Pathos Analysis

Words: 1597
Pages: 7

Rachel Thomas Alan Silvidi English Composition II 26 February 2024 Pathos Prevails When people step into a grocery store and put their favorite animal products in their cart, most do not consider the implications and consequences of their purchase. Many attempt to bring awareness to the controversy through arguments over the morality, benefits, and dangers of the animal agriculture industry. Some take a scientific approach, detailing specifics and data points, whereas others focus more on ethical and philosophical qualms. In “Meat in a Sustainable Food System,” Muchenje et al. take the former, with science supporting the primary argument to advocate for change in animal agriculture. Contrastly, in “A Philosophical Appraisal of the Rights Theory …show more content…
In “Sustainable Food Systems,” Muchenje et al. write many statements along the lines of “According to the FAO (2003)” and “Cashman & Hayes (2017) reported that” (820). The direct citations and explanations of over ninety references in a seven-page paper are impressive. The article heavily relies on concrete information and science to make sure that they effectively convey their point, that change is necessary in the animal agriculture industry. Moreover, “A Philosophical Appraisal” also heavily relies on ethos, as shown through statements like “According to evolutionary theory” and “Tom Regan in the Case for Animal Rights argues that” (Edor and Bassey 171 and 166). With twenty-seven references in an eleven-page article, it is clear that Edor and Bassey also heavily rely on evidence and credibility in making their argument. While many of Muchenje et al.’s sources are scientific studies, less of Edor and Bassey’s are scientific, with the majority of the essay focusing on philosophical theories. Regardless of the nature of the sources, both articles rely on ethos to effectively convey their similar calls for change in the …show more content…
Essentially, the more passionate and personable tone illustrated by Edor and Bassey more effectively engages the reader than the more scientific tone implemented by Muchenje et al. Furthermore, “Sustainable Food System” lacks much appeal to emotion, a strong element that contributes to the effectiveness of “A Philosophical Appraisal.” For example, in “A Philosophical Appraisal,” Edor and Bassey include statements like “Animals should not be made to suffer” and “animals who suffer terribly” (166 and 167). These, and similar statements, are meant to appeal to the emotions of the reader, evoking feelings of guilt and sadness that help contribute to the effectiveness of advocating for change. Furthermore, the humanization of the animals throughout the essay, as seen through the choice of “who” instead of “that” in the previous quotation, further contributes to pathos. A further example of evoking feelings of sadness in the article is in the statement “the flesh of dead animals tastes nice” (Edor and Bassey