How many means of persuasion are there

In this article, we discuss the main modes of persuasion and how to use them effectively. Modes of persuasion are the methods a speaker or teacher can use to appeal to their audience. People often use the various modes of persuasion in everyday conversations as well as in their professional capacities. More than 2, years ago, Aristotle taught his students about four basic ways to convince an audience of a belief or concept. Aristotle was a famous Greek rhetorician, scientist and teacher, and he emphasized the modes known as ethos, pathos and logos.

Related: Persuasion Skills: Definition and Examples. Understanding the primary modes of persuasion, according to Aristotle, can help you determine which mode works best in each specific situation you may encounter:.

Ethos relies on credibility as the method for convincing others. You can establish credibility in a range of ways, such as experience or education. If an established and trained psychologist wrote a paper on the psychology that impacts anxiety and depression, the credibility comes from that individual's experience and knowledge in the field. However, if that same psychologist wrote an article about cooking, they wouldn't have the same assumed credibility in that particular field.

For some, credibility is assumed based on their qualifications. People can establish their own ethos by emphasizing what makes them an expert in a particular field.

Individuals may also build their ethos by referencing and citing credible sources in their arguments or appealing to the logic of the audience.

Pathos is a mode of persuasion that appeals to the human emotions. Human beings feel complex emotions, and feelings can often trump common sense and logic in behaviors and actions. Due to the complexity of feelings, pathos is a powerful mode of persuasion that allows people to connect with one another and experience emotions. The feelings a person experiences can also motivate them to act differently or believe something to be true, making pathos very effective for persuasion.

Of the key modes of persuasion, pathos is often the least respected due to its inability to remain objective. Yes, it can be tricky figuring out how to work kairos into a blog post.

So I guess it will be a way to stretch my writing muscles. Thanks for commenting, Trisha! Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. This is the view from my new writing desk in my new home in Raleigh, North Carolina. What made those descriptions different from all of the rest? In a nutshell, they expertly employed four powerful rhetorical strategies known as the modes of persuasion. These four persuasive techniques are essential for making any argument compelling.

He wrote, The first kind depends on the personal character of the speaker; the second on putting the audience into a certain frame of mind; the third on the proof, or apparent proof, provided by the words of the speech itself.

Whenever anyone presents an argument, we first evaluate whether or not we can trust them. So how can we establish trust with readers, prospective customers, or website visitors? Here are four ways: 1. We can share personal stories that show we have experience with the topic. We can show that other people trust us. We can point to our qualifications. We can show we care about our readers or customers. Click To Tweet Remember that ethos is ultimately about character. The most effective ways to do this is through stories.

Ultimately, with a dash of pathos, you can increase trust with your readers and make them laugh or cry or feel proud or hopeful. Click To Tweet Pictures are another way to employ pathos. Photo by Jenni Chen We now arrive at the last piece of the puzzle: kairos. Did you enjoy this post? Get the free eBook!

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Politics , legal decisions, mass media, news, and advertising are all influenced by the power of persuasion and influence us in turn. Sometimes we like to believe that we are immune to persuasion. That we have a natural ability to see through the sales pitch, comprehend the truth in a situation, and come to conclusions all on our own.

Persuasion can be subtle, and how we respond to such influences can depend on a variety of factors. When we think of persuasion, negative examples are often the first to come to mind, but persuasion can also be used as a positive force.

So what exactly is persuasion? In The Dynamics of Persuasion , Perloff defines persuasion can be defined as " The key elements of this definition of persuasion are:. While the art and science of persuasion have been of interest since the time of the Ancient Greeks, there are significant differences between how persuasion occurs today and how it has occurred in the past.

Perloff offers five major ways in which modern persuasion differs from the past. Ever wonder what your personality type means?

Sign up to find out more in our Healthy Mind newsletter. Most simply, pathos is the appeal to our human emotions. As a writer, your job is to make the audience feel connected with your topic. This is where pathos can help. Think about the broad spectrum of human emotions: sadness, humor, pity, sympathy, anger, outrage; these are all things that motivate us.

Pathos provides writers with a tool to get the audience emotionally invested in the message. Pathos is a powerful means of persuasion.

But you should be very careful with pathos. Pathos is generally the least respected of the three ethical appeals in the academic community. In many fields of study, emotion is something that should be left out completely.

Most of the time, the best advice is to be careful with pathos and use it wisely. Misusing pathos can negatively affect your ethos or credibility.