IXL | Use appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos in persuasive writing

Which statement primarily appeals to pathos, or emotion, to support the position that the most important skill that employees must learn is the ability to work in a team?

Granted, individual talent plays a role in a person's professional success, but I would argue that cooperation and teamwork are even more important since most jobs require us to work effectively with others.

The greatest genius may be of little worth, even unemployable, if his collaborative skills are lacking.

ref_doc_title.

Learn with an example

question

Which statement primarily appeals to pathos, or emotion, to support the position that hospitals should serve more nutritious food?

A patient can hardly be expected to experience better health after eating a plate of french fries so oily they leave grease spots on the bedsheets.

While it's true that healthier food can be costly, a hospital that serves more nutritious meals will get a return on its investment in the form of better patient outcomes.

key idea

The purpose of many writing tasks is to persuade readers. To accomplish this purpose, writers use persuasive strategies, or appeals. These appeals can be divided into three categories:

Appeals to ethos, or character, emphasize trustworthiness, credibility, or values shared with the audience. A writer can do this by

mentioning personal or professional credentials;
drawing on the established reputation of a person, institution, or brand;
establishing common ground with the audience.

Appeals to logos, or reason, use logic or verifiable data. A writer can do this by

citing relevant and credible statistics, facts, or studies;
explaining the logical chain of reasoning that supports a claim;
anticipating and refuting potential counterclaims.

Appeals to pathos, or emotion, attempt to activate the audience's emotions. A writer can do this by

citing dramatic stories about specific individuals;
appealing to emotions such as fear, guilt, anger, pity, or desire;
choosing words with strong connotations;
using descriptive language to create powerful images.

solution

The first statement is the correct answer. It appeals to pathos, or emotion, by evoking a strong visual image (a plate of french fries so oily they leave grease spots on the bedsheets).

A patient can hardly be expected to experience better health after eating a plate of french fries so oily they leave grease spots on the bedsheets.

The second statement appeals to logos, or reason, by anticipating a potential counterargument (While it's true that . . .).

While it's true that healthier food can be costly, a hospital that serves more nutritious meals will get a return on its investment in the form of better patient outcomes.

$Confetti$

Excellent!

Now entering the Challenge Zone—are you ready?

Questions
answeredQuestions

Time
elapsedTime

hr	min	sec
00	00	06

SmartScore
out of 100
IXL's SmartScore is a dynamic measure of progress towards mastery, rather than a percentage grade. It tracks your skill level as you tackle progressively more difficult questions. Consistently answer questions correctly to reach excellence (90), or conquer the Challenge Zone to achieve mastery (100)! Learn more

Teacher tools

Work it out

Not feeling ready yet? This can help:

L.1Identify appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos in advertisements

Excellent! You got that right!

Jumping to level 1 of 1

Excellent!