Step 3: Review the rhetorical means of persuasion in the piece
Ethos: argument based in morals or moral character
- Consider the credibility of the artifact.
- What makes it believable and trustworthy?
- Does it follow ethical guidelines?
- Is it well-designed or poorly constructed?
- Who created it?
- Who supports or uses it?
Pathos: argument based in emotions
- Does the artifact employ devices (colors, images, words) that cause an emotional reaction to it?
- Are those devices cultural, historical, political, or idiosyncratic?
- What specific emotions are meant to be evoked and is the artifact successful in evoking them?
Logos: argument based in reason
- What kind of logic or reason is used in the artifact to affect an audience's interpretation?
- Is there an argument being made?
- Are there facts, statistics, or historical references present?
Kairos: fullness of time; the propitious moment for the performance of an action of the coming into being of a new state. (Oxford English Dictionary Online, 2022.)
- Was the artifact created and displayed at the opportune moment?
- If it had been presented at another time and place, would it have been as effective? More? Less?
Topos: a traditional motif or theme; a rhetorical commonplace, a literary convention or formula. (Oxford English Dictionary Online, 2022.)
- How does this artifact fit in with other artifacts of its kind?
- Does it follow convention(s)?
- Where does it break away from them?
- Does it adhere to expectations?
Step 4: Evaluate the design principles used
There are almost infinite principles and concepts to choose from. Focus on the most relevant ones of your artifact.
Basic Design Principles
- Contrast
- Balance
- Emphasis
- Proportion
- Hierarchy
- Repetition
- Rhythm
- Pattern
- White space
- Movement
- Variety
- Unity
Ask Yourself:
- Which of these design principles are being used?
- Why?
- What effect do they have on the viewer?
Aristotle's Three Modes of Persuasion
In Aristotle's The Art of Rhetoric, he lays out the three modes of persuasion: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos.
Of the modes of persuasion furnished by the spoken word there are three kinds.
The first kind depends on the personal character of the speaker;
the second on putting the audience into a certain frame of mind;
the third on the proof, or apparent proof, provided by the words of the speech itself.
— The Art of Rhetoric, Part 2
The Art of Rhetoric by Call Number: PA3612.A8 R43x 1991ISBN: 0140445102Publication Date: 1992-03-03Here Aristotle (384-322 BC) establishes the methods of informal reasoning, provides the first aesthetic evaluation of prose style and offers detailed observations on character and the emotions. Hugely influential upon later Western culture, the Art of Rhetoric is a fascinating consideration of the force of persuasion and sophistry, and a compelling guide to the principles behind oratorical skill.
Books about Art & Design Theory
Design Elements, Form and Space by Call Number: N7430 .P85 2011ISBN: 9781592537006Publication Date: 2011-07-01With hundreds of fundamental principles for creating successful design compositions, Design Elements: Form & Space establishes a basis for visual organization strategies and serves as a comprehensive manual for graphic designers. Understanding how elements interact in a layout is a critical step in stimulating visual thinking and compositional decision-making, and this book illustrates these principles in numerous diagrams, drawings, and practical examples of application.
Geometry of Design, Revised and Updated by Call Number: N7431.5 .E44 2011ISBN: 9781616890360Publication Date: 2011-08-31Geometry of Design takes a close look at a broad range of twentieth-century examples of design, architecture, and illustration (from the Barcelona chair to the paintings of Georges Seurat, from the Braun hand blender to the Conico kettle), revealing underlying geometric structures in their compositions.
A History of Art History by Call Number: N5300 .W659 2019ISBN: 9780691156521Publication Date: 2019-09-03An authoritative history of art history from its medieval origins to its modern predicaments In this wide-ranging and authoritative book, the first of its kind in English, Christopher Wood tracks the evolution of the historical study of art from the late middle ages through the rise of the modern scholarly discipline of art history.
