Pathos, Logos, Ethos, Chávez

I never imagined a book on rhetoric would ever make me laugh. I'm certain the book's audience includes teenagers because those jokes cracked me up. Heinrichs' allusions to pop singers Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera are hilarious! Other than being funny, the book is actually interesting, but now I consider rhetoric as both a tool and a powerful weapon. Let's take Chávez as an example. That idiotic guy stands on a podium, convinces people to vote for him and wins the elections. Then he kills people, closes down embassies and frontiers, intimidates people, etc. Then he goes, addresses the audience once more and wins with 54% of the votes. I question these people's ignorance, but then reconsider. These people were tricked! Chávez used rhetoric to convince him his ideas and his interests would benefit the country. I'm sure these people don't know about pathos, logos, or ethos. Well, this guy is a professional "convincer,"to avoid calling him a liar. He appeals the masses, like every politician does. But he has his ways. He puts down competition so he can rise. He wears the Venezuelan flag to appeal patriotic people. He gifts home appliances to appeal the poor. How can compete with this level of rhetoric?

Ok, back to the lies and ways to convince people. To address a group of people, he must decide whether he wants to change their mood, mind, or willingness to carry put what he wants. I would think he aims for changing people's mind and making them both vote for him and support his ideals. But that's not all the time. In this particular speech, he also tries to change people's mood. The way he speaks and the harsh words he uses are convincing. For example, talking about the devil is something Muslims wouldn't understand but Christians and Catholics have the devil very present in their minds.

His techniques aren't the most subtle, but if he is doing bad things and people are keep on voting for him, he must be convincing a large group of people (not including me).