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Lecture on argumentation and means of persuasion with some fun exercises.
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Linking Compelling Claims, to Strong Evidence
Paul M. Rogers PhDEnglish 101
Persuasive Communication• Rhetoric: The ability in any particular case to
see all the available means of persuasion (Aristotle, The Rhetoric). – Being persuasive is an ability
• It can be developed through study and practice– Will give you more options to accomplish your communication
goals
– There are multiple means of persuasion• But, first be clear about your purpose• Know your audience• Use ethos, logos, and pathos
Three Means of Persuasion: Ethos, Logos, and Pathos
I Ethos (Writer/Spe
aker)
It Logos(Text/Message/Medium)
You Pathos (Audience(s))
Purpose
Kairos(Urgent and Non-Trivial)
In College Writing You Must Develop Your Logical Argumentation Abilities
I Ethos (Writer)
LOGOS = LOGICAL ARGUMENTATION
You Pathos (Audience(s))
Purpose
Kairos(Urgent and Non-Trivial)
SilverStar Ultra TM
Standard Halogen
Xenon
Let’s look at some data: Which of the images shows more light on the road and surrounding area?
Xenon Headlight
Halogen Headlight
SilverStar Ultra TM
Standard Halogen
Xenon
Xenon headlights illuminate signs better than halogen headlights do
[Sylvania, 2008 ]
Xenon Headlight
Halogen Headlight
SilverStar Ultra TM
Standard Halogen
Xenon
My Papa's Waltz by Theodore Roethke The whiskey on your breathCould make a small boy dizzy;But I hung on like death:Such waltzing was not easy.
We romped until the pansSlid from the kitchen shelf;My mother's countenanceCould not unfrown itself.
The hand that held my wristWas battered on one knuckle;At every step you missedMy right ear scraped a buckle.
You beat time on my headWith a palm caked hard by dirt,Then waltzed me off to bedStill clinging to your shirt.
4 Steps
1. Write a brief one or two sentence summary of this poem
2. Make an assertion: What is this poem about?3. What evidence do you have to back up your
claim? – What is your strongest evidence?
4. Link your claims and evidence together in a single statement
Is Queenie Lying?
1. Your thesis is the response to this question.2. Identify all of the evidence you can find to
support your claim3. Rank your evidence from strongest to
weakest
Aristotle’s Rhetoric provides a solid foundation for practicing, learning, and teaching communication, including writing
I Ethos (Speaker)
LOGICAL ARGUMENTATION
You Pathos (Audience)
Purpose
Kairos(Urgent and Non-Trivial)
A Process for Creating Compelling Arguments
• Start with data and data analysis• Form your questions• Make a claim or a thesis that is worth arguing• Make explicit the connections between the
data and the claims
Qualifications/Hedge Words• Possible• Conceivable • Could• May • Might • Perhaps• Almost certain• Virtually certain • All but certain • Highly probable • Highly likely • Odds [or chances]
overwhelming
• Probable• Likely • We believe • We estimate• 50-50 chances • About even • Chances a little better
[or less] than even • Improbable • Unlikely• Probably not• We believe that . . . not • We estimate that . . .
not • We doubt, doubtful• Almost certainly• Virtually impossible • Almost impossible • Some slight chance • Highly doubtful
Arguments that links claims and evidence are more persuasive than those that don’t!
[Sylvania, 2008 ]
Xenon Headlight
Halogen Headlight
SilverStar Ultra TM
Standard Halogen
Xenon
Exchange your change maker paper with a partner
• Treat the paper as data • Is this individual making a significant and
positive impact in the world?• Can you make a case based on the evidence in
the paper.• Using their paper as data, make an argument
that links together your claims and their most compelling evidence.
Three Means of Persuasion: Ethos, Logos, and Pathos
I Ethos (Speaker)
It Logos(Text)
You Pathos (Audience)
Purpose
Kairos(Urgent and Non-Trivial)
Purpose
• INFORM: What do I want my audience to know?
• ENTERTAIN: What do I want my audience to feel?
• PERSUADE: What do I want my audience to do?
Writing as discovery
• Our ideas change as we write• We gain content knowledge• Our purpose can become clearer as we write
and revise• Multiple purposes in one piece of writing, but
a dominant one will probably emerge
Means of Persuasion
• Ethos• Logos• Pathos
Ethos = credibility
• What counts as credibility differs among groups of people
• O'Keefe (1990) defined credibility as "judgments made by a perceiver concerning the believability of a communicator"
• In other words “credibility is in the eye of the beholder”
• The two most important elements in establishing credibility are expertise and trustworthiness
Credibility is subject to change over time
What will compromise your credibility in the short and long term?
• A single spelling error on a resume of cover letter could seriously undermine your competitiveness in applying for an internship or job.
Two kinds of credibility
Extrinsic: what people know about you before they read your work or
hear you speak
Intrinsic: what we do within a communication setting through our
actions.
Putting ethos to work in your writing• Know your material• Cite evidence (Reinard, J.C. (1988) Human Communication Research,
15,3-59).
• Share your interest, experience, and expertise• Have your reader’s best interest in mind• Identify similarities with your reader• If you lack extrinsic credibility increase your reader’s
involvement with the topic, which will help focus them on the topic more than the messenger (Petty and
Cacioppa, 1986).