Ethos

Ethos is a Greek word corresponding roughly to Modern English's "ethics." However, the word has several special uses and contexts.

• Moral core: The disposition, character, or fundamental values peculiar to a specific person, people, culture, or movement: “They cultivated a subversive alternative ethos” (Anthony Burgess).

• In Rhetoric, "ethos" is one of the principles discussed by Aristotle as a component of all argument. Speakers must establish "ethos." On the one hand, this can mean merely "moral competence," but Aristotle broadens this word to encompass expertise and knowledge. When determining whether a given argument is valid or not, one must question the ethos the speaker has established. Violations of ethos can entail some of the following:
  • The speaker has a direct interest in the outcome of the debate (e.g. a person pleading innocence of a crime);
  • The speaker has a vested interest or ulterior motive in the outcome of the debate (e.g. a politician who owns a bank carries little credibility when speaking for bank-favorable legislation);
  • The speaker has no expertise (e.g. a farmer giving a speech on space flight carries less expertise than an astronaut).
• To establish rhetorical ethos, a speaker attempts to establish that she or he is dispassionate, knowledgeable, and interested in the public good.