rhetorical appeals

Kenean Fisseha
Period 6th Mr. Caulfield
1/9/14
The death of Caesar caused the citizens’ of Rome to really question whose side they agree on. They were torn between Brutus’s and Mark Antony’s eulogy. When Brutus made his speech he often used the ethos and logos to convince the romans into believing killing Caesar was for the benefit of the roman people. When Brutus said, “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more” -22 He was appealing to ethos because he was proving that his did what was right for the country. Brutus’s also said, “Had you rather Caesar were living, and die all slaves, that Caesar were dead, to live all free men?” which appeals to logos because his is making a logical statement that says Caesar’s death was for the best to Rome’s men freedom. At the end Brutus appeals pathos by saying, “who is there so vile that will not love his country? If any, speak; for him have I offended” Brutus tells the Roman citizen that Caesar deserved what he got because he was too ambitious and would eventually become a much powerful ruler and would make the romans his slave.
Mark Antony used the three persuasion tools to turn the roman crowd against Brutus. The most convincing use of ethos in Antony’s speech is in the first line of the speech; “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!” This shows that Mark Antony is trying to get in to the Roman crowd’s hearts. He uses rhetorical irony throughout the speech constantly questioning the ethos of Brutus. “When that the poor cried, Caesar hath wept; ambition should be made of sterner stuff: yet Brutus is an honorable man.” Mark Antony repeats the phrase “yet Brutus is an honorable man” then he says logical statement that proofs Caesar did nothing wrong. Which led the crowd to turn on Brutus, without Antony actually saying that what Brutus did was wrong. Mark Antony uses a lot of facts throughout the course of his speech. One of the key facts in his initial speech is; “When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept.”