The Art of Persuasion · Autumn Term

Rhetorical Devices and Ethos

Identifying and applying classical rhetorical strategies to establish authority and credibility in writing.

About This Topic

Rhetoric is the art of using language to persuade, and at Year 10, students study how writers establish ethos (credibility), pathos (emotion), and logos (logic). This topic focuses on the classical foundations of persuasion, looking at how speakers and writers build trust with an audience before delivering a call to action. Students analyze how authority is constructed through tone, vocabulary, and the strategic use of personal anecdotes.

Understanding ethos is particularly relevant in a modern world filled with competing voices and 'fake news'. Students learn to deconstruct how a persona is created on the page and why certain rhetorical devices, like anaphora or the rule of three, are so effective at making an argument feel authoritative. This topic comes alive when students can physically model the patterns of persuasive speech and test their impact on a live audience.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze how specific rhetorical devices, such as anaphora and the rule of three, contribute to establishing ethos in persuasive texts.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of different strategies used by writers to build credibility and authority with a skeptical audience.
• Compare and contrast the use of logical appeals (logos) and emotional appeals (pathos) in conjunction with ethos to achieve persuasion.
• Create a short persuasive speech or written piece that intentionally applies rhetorical strategies to establish a trustworthy persona.

Before You Start

Introduction to Persuasive Language

Why: Students need a foundational understanding of persuasive techniques before analyzing more complex rhetorical strategies.

Identifying Tone and Purpose in Texts

Why: Recognizing the author's tone and purpose is essential for understanding how they construct a persona and appeal to an audience.

Key Vocabulary

Ethos	The ethical appeal, referring to the credibility, trustworthiness, or authority of the speaker or writer. It is how the audience perceives the persuader.
Anaphora	The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences. It can create emphasis and a sense of urgency.
Logos	The appeal to logic and reason. It involves using facts, statistics, and evidence to support an argument.
Pathos	The appeal to emotion. It involves evoking feelings in the audience to persuade them.
Persona	The character or voice that a writer or speaker adopts to present themselves to an audience. It is constructed through language and tone.

Active Learning Ideas

Mock Trial: The Credibility Test

Students are given a controversial scenario and must role-play as different 'experts' (e.g., a scientist, a concerned parent, a politician). The class must vote on who was most persuasive based solely on how they established their 'ethos' or authority.

⏱ 45 min·Whole Class

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Inquiry Circle: Rhetoric Scavenger Hunt

In small groups, students analyze three famous speeches from different eras. They must find and label examples of ethos, pathos, and logos, then present which device was the 'anchor' for that specific speaker's argument.

⏱ 30 min·Small Groups

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Think-Pair-Share: The Power of Anaphora

Students write one sentence about a cause they care about. They then work in pairs to turn that sentence into a three-line anaphoric opening. They share both versions with another pair to discuss which one feels more urgent.

⏱ 20 min·Pairs

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Real-World Connections

Political speechwriters craft arguments for candidates, carefully selecting language and rhetorical devices to build trust with voters and convey authority on policy issues.

Advertisers use ethos, pathos, and logos in commercials and print ads to convince consumers to purchase products, often by featuring celebrity endorsements or expert testimonials.

Journalists writing investigative pieces must establish credibility with readers by citing sources, presenting balanced evidence, and maintaining an objective tone to be seen as trustworthy.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

Persuasion is just about having the best facts (logos).

What to Teach Instead

Without ethos (trust), an audience will often ignore the facts. Using role-play where students try to give advice while acting as an 'unreliable' character helps them realize that who is speaking is often as important as what is being said.

Common Misconception

Rhetorical devices are only for old-fashioned speeches.

What to Teach Instead

Rhetoric is used in everything from social media ads to modern political blogs. A 'Modern Media' gallery walk where students identify devices in current advertisements helps them see the enduring power of these techniques.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

Present students with a short excerpt from a political speech or opinion piece. Ask them to identify one instance of ethos being established and explain how the writer achieved it using specific words or phrases.

Discussion Prompt

Pose the question: 'How might a writer's personal background or stated values influence an audience's perception of their credibility?' Facilitate a class discussion exploring the nuances of ethos.

Peer Assessment

Students draft a paragraph aiming to persuade a specific audience on a given topic. They then exchange paragraphs with a partner, answering: 'Does the writer establish a trustworthy persona? What specific words or phrases help or hinder this?'

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between ethos, pathos, and logos?

Ethos is an appeal to ethics or credibility (why should I trust you?). Pathos is an appeal to emotion (how do you make me feel?). Logos is an appeal to logic (does your argument make sense?). A balanced argument usually uses a combination of all three.

How can I teach students to use rhetorical devices in their own writing?

Start with 'sentence starters' or frames. Give them the first word of an anaphoric sequence and have them finish it. Peer-review sessions where students highlight devices in each other's work are also highly effective for reinforcing these skills.

How can active learning help students understand rhetorical devices?

Active learning, like performing speeches or engaging in 'persuasion battles', allows students to hear the impact of rhetoric. When they hear the rhythm of a well-placed triplet or the weight of a rhetorical question in a real-time debate, the concepts move from the textbook to the 'real world'.

Why is ethos important in non-fiction writing?

Ethos establishes the writer's right to speak on a subject. If a writer sounds biased, uneducated, or aggressive, the reader is likely to reject their message. Discussing how writers use 'we' to create a sense of shared identity is a great way to explore this in class.