Question

1) What does it mean to say that “appeals to ethos are self-evident”? What does this idea require from you as a speaker?

2. Current research in psychology and sociology says that people are generally close-minded and resist persuasion. Listeners are more persuadable when they hear about an issue for the first time or if they haven’t made up their minds yet. What do you think about this conclusion?

3.Given this research, do you think that trying to persuade people is worthwhile or pointless? Defend your answers with ideas from the chapter and use examples to illustrate.

Answer 1

1. Appeal to ethos is self-evident means to speak in public in a manner that favors the likes and dislikes of the audience and not something controversial or against their views. This is a normal stand that is taken by most of the speakers whether in a public or private meeting. A decision to appeal against ethos is taken only when the idea to be expressed in a genuine one yet controversial.
2. It is a fact. Human beings have always been egoistic and the "ID" factor in each of us keeps on increasing as the years pass by. In the current world, we know that the internet and media have made a vast ocean of knowledge easily accessible to the public. This has made us even more resistant to persuasion as we feel from sources that we have many people who think in the same way and there is no need to be persuaded unless the subject is one that we have never thought of or had a discussion/research on the same.
3. Persuading people is always worthwhile as it helps to bring a change in the way we think. It is practically a very much difficult task which doesn't mean to stop working on persuasion. Even today we have idols whose ideas have persuaded us a lot and have brought necessary changes in life despite the persuasion resistance. One of the recent examples of persuasion is the effectiveness of wearing masks during this pandemic crisis. None of us were persuaded by this fact until WHO and other health experts came out with facts that changed our persuasion manner.