Persuasive Techniques

Front 1

Emotional Appeal (pathos)

Back 1

Writers may appeal to fear, anger or joy to sway their readers. They may also add climax or excitement. This technique is strongly connected to the essay's mood.

Front 2

Ethical Appeal (ethos)

Back 2

Writer creates a sense of him or
herself as trustworthy and credible by being fair,
open-minded, honest

Front 3

Logical Appeal

Back 3

Using logic, numbers, facts, data,
surveys, studies, and other research to persuade.

Front 4

Rhetorical Question

Back 4

Sometimes a writer will ask a question to which no answer is required. The writer implies that the answer is obvious; the reader has no choice but to agree

Front 5

Repetition/Parallelism

Back 5

Repetition, when used
sparingly, can reinforce the writer's message
and/or entertain the reader. Writers may repeat a word, a phrase or an entire sentence for emphasis. When an author creates a "balanced" sentence by reusing the same word structure, this is called parallelism.

Front 6

Figurative Language

Back 6

This tool is not limited to poets. Essay writers often use figures of speech (personification, hyperbole, irony) or comparisons (simile, metaphor, analogies) for desired emphasis.

Front 7

Testimonial

Back 7

A writer may mention an important event or quote a person in an essay to lend importance or credibility to his/her argument. (Use of a celebrity or public figure)

Front 8

Bandwagon

Back 8

Persuade people to do something
by letting them know others are all doing it.

Front 9

Word Choice

Back 9

Is a person "slim" or "skinny"? Is
an oil spill an "incident" or an "accident"? Writers
tend to reinforce their arguments by choosing
words which will influence their reader's
perception of an item or issue. Diction may also
help to establish a writer's "Voice" or "Tone".

Front 10

Rebuttal

Back 10

Anticipating and challenging a
reader’s possible opposing viewpoint, negating
credibility of the “other side.”