John F Kennedy's Modes Of Persuasion

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The power of persuasion is one that has proved its influence all throughout the history of humanity, convincing the masses to think as one body. This talent is not without practice or order however, even those talented with influence must be organized and eloquently sew their words together to prove a point. Only arguments that can appeal to all are able to be successful. In President John F. Kennedy’s Speech “Peace Speech”, examples of Aristotle's Modes of Persuasion are used. Kennedy uses the appeal of his credibility (Ethos), emotion (Pathos), and logic (Logos) to support his argument against war. The first Mode of Persuasion used in the “Peace Speech” was Ethos. Ethos was presented through quotes Kennedy pulled from reliable sources. …show more content…

Logical and proven evidence are used as key points to sway the audience in favor of the speaker. Kennedy uses the phrase “makes no sense” a total of three times to drive his point into the minds of others. Another example would be the use of the word “rational”. It is used in such a way where denying the view of the speaker would ultimately prove to be nonsensical. Specific facts or statistics are also used to prove a more literal point, the billions of dollars used to fund weapons, would be an instance of Logos. An argument, no matter how well written, will have a weak base without a solid backing. Throughout the decades, “Peace Speech” has proven to be one of the best exemplars of a strong, passionate, and sound debate. Using Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, Kennedy was able to get into the minds of Americans and those around the world. In a time where the fear of war was constant, a conversation of peace was made possible. Although the modern world deals with a capacity of opinion, the likes of which it has never seen, it is still humanity’s goal to come together as one strong unit. Such a unit cannot be made without engaging people of all walks of