To a higher class of people, including kings or chieftains, he spoke respectfully and gave reasons for his admonition to not take off just yet. Logos. But when he was speaking to common men, he mainly rebuked them and scared them into obeying. Pathos.
I am comparing “Rome” in the title to the goal of persuading the host of people to not flee back to Greece in their ships. I observed that Ulysses used two different techniques of rhetoric to persuade the host of people to not take their ships out to sea. In other words, he used two different roads to lead the host of people to Rome.
I think that good communicators always understand this technique. If you know who your audience is, you can adapt your rhetoric to convey your message in a way to which that audience will respond positively.
When have you communicated a message or meaning to different types of people in different ways?
I must agree that the most effective way to convey a message (whether similar parts of the same message, or an entirely new message) is to adapt word choice to the varying levels demanded of logos, pathos, and ethos. This might even differ from individual to individual, or from group to group. Oftentimes, one given field will prove more useful than another.
ReplyDeleteOne prevalent example of this from my own life came from when I was on my mission in Japan. Though most of the nation is comprised of the Japanese, there were also many Brazilians, Peruvians, and Filipinos. Among these different ethnic groups were also members and non-members. A member of the Church was not taught in the same way that a non-member was, and a Japanese person was (generally) more prone to listen to appeals to logos, rather than the pathos so effective with non-Japanese residents.
Right on point. Understanding one's audience is critical for effective persuasion. The wrong appeal to the wrong person would result in failed persuasion. Ulysses was wise to ensure he used a respectful logos appeal to those of high rank as they would not be as easily swayed by passion and feeling. Whereas the more common people were definitely more subject to persuasion via pathos. This point is even more clearly illustrated with you personal, halcyon anecdote - although for me, dad needed a reason and mom needed a hug.
ReplyDeleteExcellent observations!
This all goes back to knowing your audience. I too have, and the most of us, have done the same thing with our parents, changing our approach when we want something. I think this applies to everybody in any situation. For example, asking for help from a friend may be different than asking for help from professor. Our approach and reasonings would be different.
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