Ethos, Pathos and Logos (ANSWERED)

QUESTION

Choose a short documentary from this website: https://www.shortoftheweek.com/channels/documentary/ (Links to an external site.).

After watching the documentary, answer the following questions. Your response should be at least 200 words total.

1. What is the name of the film? Please give the URL where it can be found.
2. Does the film seem to have a thesis? What is it? Is there more than one?
3. Briefly explain how the following are addressed in the film and how they affect the film’s argument:
   1. Ethos (the voice or persona of the main character/filmmaker):
   2. Pathos (appeals to emotion — patriotism, humor, etc.):
   3. Logos (logic):
4. Does the film seem to focus most on ethos, pathos, or logos? Why do you believe so?
5. What are some of the strengths and weaknesses of the documentary and the argument it presents?
6. Does the documentary leave you with any unanswered questions?

ANSWER

Ethos, Pathos, and Logos: “How to Tell Gunshots from Fireworks” Documentary

The name of the documentary used in this discussion is called; “how to tell gunshots from fireworks” by Philip Groth. It can be accessed from the link https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2022/08/17/tell-gunshots-fireworks/

This film has one thesis: consistency, determination, and persistence must be accompanied by defiance of physical and mental adversity for success.

The persona is a refugee who has faced rejection and limitations to movement. Given her experience, she explains how she has defied the odds to make the audience more likely to trust her. Ethos is used in the documentary through Melat Kejeta’s position before she became a success in athletics and during her training sessions to increase trust in people about success.

On the other hand, logos is used when Melat remembers where she came from as she mentions it. Moreover, Melat recalls how the reception in Germany as a black woman was, but still is proud to represent the country. The logical argument is how German might have contributed to her success, perhaps creating a reason for trusting Melat and her story.

Lastly, pathos is used in part of Melat’s narration on how they were treated as blacks in the European country. At the same time, Melat’s background creates reasons for the emotional arousal of the audience for sympathy.

The documentary focuses on pathos because, in most of it, Melat describes how she had to survive, her endurance, and her separation from her family to pursue her dreams. Furthermore, she lets the audience know the initial reception in Germany, which arouses sympathy and light anger.

The strength of this documentary is particularly how it presents the main argument that encourages the audience. Although the documentary shows discouraging moments when one thinks Melat is likely to give up, her determination is encouraging. Moreover, making her narrate her experiences first-hand creates authenticity, hence contributing to pathos. The weakness of most documentaries is monotony (Michalski, 2004). This documentary, too, does not shift attention from Melat to other characters, at least twice. Still, the documentary is ‘preachy’.

In conclusion, the documentary leaves the audience with unanswered questions about how her mother country received her, considering she had become an outcast after running off to Germany.

References

Groth, P. (2022). How to Tell Gunshots from Fireworks. Short of the Week. https://www.shortoftheweek.com/channels/documentary/

Michalski, M. (2004). [Review of Liberated Cinema. The Yugoslav Experience, 1945-2001, by D. J. Goulding]. The Slavonic and East European Review, 82(2), 346–348. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4213905

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