Free Ethos, Pathos, Logos Handouts

 

I have always been a huge fan of Queen Elizabeth I's speech meant to encourage her troops to fight an inevitable invasion by the Spanish Armada in 1588. Besides being fascinated by the royal "we" and all that entailed, I found the speech a model for persuasive techniques. Take this example:

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“Let tyrants fear. I have always so behaved myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and good-will of my subjects. And therefore I am come amongst you, as you see, at this time, not for my recreation or disport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live and die amongst you all."

What better example of ethos, or establishing yourself as a person of character, trust and integrity, could there be? She made herself appear strong, unafraid, loyal and at one with the people all at the same time. I used this example, and two other examples of famous speeches to demonstrate ethos, pathos and logos on these free handouts. Copy them and pass them out to your students, or use them as transparencies while teaching.

Click on the pictures below or the cover above to download the file.

Each one has an illustration (by the fabulous Brennyn Carmen), an explanation and example. These handouts are included in my persuasive writing unit, but they stand alone for many purposes. I hope you find them useful!

Writing a Persuasive Essay Unit

I finally completed the full unit for writing a persuasive essay! It's amazing that it takes me as long as it does, because everything there is what I already use in the classroom. I'm learning that I'm not nearly as organized as I think I am. When units develop over time, I have a file here, a file there, and most of the files in my head! I make these units to benefit other teachers, but I probably benefit more than anyone, because now all my stuff is in one place.

I used the pre-writing exercise in my class last night for a slightly different purpose, but it was as fun as ever. Even my students who are terrified to speak in front of the class participated enthusiastically. I told them they were about the be shipwrecked on an island and could only grab one bag of supplies. I laid out three items for each of three bags, and told them the problem was that two other people were with them and they each wanted a different bag. The task was to convince the other two, using ethos, pathos and logos, why they should choose the bag you wanted. It was hilarious, especially when they tried to establish pathos, or using emotion.

I asked one guy, who I know has serious anxiety issues about speaking in front of the class, how it was for him, because he seemed perfectly calm and he said, "Well, the subject matter was so interesting, and I wanted to have my say, so I just didn't think about being nervous." Score.