Applied

Today I tried convincing my parents to let me cook instead of ordering fast food. I failed. Despite that, there are a few things I can recover from the attempt, such as my first conscientious application of the concepts presented in Chapters 1 and 2 of "Thank You for Arguing". 

There were three clear appeals and tenses in my argument. Following the line of Logos, Ethos, Pathos my chain of thought was: "Take out is unhealthy.  We are all trying to lose weight, and there are plenty of veggies awaiting in the fridge. It is also cheaper and faster to cook than to order. Plus you love my food, and know that the result will be exquisite because I am such a great cook. You know what? I can even make you those pork carnitas you love so much and have wanted for a while. Remember how we used to eat tacos every Sunday when you were together?"

It worked perfectly, I had them convinced at the prospect of a free, delicious, heartwarming meal that would take us back to those careless days when we were a family and everything was alright. Needless to say, there was nothing careless or alright about those days, as no time has ever been like that, but the taste of slow roasted pork obliterates memory. 

Then my mother remembered that she always ends up cleaning the dishes, and that I am very messy when not scolded by an irritated, fire spitting chef. That was the deal breaker. 

Still, I am quite proud that I managed to set my personal argument, set the goal for my audience, and accomplished persuasion by changing their opinion on delivery, stimulating their emotions on home cooking, and getting them to act (I was already setting the pots on the burners when Mom informed me they were no longer necessary).

From this experience I concluded, rhetoric is like physics. After learning about them, you have a deeper understanding of the concepts behind the facts. I can no longer feel a car break suddenly without thinking about inertia. I can no longer see any advertisement without knowing they are appealing to pathos.