2. Three Categories
of ethos
• phronesis - practical skills & wisdom
• arete - virtue, goodness (disinterest)
• eunoia -goodwill towards the audience
3. Phronesis
Convincing an audience that your are average, plain-spoken,
and similar to them. You demonstrate that you
are capable of applying good sense to a problem, not just
education and knowledge.
4. Phronesis
This moment in American history demands honesty and
leadership. Ultimately we are all in this together. By
working together, we can restore optimism in the
business community and grow this economy by
controlling spending and enacting common sense
reforms.
John King -- Republican Member of Congress
5. Phronesis
"It was a highly inconvenient thing for them in our
debates that I was just a country boy from Arkansas and I
came from a place where people still thought two and
two was four."
(Bill Clinton, speech at the Democratic National
Convention, 2012)
6. Arete
The Greeks would have thought of this as moral excellence
(i.e someone who is virtuous and honest), but now it can
mean any kind of excellence (knowledge, experience, skill).
!
!
7. Arete
But for those making more than $1 million — there were
236,883 such households in 2009 — I would raise rates
immediately on taxable income in excess of $1 million,
including, of course, dividends and capital gains. And for
those who make $10 million or more — there were 8,274
in 2009 — I would suggest an additional increase in rate.
!
My friends and I have been coddled long enough by a
billionaire-friendly Congress. It’s time for our government
to get serious about shared sacrifice.
!
Warren Buffett
9. Eunoia
Demonstrating that you have good will, positive feelings
and a genuine desire for your audience’s well-being.
10. Eunoia
And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of
America who were watching the live coverage of the
shuttle's take-off. I know it's hard to understand, but
sometimes painful things like this happen. It's all part of the
process of exploration and discovery. It's all part of taking a
chance and expanding man's horizons. The future doesn't
belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The
Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we'll
continue to follow them.
!
Ronald Reagan
The Space Shuttle "Challenger" Tragedy Address
delivered 28 January 1986
12. If you could master one element of
personal communications that is
more powerful than anything we’ve
discussed, it is the quality of being
likeable. I call it the magic bullet,
because if your audience likes you,
they’ll forgive just about anything
else you do wrong. If they don’t like
you, you can hit every rule on target
and it doesn’t matter.
!
--Roger Ailes
16. Using references that a
general audience believes
are innocuous but that
signal certain groups that
you are one of them.
Dog Whistling
17. Mitt Romney, not one of
us.
!
--Ad from President
Obama
Dog Whistling
18. "We are part of an Anglo-Saxon
heritage, ...The White House
didn't fully appreciate the shared
history we have."
!
--Aide to Gov. Romney
Dog Whistling
23. "According to Aristotle, rhetors can
invent a character suitable to an
occasion--this is invented ethos.
However, if rhetors are fortunate
enough to enjoy a good reputation
in the community, they can use it as
an ethical proof--this is situated
ethos."
!
(Sharon Crowley and Debra
Hawhee)
