Final answer:
Pathos appeals to emotions and is highly effective with audiences inclined towards emotional responses. Ethos, involving credibility, is key when authority and trust are needed. Logos relies on logic and reason, ideal for arguments requiring factual evidence and logical conclusions.
Step-by-step explanation:
Pathos, ethos, and logos are rhetorical strategies used to persuade an audience. Pathos appeals to the audience's emotions, ethos establishes the speaker's credibility and appeals to ethics, and logos applies logic and reason to convince an audience.
Ethos is most influential when a speaker or writer needs to establish trust and authority on a subject to persuade an audience. For example, referring to one's expertise about local pizzerias as a means to persuade others to choose a particular restaurant. Pathos affects an audience by evoking emotions such as happiness from tasting good pizza or anxiety from not wanting to miss out on a group activity. It may also evoke feelings of responsibility for a community business's success. Logos appeals to an audience's sense of reason by presenting facts, such as a restaurant's affordability or the advantage of having leftovers, to make a logical argument.
Including different persuasive strategies can be more effective, especially in a culturally sensitive context. For example, in Western civilization, ethos, logos, and pathos are primary strategies of persuasion, while Eastern civilizations may rely more on promoting social responsibility and unity.
Identifying the general purpose of a speech or writing is crucial. One must understand the audience to effectively use rhetorical devices. Knowing when to use these appeals can greatly improve the persuasiveness of speech or writing.