when he

To start, Obama was voicing his opinions on what the amount of gun safety laws meant. Obama says, "’Fewer gun safety laws don't mean more freedom, they mean more fallen officers. They mean more grieving families, and more Americans terrified that they or their loved ones could be next’" (Cohen 1). This is an evident example of pathos as it plays with the fear factor of the audience. By mentioning the reader’s families and loved ones, he is using a tactic to convince the readers by tapping into their emotions. Later in the article, Obama touches upon what the society is doing wrong in a sense, to therefore make them want to change their actions by believing what he does. “’Too often, law enforcement gets scapegoated for the broader failures of our society and criminal justice system’” (Cohen 1). By stating this, he is making society feel like they should improve themselves. He makes communities of people want to agree with the article to become unified. Political language is utilized throughout this article to convince the public that it is for their own safety to agree and comply with Obama’s