Application Paper free essay sample

Thank You for Smoking In Hcom 100, Professor Zamora showed the movie called â€Å"Thank You for Smoking†. This movie had many examples relating to the terms ethos, logos, and pathos, which were also taught in class. There are people who tend to believe people whom they respect this concept goes under the theme ethos. The Greek character for ethos refers to the credibility of the writer or speaker. In other words it is the amount of respectability of the person that determines whether they are heard or not. The next term is logos, which is the means of persuading by the use of reasoning. Logos refers to the internal consistency of the message. This usually means the clarity of the claim, the logic of its reasons, and the effectiveness of its supporting evidence. Pathos on the other hand is often associated with an emotional appeal. The term means persuading by appealing to the reader’s emotions. All these terms are were used by Nick Naylor in the movie â€Å"Thank You for Smoking†. He was able to use all three of these terms very well. For example when he uses the statement â€Å"Michael Jordan plays ball, Charles Manson kills people, and I talk everyone has a talent. † In this statement he was able to use logos. Nick Naylor was able to explain why he was give reasoning to why he was good at what he does without actually. The next example also has to do with logos. Nick Naylor in the movie is explaining to his son how being right in an argument doesn’t necessarily mean he has to be right, he has to just convince the audience that the other person is wrong. â€Å".. If it is your job to be right, then you’re never wrong. He uses the example of ice cream and the goal was to defend vanilla ice cream, he then says â€Å"well, i need more than chocolate. And for that matter, I need more than vanilla. I believe that we need freedom and choice when it comes to our ice cream, and that, Joey Naylor, that is the definition of liberty. † In this example his clarity of the claim he is trying to pro ve is crystal clear. Nick Naylor is able to defend vanilla ice cream by just stating the fact that people need more than just chocolate and vanilla ice cream, thus proving the point that chocolate ice cream isn’t the best ice cream. The next example has to do with the same concept as the first example, but Nick Naylor uses a different tactic. Lorne Lutch asks Nick Naylor â€Å"You look like a nice fella. What are you doing working for these assholes? † Nick Naylor then proceeds to say â€Å"I’m good at it. I’m better at doing this than I ever was at doing anything else. † When Nick Naylor responds to Lorne Lutch’s question he uses pathos. By using emotion he draws in Lorne Lutch when telling him why he likes his job. This technique is also used when he is talking about his son during the testimony. Senator Lothridge asks Nick Naylor â€Å" Now as we discussed earlier these warning labels are not for those who know but rather for those who don’t know, what about the children? † Nick Naylor then responded with â€Å" Education†¦I doesn’t come off a†¦carton. It comes from†¦more importantly our parents. I look at my son †¦ and can’t help but think that I am responsible for his growth and his development†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he is able to askew from the question asked and involves his own child to give emotion to his response. It is hard for Nick Naylor to use the technique ethos because nobody respects him for what he does. â€Å"Nick Naylor, the lead spokesman for bug tobacco, would have you believe he thinks cigarettes are harmless. But really he’s doing it for the mortgage. † This quote was taken from the newspaper article that was written about him in the movie. In this article Nick Naylor is described as a person that should not be respected for what his does because he is killing people on the daily. Another great technique Nick Naylor uses in the movie â€Å"Thank You for Smoking† is a nonverbal style. Throughout all of the interviews, meetings, and the testimony he had gone through he was relaxed and was able to state what he had to say without acting out. From finding out that his boss wanted him to go bribe a dying man with a suitcase of cash to keep quiet on the subject of his recent lung cancer to testifying in front of many people about how cigarette cartons shouldn’t have a warning label, he is calm, cool, and collected. This makes Nick Naylor look like he knows what he is talking about and very confident that what he is saying is true. Many people may think that the character Nick Naylor’s profession is unethical. The term ethical is defined as relating to moral principles or the branch of knowledge dealing with these. In other words it is being morally correct, but then the question of what is morally correct surfaces. The definition of moral is being concerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior and the goodness or badness of a human character. So is Nick Naylor’s profession ethical? In a sense it is not ethical. He knows that what he is trying to sell to America is harmful and could kill you, but he does it anyways because it is his job. Now if the question of, Nick Naylor being morally correct was asked I would have to say that he is. He manipulates his language in a manner so that he is not lying which means he is morally correct. So as long as you are not lying I believe that it is okay to use the same language as he did to persuade the audience of what is supposed to be proven. Even though persuasion is not ethical or morally correct a person can still be ethical while doing it.