Project Text: Samuel Bermudez

Samuel Bermudez

Amy Reynolds

English 113 B

February 29, 2012

Persuasion Methods

            When we read a newspaper, read a book, or an article online, or even when we are driving along on the freeway and look up and see the bright billboards, someone is trying to convince us to believe a certain fact or idea. Authors try to persuade us by using appeals to ethos, logos, and pathos. In Mary Roach’s article “Bug Heads, rat hair-bon appetite” we find perfect examples of persuasion using the three appeals as Roach tries to convince us that we need to be aware that there are insects, rat hair and rat feces in our food and the  FDA is allowing it.

            In “Bug Heads, rat hair-bon appetite” by Mary Roach, she uses the appeal to pathos in order to get her message to reach the reader. The appeal to pathos when she says “Those five milligrams of rat excreta in a pound of sesame seeds is A-Ok with the FDA.” She writes in a humorous way because she wants the reader to know that she is friendly and therefore ultimately gain the reader’s trust,, which gets the reader’s to pay attention and read carefully. She also uses the phrase “A-OK” in order to relate to her targeted audience of this article, which is the average American Citizen. By using “A-OK” Roach presents herself as a normal average American citizen, this way the reader can relate to her and therefore trust her. In fact many authors tent to try and write a certain way in order to relate to their specific targeted reader. For example Michelle Obama in her article “why I’m Fighting Childhood obesity” She is talking to all parents in America and uses words like “kids”, “we”, “us” and “together” to show the readers that she readers that she is a concerned parent as well. This will make the parents reading this article pay attention since the childhood obesity epidemic can also be affecting her since is a parent as well. Well. WE also see appeal to pathos in Hartocolli’s New York times article “Young, obese and in surgery.” She reports, “She was a B student and in the drama club at school. She had good friends and a boyfriend she had met through facebook. She even showed off her curves in spandex leggings and snug shirts. When her pediatrician, Dr. Senya Vayner, first mentioned weight-loss surgery, Ms. Gofman was 17, still living with her parents in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, her bedroom decorated with glow-in-the dark stars because she was afraid of the dark.” The way the author describes the normal life that this young girl has and then to find out that she needs weight loss surgery makes the reader feel sorry for this young lady, If this description was not presented about the girl the audience might not be as interested. This is one of the methods that authors use to persuade us.

            Mary Roach also uses appeal to logos which is all the data and facts part of her article. For example, she writes, “You would then become sidetracked and further learn that approximately four rodent hairs are allowed in a jar of peanut butter, that an average of 60 thrips are allowed in a 100 grams of frozen broccoli, that 10 grams of hops are allowed to contain 2,500 aphids and that 5 milligrams of rat excreta in a pound of sesame deeds.” This quote is not only informative, but also paints a picture in the reader’s mind, that the insects stated in the are small, so when she says “2,500 aphins are allowed in 10 grams of hops,” I picture a swarm of aphids completely covering the 10 grams of hops. I also picture me eating sesame seeds comfortably and not even noticing that 5 milligrams of what I think are seeds, are actually rat excreta. The thought of it nauseates me and makes me not want to eat a sesame seed ever again. The same imagery created by the appeal to logos can also be found in Healy’s L.A Times article “America just gets fatter” she says “with an obese population of the 19.8%----- it is the only state with an adult obesity rate below 20%---- Colorado remains the caboose on the nation’s huffing, puffing train to fat land.” In this quote the author shows percentages of obesity rates in Colorado and how it’s the only state that has an obesity rate below 20 percent. She uses amusing imagery to describe how that state is the state with lowest obesity rate in order to keep the reader pay attention.

            Another commonly used method to persuade is the appeal of ethos or the appeal to authority. Ethos can be the role of the writer in the argument, and how credible his/her argument is. For example Roach refers to the FDA frequently in her article. She makes it clear that the FDA is responsible for all of the insects and rat remains that are found in all our food. She says that because in her audience’s mind when they think of the FDA they picture a group of people that make sure that they our food is safe to eat but instead, they are all these unwanted pests get on our food. It makes you question the FDA and lose your trust in them which is what Roach precisely wants you to believe. We see appeals to authority in other articles as well for example in Alice parks article “Why we get Fat: Seeking Clues in our cells” They use metabolic and sociologic researchers as the appeal to authority. Alice uses them in her writing for the readers to see that she is credible to gain there trust and persuade them that what the researchers find out is true.

            Authors try to persuade their audience into believing that what they are writing about is right or a good idea. They use appeal to Logos, Ethos, and Pathos to grab the reader’s attention. It is important to understand these methods to persuade your reader as well.

Work Cited

·         Park, Alice. “Why We Get Fat: Seeking Clues in Our Cells- Overcoming Obesity – TIME.” Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews- TIME.com.N.p., 17 Mar. 2010. Web.29 Feb. 2012.

·         Hartocollis, Anemona. “Young.Obese and Getting weight-Loss Surgery – NYTimes.com.” The New York Times- Breaking News, World News & Multimedia.N.p.,7 Jan. 2012. Web 29 Feb. 2012.

·         Hartocollis, Anemona. “Young, Obese and getting weight-loss Surgery –NYTimes.com” The New York Times- Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. N.P., & 7 Jan. 2012 Web. 29 Feb. 2012.

·         Healy, Melissa, and Los Angeles Times. “Obesity: America just keeps getting Fatter, report says – Los Ageles Times.” Featured Articles From The Los Angeles Times. N.p., 7 July 2011. Wen. 29 Feb.2012.