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Motifs
Definition of Pathos
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Pathos is an argument that appeals to... read full definition
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Pathos is... read full definition
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective... read full definition
Book 1, Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Protestant Sympathies:
In the following excerpt from Book 1, Chapter 1, Bradford uses pathos to draw out the sympathy of the reading audience to the Protestant cause, describing crimes committed against his fellow church members:
Religion has been disgraced, the godly grieved, afflicted, persecuted, and many exiled, while others have lost their lives in prisons and other ways; on the other hand, sin has been countenanced, ignorance, profanity, and atheism have increased, and the papists have been encouraged to hope again for a day.
In this excerpt, Bradford uses deliberately emotional, inflammatory language to paint a picture of the Puritans as an afflicted and persecuted group. He goes so far as to state that the dominant religious group is a disgrace. Those who persecute the Puritans are allied with "atheism" and "ignorance," appearing as heathens when compared to those they oppress. However warranted this portrayal of the papists may be, it is nonetheless a technique used by Bradford to establish pathos. In using such language to compare the Puritans to their oppressors, Bradford establishes a dichotomy that places the Puritans' beliefs and methods beyond reproach. Bradford and his fellow congregation members are martyrs for their cause; and through the device of pathos, Bradford places their colonial expansion efforts in a positive light.
Related Themes:
