Ethos, Pathos, Logos Vs. Your Parents

As an Adult:  As you approach graduation in less than two years, you will continue your growth towards becoming a mature adult…probably.  That being the case, you will likely continue to engage in arguments/discussions with your parents regarding your freedoms and rights.  In order to be more mature and by default more successful, you need to present your side of a situation in a way that appeals to an adult mindset. In other words, you need to address all three levels: ethos, pathos, and logos.

Assignment:  Write your parents a properly formatted business letter that asks them for something you are almost certain they will have to say “no” to because, well, they’re likely just being good parents.

Reminder:  Ethos: An appeal based on the character of a person. What have YOU done that should make your parents want to say yes. Why should they trust YOU?  Pathos: An appeal to emotion. What are the types of situations/ideas that upset your parents? What are the types that make them happy or surprise them in a positive way?  Logos: An appeal to logic. If you consider their arguments as valid, what would be a logical way to state your point of view? How can you present your idea in a reasonable way? How can you compromise?

Practice: -First Brainstorm: What is something you would like to be able to do (Ex: Spring Break in Vegas/Road Trip with friends) or what is something you would like to ask them for (Ex: New car/New computer) that probably deserves an instant “no.” Your request must 1) be school appropriate and 2) be realistic (Bad Example: “Mom, Can I please rob a bank this weekend?”) -Do this now.  Next, state the problem/situation at the top of your paper.  Add three bullets, one for each: ethos, pathos, and logos and leave about ten lines blank between each.  Begin a paragraph (based on your essay structure: TS, CD, CM, CM, CS) for each and argue your point.  Remember that your best argument has to be one that comes from you trying to anticipate what they will say, what their point of view is. If they are putting ethos, pathos, and logos back on you, what would they say?

Peer Editing:  Trade papers with one teammate and edit the paragraph on Ethos/Appeal to Character. -Look for grammar and spelling errors. -What suggestions can you make regarding their appeal to character?  Trade papers again and edit the paragraph on Pathos/Appeal to Emotions. -Look for grammar and spelling errors. -What suggestions can you make regarding their appeal to emotions?  Trade papers again and edit the paragraph on Logos/Appeal to logic. -Look for grammar and spelling errors. -What suggestions can you make regarding their appeal to logic? * Trade papers again and this time edit all paragraphs looking for mistakes in the ten “Basic Rules” on the back of your essay rubric. Once this is complete, we will move on to putting it into a business letter format.

Why do we need to write letters?:  Writing letters is definitely an old-fashioned way to correspond with people.  As such, it is often seen as more appropriate, professional, and mature.  Additionally, given the nature of electronic correspondence, it is not as easily discarded.  Whether you are simply saying thank you, you are complaining, or you are writing for praise, actual paper letters and cards are powerful.

Make it a business letter:  How should it look?:  *Single spaced  *Left justified  *Called a “block style” letter, because blocks of information are separated by spaces, otherwise everything is single-spaced  Evenly spaced top to bottom

 Your street address  City, State and Zip (no comma after state abbreviation)  blank lines depending on centering   Date  blank line  Name of contact person, his/her title (If short, on the same line/If lengthy, give it a separate line)  Name of company  Company street address  City, State and Zip (no comma after state abbreviation)  blank line  Dear ___________:  blank line

 The first paragraph is actually just a sentence that announces the purpose of your letter.  blank line  Second paragraph about ethos.  blank line  Third paragraph about pathos.  blank line  Fourth paragraph about logos  blank line  Fifth paragraph explaining what you will do to follow up.  blank line  Sincerely,   blank lines (signature here)   Type name