Elements of Aristotle's Rhetoric

Aristotle had 2 main elements that made up rhetoric: Inartistic Proofs and Artistic Proofs. Inartistic proofs is anything not created by the speaker that is put into a speech; laws, contracts, and witnesses are some examples. Artistic proofs are anything the speaker creates to help persuade an audience; ethos, pathos and logos are all examples of artistic proofs.

Ethos: Credibility

• The fundamental character or spirit of a culture

• 3 charactersitics of ethos:

• Intelligence - how well they know the subject

• Goodwill

• Character/Virtue - morality + credibility

Pathos: Emotional

• Persuading by appealing to a reader's emotion

• Aristotle's Model:

• Defined and categorized emotions by looking at contrasts between emotions.

• The souls of listeners can be moved or move along continuums.

• Intensity is a function of proximity

Logos: Logical

• The strategic use of logic and reason

• Enthymemes

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