Ethos, Logos, Pathos...

A large, shirtless, muscled man stands the length of a skyscraper with the illusion that he is able to do ‘cable fly’s’ on a double-craned construction site. The intensity in his face and the definition in his muscles give this man the credibility to sell anyone a membership to “Powerhouse Gym.”

             Ethos is a rhetorical appeal that appeals to character and authority. The man in this ad carries a great amount of authority for many reasons. He is not only the only person on this ad, but also the largest image, as he takes up the entire billboard. This fact tells the audience that he is the most important aspect, which adds to the questions of ‘who is he?’ and ‘why is he selling this product?’ It is assumed that he is a member of Powerhouse Gym and also that he is an example of what can happen to you physically when you join Powerhouse Gym. He represents the best candidate to persuade an audience to join this gym by his ‘super strength’ falsely represented in this ad. Ethos is used in this ad to establish the company’s credibility and ability to promote working out.

            Logos entails rational argument and appeals to reason. This ad exemplifies misleading uses of logos, called logical fallacies. It is fraudulent to suggest that joining Powerhouse Gym will make you look like this gentleman and therefore be able to do ‘cable fly’s’ as he is supposedly doing in the ad. It is confusing and misleading cause and effect that I derived from this ad. There are no statistics that show that by joining this gym you will gain a six-pack or an extra 5 inches of muscle around your arms.

            Pathos, or the appeal to the emotions, is clearly seen in this ad. The man’s expression on his face plays to the audience’s emotion. He looks intense and almost angry which could tell the audience of the seriousness of this gym and its willingness to get people in shape. This ad uses pathos to produce specific feelings in the audience: I want to be in shape; I want to look like that; I want to do ‘cable fly’s’ with that much weight. All of these things are done by the emotion in his face and also the layout and colors of the ad. He is centered and in very distinctive shades of grey and black. The background is also a very dark black, which can be associated with power. The different tones of grey can be associated with security and balance. This also plays to the emotion of the viewer because it suggests that this gym serves as a secure and reliable place.