Whether you’re conscious of it or not, you’ve likely encountered numerous instances of pathos today. Pathos, at its core, is a persuasive technique that aims to evoke strong emotions in an audience. When skillfully employed, pathos can be a potent tool to inspire action, sway opinions, and forge connections.
Diving Deeper: What is Pathos?
The term “pathos” originates from the Greek word páthos, encompassing meanings like “experience,” “suffering,” or “emotion.” The foundational concept of pathos was formalized by the renowned Greek philosopher Aristotle in his seminal work Rhetoric. Within this text, Aristotle outlined pathos alongside two other crucial modes of persuasion: ethos (appealing to credibility) and logos (appealing to logic), and also touched upon kairos (appealing to timing).
While tapping into an audience’s emotions can be incredibly effective in persuasive communication and writing, relying solely on pathos presents certain risks. An over-reliance on emotional appeals can lead to arguments that lack logical support (logos) or credible backing (ethos). Furthermore, the strategic use of kairos – choosing the opportune moment and appropriate tone – can significantly amplify the impact of pathos within a message.
Consider this scenario: Imagine moving to a new neighborhood where you’re unfamiliar with anyone. You might receive a welcome message from a local community group stating, “Welcome to the Neighborhood! Join us at the community center to meet your new neighbors!” This message is often accompanied by an image depicting people interacting and enjoying activities together.
In this example, the neighborhood group utilizes kairos by timing their message to coincide with your recent relocation. It subtly addresses potential feelings of isolation or loneliness (pathos) that might accompany a move. Simultaneously, the image aims to evoke positive emotions associated with social connection and community (also pathos).
The Strategic Use of Pathos
While pathos is a powerful tool, employing it in isolation to persuade your audience can be limiting. Over-reliance on pathos might suggest that your argument lacks substance, factual evidence, or rational reasoning – potentially indicating a logical fallacy. It could also imply a lack of expertise or credibility (ethos) on the subject matter.
When not balanced with logos and ethos, pathos can even veer into manipulation. For instance, someone presenting an argument lacking logical foundation or expertise might resort to fabricated or misleading details to manipulate an audience’s emotions and sway their opinions.
Pathos in Writing: Connecting with Your Readers
Whether you are crafting a compelling argumentative essay, writing persuasive advertising copy for your business, or developing a relatable character in a fictional narrative, pathos can be instrumental in establishing a profound emotional connection with your readers.
Pathos can serve as a powerful plot device, enabling you to develop an antagonist’s character arc in a way that evokes empathy from readers, even for seemingly unlikeable personalities. It can also be used to depict scenarios or situations in a manner that resonates deeply with readers’ personal experiences and emotions.
The application of pathos spans across various writing styles, both creative and professional. It proves effective in fiction, poetry, playwriting, and screenwriting. In non-fiction and professional contexts, pathos can enrich political speeches, memoirs, opinion pieces, and even legal arguments presented in a courtroom.
Essentially, any form of writing that incorporates vivid descriptions, carefully chosen words, or relatable anecdotes to elicit specific feelings from the audience is harnessing the power of pathos.
Examples of Pathos Across Different Forms of Writing
Let’s explore some compelling examples of pathos in different writing genres:
Pathos in Poetry
“And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”
—Dylan Thomas, “Do not go gentle into that good night”
In Dylan Thomas’s poignant poem, readers are drawn into the poet’s deep grief as he implores his dying father to resist death. The powerful imagery and emotionally charged word choices immerse the reader in a feeling of shared grief, fostering empathy for the pain associated with losing a loved one.
Pathos in Fiction
“O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name.
Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love
And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
’Tis but thy name that is my enemy:
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What’s Montague? It is nor hand nor foot
Nor arm nor face nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O be some other name.
What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name, which is no part of thee,
Take all myself.”
—William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet
In Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy, Juliet’s monologue beautifully expresses her unwavering love for Romeo, despite the bitter feud between their families. The audience deeply feels Juliet’s yearning for a love that is forbidden, and are left with feelings of sorrow and devastation for the ill-fated protagonists as they witness their affection, secret marriage, and eventual tragic suicides.
Pathos in Speeches
“I have a dream that one day down in Alabama with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, one day right down in Alabama little Black boys and Black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today.”
—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “I Have a Dream”
Dr. King’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech powerfully articulates the hardships and injustices faced by Black Americans during the Civil Rights Movement. Through his masterful use of language, including powerful diction and rhetorical devices like repetition, Dr. King successfully resonated with his audience’s emotions, inspiring them to action and hope.
Pathos FAQs
What exactly is pathos?
Pathos is a mode of persuasion centered around appealing to the emotions of an audience. In argumentative contexts, it aims to evoke feelings such as pity, sadness, sympathy, anger, or joy to influence the audience.
What is the primary purpose of pathos?
The main goal of pathos is to persuade an audience to take a specific action or adopt a particular viewpoint by connecting with them on an emotional level. This persuasive technique is widely employed in various fields, including marketing, writing, public speaking, debates, and everyday communication.
In what contexts is pathos utilized in writing?
Pathos in writing is achieved through careful word choice (diction), relatable personal stories (anecdotes), and vivid, emotionally evocative examples. It is frequently and effectively used in diverse forms of writing, such as literature, memoirs, poetry, songwriting, scriptwriting, and plays, as well as in persuasive non-fiction.
